Yo so I have not written in a damn long time. Like so long that it feels almost foreign to me. I can’t currently tell if the first 1k-ish words I have of New Shiny Project After Long Time is okay or if it’s trash or if I’m just out of practice and that’s why I feel rusty and it’s normal first drat uncomfy-ness or if it’s like…actually just shit. Like it’s not enough to actually post story-wise on here though to be fair I’m still not entirely certain how to do that either way.
So I was wondering is there any threads or places where people will look at the first page/few hundred words of something and give feedback, do I wait until I have enough to post a story, is there a thread in existence for this, can I make my own, basically I don’t want to step on any toes and advertise in the wrong area or do the wrong move or faux pas it up somehow but I feel like I need someone to look at what I have of a beginning just to see if I’m at the very least headed in the right direction in some way, shape, or form.
Please forgive me if this is breaking some type of critique rule or if I’m missing somethig obvious.
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I’d post the request in the read for reads and beta readers forum if you need feedback.
But I’ll also be very real with you. If it’s a first draft, it’s okay if it is hot garbage. It will be and it’s supposed to be. The only way to get better is to keep writing. Practice improves writing, but completing something and then going back and editing after it’s done is the best way to ensure improvement. If you edit your first hundred or so words before you’ve finished an entire draft, you’re really just nitpicking and wasting time. Just get the idea down, even if it’s bad. That’s what first drafts are for.
I also understand needing reassurance though, and if that’s the case, I don’t mind reading over a short snippet just to give you some feedback. Constructive criticism is always helpful if you can handle it and look at it objectively without taking offense. I try to be helpful without being hurtful as best I can when giving feedback.
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homie first drafts are supposed to be hot garbage you dump onto a page and bury where no one can see it. It’s okay if you’re writing trash rn, write it and let it be trash, don’t put too much pressure on yourself to get right back to writing well. you can edit it for other people later.
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I just always have a hard time starting books, if that makes sense. Like I know rough drafts are shit bc they’re always shit but I struggle with openings. Always have.
I’ve basically at the point written multiple openings for one chapter because I can’t figure out what works best.
Idk if this helps but I’m mainly looking for hook and flow and “X works versus Y” type feedback right now versus like a full in depth critique of something because it’s a rough draft. My main concern is having a solid few decent paragraphs that work okay but could be improved by future editing when the actual rough draft is done.
It’s not that I never ask or want critique I just currently am looking to see the “feel” of it, so to speak. I would look for more constructive criticism and more in depth critique once it is written fully and edited a bit, yknow? Am I making any sense?
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Yes, you are making perfect sense, no worries. I can take a look at what you’ve got and let you know which version works best as a hook and what flows better if that’s what you’d like. Maybe mix and match sentences from the different versions you’ve written and tell you which ones are strongest so you can take pieces from each to craft a new opening if that’s what you are after.
I have school right now so it may take me a bit to get to but if you’d like to send me a DM with what you’ve written, I can give you feedback when I’ve got time. I can definitely focus more on structure and overall message more than grammar and spelling, since it’s just a rough draft.
That would be wonderful! I’ll send it in a bit. And yes mix and match is great! I just am one of those people who needs to feel somewhat confident on the opening before I can get to the rest. The rest looking like trash fire is fine, it’s a rough draft. But I like to at least know I’m heading in the right direction.
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