I was wondering how many of you do blogs for critiquing your WIPs? (That's Works in Process for the non-writers.) I have been setting one up and am about to put up the first few chapters for those that I invite to read and critique to give their input.
How do they work for you? Is it better to rely solely on a critique group like Critique Circle or others? If you don't use a blog, how do you send your wips out to your beta readers?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
16 comments:
Ah, good question. I opened up my "novel blog" for family and friends, mostly, because I got sick of printing out the manuscript and spending money on ink and paper. It just seemed easier to put it online. And it was.
But for critiquing... Most people prefer to be able to type in the manuscript, so for a serious critique, I email the manuscript to those who are not on my writer's group online (CC).
But I also like the novel blog for displaying my work. It makes me feel better to know it's backed up all one site and that if anybody wants to see it real quick or just read it for fun, it's all on an easily accessible site and easy to read - shown the way I intended.
Also, emailing out manuscripts to those I don't know that well (that have have expressed interest in reading my story), worries me sometimes, because I never know if my work is going to get deleted off their computer or not when they are finished. I hope that makes sense.
I posted but it didn't take. Darn it.
No, I don't have a novel blog, but I'm wondering about it a lot more these days.
I just need to find out the disadvantages.
I don't have a blog for each single WIP, and I don't think I ever will. But, I do have a blog with synopses, excerpts, character descriptions and pics for all of my WIPs. It's not for crits, just for people to get more of an idea what I'm working on and what of my stuff they'd like to read.
I so feel your pain *dies of flu*
I use people in rounds. One group gets draft 1. Second group gets draft 2, etc., etc. By the time I think I've got it almost perfect, I post it online. I learned to do it this way because I've found that most people online will only comment about one or two things, and they are usually nit-picky things, such as grammar. If I get it as perfect as I can, then I'm more likely to get feedback on something important that I've missed, as opposed to something little I'd fix later.
Beth, that is fantastic advice! Thanks!
Glam. Thanks. That's what I'm going for. I'm not sure how much input I'll get on CC, but I'm going to have it there too.
Justus. I'll let you know if I run across any down sides.
Sarah, I think that a good idea when you have more than one wip.
Beth, Thanks beth. Like glam said, that's great advice. The trick is getting those first few readers.
I have my writers website that has sample chapters and blurbs and pictures dealing with each book, plus pages on me and my contact info @ authorjennijames.com but for my blog, i don't usually do crtiques that way. All of my proof readers are completely one on one.. I do make sure that my copyright is on there. But honestly, i have such a backlog of paper trail and an agent now, so i'm not too worried about anyone stealing my books... LOL! I'd like to see them try, actually.
And just recently i've posted a few more chapters of my current WIP because when i posted the first two a few days ago, I got a lot of hits from NYC so, I figure it doesn't hurt to let them read a little more. I know lots of people who have found their agents and editors by posting their stories online bit by bit.
Thanks, Jenni. I hadn't thought about publishing to my public blog.
I don't use a blog. I use trusted people and my critique group.
Thanks PJ. I only plan on letting trusted people onto that blog. It's just easier with people so spread out or so I was thinking.
PJ - Only invited people are allowed into the novel blogs. I think once I'm published, though, that I won't put any of my writing up on a blog. What about you, Lois?
I have enough trouble keeping up with a non-novel blog, I'm not sure I could manage one for critiquing my stuff. :P So I generally stick to CC and occasionally email writing partners.
For me, it's all about being lazy and convenience. Lol. CC has a system set up that I find easy to use and so I use it for almost all my critiquing needs.
My 2.5 cents (have to compensate for inflation).
~Merc
glam, Yeah, I think once I'm published there we no blogging the novels. It really is more for helping me get to the publishing part.
merc. I have been sticking with CC somewhat, but I wanted to have a way for family members who wanted to read too.
I use my blog for ranting and for gushing. My critters are all friends of mine--luckily I have a lot of friends who are aspiring writers themselves, or at the least very well-read.
However, I recently learned how to password-encrypt an entry on Blogger, and I could see myself using that to post short stories for commenting.
I have absolutely no fear that anybody would steal a work of mine. Really, I don't think that's a realistic concern for any writer. (In a similar vein, I don't put copyright notices on my works. They don't afford me any protection I don't have without it.) I'd encrypt stuff more to protect publication rights, since many magazines and publishers do consider non-password-protected online files to be publication, and thus will not buy first rights from a story that has been "published" online.
Well I've never done it, having not finished the WIP yet! But lots of great tips from your comments so thanks for asking the question.
Joe, Thanks for the tips. I'm glad you said something about the not publishing except in password protected areas so that it's not considered publishing online.
Alexa, I'm glad I asked too.
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