What should you ask for when you're requesting feedback on your writing? It may feel very daunting just to think about showing your work to someone and asking for their comments ... and I know some writers get stuck because they're not sure how to approach asking for feedback.
Whether you're requesting feedback from a friend, a beta reader, a writers' group, an editor, or anyone else, it's helpful to be clear upfront what you're looking for.
Sometimes, writers will tell me they're grateful for any feedback ... and I'm sure they are, but I always want to tailor my
feedback to what's most useful for them and their project! From the point of view of the person offering feedback, it's also easier to find useful suggestions if you've got a specific question or angle in mind.
So here's what I'd recommend. First, explain what stage you're at. Is this a rough first draft, a polished final draft, or something in between? And if you're sending a single
chapter, is it the first chapter, one from the middle, or near the end?
Then, ask for any of the following:
#1: Feedback on One or Two Specific Areas of Writing
Is there a particular area of writing that you find tricky or that you're concerned about? Maybe you find dialogue really tough to write well, or you know you often struggle to get the pacing of a story right.
Ask directly for feedback on these areas, e.g. I'd love to hear how the main characters are coming across or Could you let me know if the pacing
feels off at any point?
#2: Feedback on Something You're Not Sure is Working
Have you got a nagging feeling that a particular moment or scene in your story isn't quite working? Maybe there's a plot twist that you want to hint at in advance (without the reader
guessing it five chapters ahead). Or perhaps you've included a dramatic flashback, but you're not sure if it's positioned at the right point in your narrative.
Go ahead and ask for feedback on specific points in your story, e.g. Does the reveal in Chapter 12 make sense? or Could you follow the timelines okay or were they confusing?
#3: Feedback at a Certain Level (Big Picture vs Details)
Although people will usually be clued in by your novel's status as a "first draft", "close to final draft", etc, it can be helpful to spell out what level of feedback you're looking for. Are you after big picture suggestions and
impressions (e.g. about the characters, plot, pacing) or detailed line edits and typo spotting?
Again, simply ask directly for what you need. I'm not too worried about typos and similar at this stage, I just want your overall impressions ... or This is a near-final draft so I'm not looking to make big changes, but I'd love it if you could point out any mistakes or clunky-sounding
sentences.
#4: Feedback That Works for You on an Emotional Level
As fiction writers, we can feel incredibly vulnerable when asking for feedback. Our stories may be extremely precious to us, even if we're not writing about subject matter that's especially
personal.
It's absolutely fine to let people know what kind of feedback you're feeling ready for. Maybe you want encouragement only, please! because your project is feeling so raw and new. Or maybe you'd like to be told any parts of my story that made you laugh.
There's nothing picky or needy about being clear with others what type of feedback you need. If they've offered to give feedback on your work, they want to spend that time being as genuinely helpful to you as possible. Get clear with yourself what you want ... then explain this to them too.
Happy writing,
Ali
P.S. If you missed last week's blog post, you can find it here:
Using Apostrophes Correctly: From the Easy to the Tricky Cases
