Review – Page 59

is for feedback.

When I use the word feedback, I don’t mean a spontaneous comment. Look at the construction of the word; it is a response.

A review is a good example of feedback, and I have my own set of rules when writing a review. Yes, I know there will now be some of you that will not be surprised by that admission.

I believe that in life, if you don’t have something constructive to say, then don’t say anything. When still in the retail management role I held by the maxim: ‘Praise in public, reprimand in private’. A combination of those two trains of thought takes us some way to understanding my attitude to writing, or not writing reviews

1. Even if I don’t like book or story, I make a point of not demeaning the author, or their efforts.

2. If a piece of writing is particularly bad, whether it be a story or book, I do not write a public review.

3. If I find; typos, incorrect syntax, or a glaring error, I make an effort to give the author a private ‘heads-up’ by email.

4. When I write a public review, it normally takes the form of a ‘praise sandwich’. My intro will be a positive statement, followed by the body of the comment which may have some constructive criticism (if appropriate), followed by a summary which will be another positive statement, even if it’s only a couple of words of encouragement.

All of us that call ourselves writers enjoy what we do, otherwise we wouldn’t do it. Nothing damages confidence and self-esteem more than a completely negative review. If we write a mainly critical review, we should try to find something positive to say.

As writers, we shouldn’t be competing with each other; we should be supportive. I believe that those of us who have learned lessons should be prepared to help others. I came to writing seriously in my mid-50’s and I continue to take heed of other writers of all ages.

Let’s go forward by using feedback as a positive tool, to enhance our community and improve the relationships in our chosen profession, (or hobby in some cases). Together we can take the joy and success to new heights. This is a call to arms my literary friends.

Thank you for reading, and I’ll see some of you tomorrow for G, let me think …

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is for capitals. At first glance when writing, the use of capital letters seems easy enough, but when you look a little deeper, it has some basic rules which are easy to miss.

If we take the most obvious examples, we’d be looking at things like proper names; John Smith, Janis Joplin, Cary Grant, etc. There is nothing too difficult there, because a person’s name will not alter in any circumstances within writing, apart from different spelling.

Countries and cities have something a little trickier to consider. For example, we would write; London, New York, Paris, England, France, and Africa. When we use the nation’s name as an adjective, the capital letter remains constant; English pub, French fashion house, African township and so on.

The exception to this rule, is when the reference is ‘distant’, and is not necessarily ‘connected’ to the place. We have examples like; french windows, brussels sprouts, danish pastry, and yorkshire pudding. Some writing programmes would have you believe otherwise, by highlighting the word as a spelling error – so be wary.

Rank and title are a common area for mistakes. I’ll demonstrate examples in dialogue.

“Superintendent Jackson told me that he would investigate the matter,” Peter said.

“I was told by the superintendent that he’d investigate the matter,” Peter said.

Relatives can draw you into making errors too. Dad, Mum, Granddad, and so on.

Gordon said: “Mum, are you going to pick up my uniform later?”

Sally said: “I saw your mum down at the bus stop earlier Gordon.”

In summary, I would like to give credit to my bible on this matter: ‘The Writer’s abc Checklist’, by Lorraine Mace and Maureen Vincent-Northam. That book is never further than arm’s length when I’m writing anything serious.

The correct answer to the question at the end of my ‘A’ post was 8. The closest answer was 9, which came from Sarah Neeve, so well done to you Sarah, and thanks for having a go.

Thank you for dropping by. I’ll be back tomorrow with my thoughts on D.

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