BronxWench

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I have to say, I had one reviewer elsewhere who did the good, the bad and the ugly when he reviewed. He was harsh, exacting, and almost universally hated, and the first time he left me a review I read it twice, re-read my chapter and PM'd him to discuss some of what he'd said because it was utterly valid. I wound up actually enjoying verbally fencing with him, and while there were times I disagreed with his critiques as being purely opinion and therefore inherently a matter of personal bias, he made me think and grow as a writer. He could have been nicer, and he wasn't nearly as good a writer as he was a reviewer, but there was gold in his criticism. So, if I got a review like the one above, I'd re-read my chapter or story, and try to see it from the perspective of the reviewer. Even if I didn't agree fully, I can almost bet there'd be something in that review that would help me improve. Then again, I'm serious about writing, and I'm serious about improving my writing. But the idea of sandwiching concrit between layers of positive comments is a good one as a general rule of thumb. People are always more receptive if they don't feel defensive, and criticism tends to make us defensive, doesn't it?

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Original fiction has its share of authors who are hellbent on garnering reviews, but for the most part, lack of a preexisting fandom does help. That's the mod opinion. As an author who also writes Original submissions, there is the usual predisposition toward vampires, weres, and slash in that subdomain, and I've seen extremely good works get little to no attention because they don't fall into the more popular genres. On the other hand, it's utterly gratifying to write something that is entirely one's own work, so I consider it well worth it.

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I'll be perfectly honest. I have had the oh-so-delightful experience of being attacked personally for my role as a moderator. It's stupid, and childish, and not what I expected from people on this site, but I tend to give people more credit than they deserve, it seems. Apparently, not only did these bullies never bother to actually read the Terms of Service and Content Guidelines that they agreed to when making their account, they find it unreasonable for us to expect them to actually comply with it. Although we now use a separate moderator account for our work here, I don't think I'm alone in remaining reluctant to expose myself to the bullshit of retaliation reviews. While I'm intelligent enough not to take the content to heart, I'm also hampered in how I can respond because I am a mod for the site, and even in my "personal" role, what I do and say reflects on the site as a whole. I know that standing up to bullies works, but I can't do that, and silence only encourages that particular form of vermin, whereas I'd rather hold up a mirror and force them to confront their own blindingly evident inadequacies. Even worse, they help to alienate readers and authors who would otherwise leave reviews that were meaningful and contained useful concrit. I enjoy being told what worked, but even more so, I want to know what doesn't work. I will never improve if I don't know where I'm lacking, and I'm not delusional enough to think I don't have vast room for improvement. I particularly resent losing the gorgeous and invaluable concrit from ShadowKnight, and the blunter but no less cherished concrit from wanderingaddict. They kept me going when I started writing here, and I've taken their advice to heart, to my great benefit. The utter nadir, though, is seeing writers with talent and potential crushed by bullies who unleash the full fury of their minions on someone who dares to leave a less than fanpoodling review. It's not in my scope of authority, but I'd cheerfully ban those bullies without a moment's hesitation. I never permitted my children to throw tantrums in public and if certain users want to behave like children, I'm more than happy to administer swift parental response. Being an adult comprises more than just having reached a certain chronological benchmark.

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