Criticism Policy

This policy is enforced by staff, and is determined on a case-by-case basis. Should you feel any violations are occurring within this policy, feel free to PM any member on the staff list to report it. Alternatively, report it to our Discord Server.


Rules:

Whenever giving critique, these rules are enforced, and should be followed. Should you feel these rules are being broken, report as stated above.

  • 1. Critique based on only the work itself.
    • When giving critique, you should only talk about the work itself. In no way should you insult the author, and there are no exceptions. For example, stating "Your concept was good, excluding [insert], but your execution was done rather poorly, and needs work in [insert]." is perfectly fine, but stating "This is the worst thing I've ever seen. You're a horrible author." is never tolerated.
    • You are free to suggest readers to try guides, do more research in any category, or simply state that they should get more experienced by reading more on-site work. However, do this in a respectable manner, as this can easily be interpreted as insulting to the author.
  • 2. Your post should not just be "filler"
    • Stating things such as "I like this!" and "This isn't good"is not helpful. Elaborate on what you enjoyed, or what wasn't good. Your criticism should have some depth to it. State alternatives, add depth, and make it useful.
    • You are free to tell your author you are leaving a placeholder. However, please refrain from leaving a large amount, and try to get to those placeholders in a timely manner (24-48 hours is a typical amount). Should someone leave you a placeholder, then not reply within that time period, feel free to PM them reminding them of the placeholder itself.
    • Don't state that any of the problems are "obvious". If the problems were obvious, the author would have noticed. Instead, state the problems which are allegedly obvious, in order to help the author themself.

Guidelines

Whenever giving critique, these are some guidelines which should be followed.

  • 1. Make your criticism helpful to the author.
    • Your criticism should tell the author exactly what you found wrong, but more importantly, should tell the author how to improve on the work itself. Good critique helps the author by telling them how they should move forward into the next draft of their concept. Alternatively, suggest what could make the article better as a whole
  • 2. Be strict, not mean.
    • There is no need to make your critique seem less harsh than it is, and may only give the impression that the article is ready for posting, when it oftentimes isn't. That being said, refrain from being actively rude when giving critique. Being rude may discourage an author from writing, which is not what we want.
  • 3. Difference between sandbox critique and on-site critique.
    • Whilst the article is within a sandbox, and is not a main-site work, critique should have depth to it. The critique should be enough for the author to make edits into a new draft, so be aware of this when giving critique.
    • When a work is on-site, you are not entitled to give critique in the first place. You are open to not leave anything at all, and simply leave a vote on the article. If you choose to leave critique, feel free to leave short statements. Feel free to simply state "I like it!" to main-site articles, or else a joke about the article, but refrain from spammy comments.
  • 4. Have an open mind when giving critique
    • Respect people who do specific things, such as have author avatars, or else choose to write in a specific way. Remember, your style will vary widely from other authors, so respect that.

Receiving critique rules:

Receiving critique is why the criticism policy exists, and as such, there should be some guidelines for receiving critique, which are as follows:

  • 1. Be respectful
    • No one here is paid to give you critique, they are taking time out of their day to offer words of advice to your work. Everyone here wants to help you, and as such, you should be respectful to your critters. Disagreeing with the critters is fine, but don't actively insult your critter for disliking your work. All other rules stem from this.
  • 2. Callback rules
    • Oftentimes, your critters will give critique, and you'll wish for them to be called back for a second look, and that is perfectly alright to do! However, do be wary of two separate things:
      • A. If your critter wishes to not come back, be respectful about it. They are not entitled to give you critique in any way. You are allowed to ask why, but if they give no answer, respect that as well. Oftentimes, critters will not be experienced enough in the field of writing you wish to write for, so respect them.
      • B. Don't callback critters if you have not made the suggestions they proposed. This gets redundant and spammy quickly. If you choose to not take their crit, you are allowed to do so, but don't call them back to the same draft. Remember, these people took time out of their day to read your work, so if you feel like their crit isn't helpful to you, don't make them reread the same draft again. It's disrespectful.

Guidelines:

When receiving critique, the following are there to be helpful. Repeated violations of these can result in a cease and desist for receiving crit, but they are not enforced on a case-by-case basis. It is still advised you follow these at all times.

  • 1. Take the critique to heart.
    • If someone says that your concept simply isn't good, take it to heart and look towards their suggestions for improvement. Don't be a brat and ignore it, these are people who want to help you. Following through with critique is one of the best ways to improve your idea as a whole.
  • 2. Be patient
    • Critters are not your designated helpers who are required to help you. They are taking time out of their lives to help your idea. They want to see your concept bloom, but they have stuff to do. This especially applies to staff, who can greenlight. People have lives they need to attend to. Don't spam critters asking for critique, as you'll likely only end up getting crit slower anyways. Respect staff and their time, keep in mind, we have lives and staff duties to attend to.
  • 3. Remember all critters are different
    • One critter may be new to critiquing, have lower standards, and have less of an eye for concepts. They may say your idea is good to go. However, this does not apply to everyone as a whole. Different critters will find different errors, and that should be respected. If you get negative feedback, don't just say "Well X person liked it." They may like it, but this person doesn't.
  • 4. Remember that critters may make mistakes.
    • Maybe your critter mixed up characters, and made false judgements. Maybe they skimmed over a line. Don't ridicule them for that. Everyone makes mistakes, and that's perfectly fine! Correct them politely and move on.

If you have any questions about the policy itself, leave your point in the forums, or else message us via PM or on Discord!


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