Is reviewing a piece in a short, 7-9 sentence paragraph that covers all the main points of the story (grammer, characterization, description, etc.) a good method of reviewing?
While it may not be tremendously in-depth, any review is better than nothing (excluding the one-liners). I'd recommend you at least add in a couple of examples from the text. I think that really helps the writer.
The depth of a review isn't in how many words you present, it's teh analysis that precedes it. A good, concise review that homes in on the salient points is an excellent approach, in my opinion. However, I do think it's a good idea to include some specific examples of the points you are making, where possible. Obviously, in terms of the overall plat, that may not be possible, but for grammar or sentence structure, it can be much more enlightening than simply saying, for example, "Your sentences tend to be too long and complex. They lose the reader partway through."
Ok, I see what you guys mean. Thanks alot for helping me out! I shall go out and bring the world decent reviews.
Of course the time issue is the major concern for the reviewers and such, but personally I look at 2-3 sentences from every paragraph to see if it catches my attention (potentially everyone), then if im interested/impressed/concerned i would go ahead and read the whole thing on my free time and do a solid review. I'm not a Cowell-esque basher and destroyer of souls but I compliment on what they did well THEN going on to the wrong things.
I'd caution anyone to at least add something of a positive note in a review on this forum, even though that might be sometimes hard to find! Even saying something such as 'if you changed that to this, it would be good'. Many people who post stuff for review are young or new to writing and excited at the prospect, they are learning the craft of writing, and to mercilessly stamp on such efforts without adding at least some cause for optimism, would in my view be wrong, as we are not reviewing things so that people can choose to buy something, but trying to help people improve. You don't help people by lying and saying something is good when it isn't, but you don't help the cause of literature by turning people away from giving it a try either. So I often try to highlight something of that nature at both the start and the end of a review, in order that it will not be missed. On the other hand, when I review products, as I sometimes do, if they are crap and people should not waste their money, then I will say that. But you won't find me doing that on this site when people ask for a review. Al
I agree with Al B, every review needs at least one postitive note. I got many bad reviews on other sites; many of them were filled with profanties and criticism; and they most certainly did nothing for my confidence or my work. If there isn't a single positive note in a review, I'm prone to just giving up on the project altogether. As for the length, what matters is quality, not quantity. Provide a few examples of what the writer has done wrong or where he/she could improve, give a few suggestions, pinpoint the best and worst parts of the piece, and you should do fine.
