No. NO. Fuck that shit. I am tired of people telling other people “HOW” they “SHOULD” write. By all means, get betas, get editors, use proper grammar and punctuation and spelling and all the rules of proper writing, and try to steer clear of cliches and such. But no. Just. No. If you like writing…
I have to admit all those “Do’s and Don’ts” writing tips start to annoy me after a while. And they’re contradictory! “‘Said’ is overused! Use other words instead!” vs. “Other words are distracting! Just use ‘said!’” Screw that.
Here’s what matters: that your readers can follow the story; that your characters behave in a manner consistent with their own personalities as you’ve established them; and that you are able to communicate what you are trying to communicate.
For every single other ‘do’ or ‘don’t’ that you can name, I can probably point you to some writer—likely published, quite likely of literary significance—who broke the rule. Dense adverbs, obscure words, complicated clauses, cliches, I’ve seen them all, and I’ve seen them in my literature classes.
You know what no one should do? No one should write like James Joyce. But James Joyce did it and it earned him a place in literary history.
So yeah, there’s a place for betas and constructive criticism, and it’s a great and grand one. They can help you improve your writing so that YOU accomplish what you set out to do. They can help you communicate, clarify, and spot the issues in your own writing that you, from the inside, can’t recognize (it’s hard to realize when you’re confusing people as a writer, because you know perfectly well what you’re trying to say).
But feedback like, “I don’t like your interpretation of the characters” or “Why do you have to write this pairing/fandom/type of story?” is irrelevant. That’s a matter of personal taste. You’re telling someone how to write what YOU want them to write, and if you want that, then either get somebody to write you a giftfic, or else pay them for it.
Using lots of adverbs is a matter of taste. Using ‘hissed’ vs. ‘said?’ Matter of taste. (And anybody who tells you that it’s impossible to hiss or snarl the words ‘Get out’ has never wanted anyone out of their house badly enough. I have personally done it. I could record it for you so you know what it sounds like.)
So like Cali says: screw “SHOULD.”
consulting depressive: No. NO. Fuck that shit. I am tired of people telling other people…