Reviewing the Work of Others
by Angus H Day
When someone creates a work in
writing, artistic media, music or acting they have invested of themselves and
followed their muse. These are the
sources of entertainment and the stimulators of imagination in our
culture. They deserve our respect and
our gratitude for their effort to keep us thriving and open minded.
My point of view as an author and a
consumer of fiction is that there is nothing to be gained from a negative
review. The old maxim of 'If you don't
have something good to say, don't say anything at all' is not just to keep from
offend someone else, it is to keep from injuring yourself.
When ever we offer up negative
reviews whether they are justified or not they are inflicted upon the public
and the artist of the work. However
politely they may be worded they are an attack based on their venue. Attacks actually do harm to the attacker as
well, in this form they punish the attackers ability to enjoy anything in the
future without stabbing at it.
Bearing that in mind these are my
reviewing rules, the ones I hold myself to:
1) Regardless of how tedious or
wrong-choiced, once I have committed to review something I will finish it.
2) I will find two or more things
about the work to celebrate and put some work into composing a well thought out
review based on the things that I liked.
3) If I have a problem with
something about the work, and feel strongly enough to take up the challenge, I
will make the effort to contact the artist and express my view with respect.
4) I will not publish negative
reviews, which does not mean that my reviews are dishonest, meaning that the
attributes I do talk about are ones that I like.
5) I will always compose my reviews
off line, proofread, then post.
6) Do not spoil the plot for
readers who haven't read the work.
We do not have to be snobs to be
quality reviewers of works of art. Being
considerate and respectful is the way to go in regards to the target and your
own conscience. For those who would
state that 'I wish they had told me how awful that was' I would add that you
would not want that to be for public consumption.
Format:
Title
Artist
(Rating system as provided by the
venue)
Two to three sentences minimum to
describe and highlight the work without spoilers.
"I would recommend this
to" or "for".
Review. A simple and gracious act to thank the artist
for their effort. Not a venue for
attacking someone because they are not your favorite whatever.
