Critique Technique Table of Contents

Here’s a Table of Contents of all of the Critique Technique posts to make it easier to go directly to the post you want to read.

Introductory Posts

Part 1: Critique, Technique, and Procedure

Part 1A: The Critiquer’s Mind

Part 1B: Life on the Other Side of the Critique

Part 2: Series Overview

Reader Response

Part 3: How Do You Feel?

Part 3.5: Authorial Intentions and Tracking Your Own Responses

Beginnings and Endings

Part 5: Weak or Missing Hook

Part 6: The Wrong Beginning

Part 7: Scene and Chapter Endings

Part 8: Story Endings

Characterization

Part 9: Characters and Conflict

Part 10: Poor Characterization

Part 11: Lack of Character Development

Part 12: Showing and Telling in Character Development

Part 13: Timing the Reveal

Part 14: Out-of-Character Behavior

Part 15: Unclear Character Goals

Part 16: Unclear or Insufficient Obstacles

Part 17: Dialect, Foreign Languages, and Jargon

Setting

Part 18: Lost In Space

Part 19: Vague Setting

Part 20: Too Much Setting Detail

Plot

Part 21: Unclear Plot

Part 22: Overly Complex Plot

Part 23: Confused Storyline

Flashbacks, Flash-Forwards, and Backstory

Part 24: Unclear Transitions

Part 25: Misused Backstory or Flashback

Part 26: Tangents

Narrative and Dialogue

Part 23.5: Read-Out-Loud Tools

Part 27: Narrative and Dialogue

Part 28: Awkward Dialog

Part 29: Writers’ Tics

Part 30: Too Many Words, or Too Few

Part 31: The Wrong Words

Part 32: %*@!$#^!!!! (Swearing)

Part 33: Contradictions

Part 34: Imbalance Between Narrative and Dialogue

Part 35: Name-Calling

Part 36: As You Know, Bob

Pace

Part 37: The Pieces of Pace

Part 38: Pace: Speed It Up, Whoa It Up, or Change It Up

Description

Part 39: The Gray Haze

Part 40: What Was That Again?

Part 41: The Dreaded Expository Lump

Part 42: Too Many Notes

Part 43: Telling, Not Showing

General Story-Telling Problems

Part 44: Pop Goes the Reader!

Part 45: No Story Arc

Part 46: Padding

Part 47: Danglers

Part 48: Stating the Obvious

Part 49: Point of View Shifts

Mechanical Errors

Part 50: Spelling

Part 51: Punctuation

Part 52: Capitalization

Part 53: Grammar Errors

Part 54: Manuscript Format

Positive Reinforcement

Part 55: Good Job!

Part 56: Great Start!

Part 57: Magic Middles

Part 58: Ending a Scene or Chapter Well

Other Topics

Part 59: The End

Bonus Material: Read-Out-Loud Tools and Techniques