Pray Tell, I Ask?
I remember the first time(s) I received supervisor feedback on my writing. Both times I cried. First, as an undergraduate at the University of Ibadan and second, as a graduate student in the US. The undergraduate experience was right there in my supervisor’s office. The tears began falling fast and wouldn’t stop no matter how I tried. I remember, she being so shocked, telling me no one had ever cried at her feedback (but hey there’s always a first time). The second time I knew to go to my cubby and cry ‘small’ so others in the lab won’t see me.
Why am I presently telling? Because feedback can sting and what we sometimes call feedback might just be unbridled criticism. I look back at the first time and what hurt the most was that the thesis had been written from nothing, with not much guidance or explicit expectations. Then upon submitting, no acknowledgment of all the work that went into it (we were still writing longhand on foolscap paper and going to a copy-center to type up. Ha!). Rather, it was a torrent of all the things that were wrong and how it could have been written better. The next time as a graduate student, even with knowing so much more was expected of me as a student in the US, that knowledge did nothing to reduce the shock and sinking feeling in my chest at seeing the red ink, comments and squiggly lines filling the screen and paper.
In editing (as in life), needed feedback may be developmental for structural flow and logic in the writing, or it may just be the grammar. Either way, the feedback given should always be constructive regarding how to make the piece better than it was at last draft.
Today, I look back at that initial draft of my first paper and laugh at how I could have thought it was anywhere near good. Oh, the joys of hindsight. All this comes to mind because in this season at GFE we are thick in the season of writing and editing academic materials. Be it writing (and revising) manuscripts, promotion letters and many narrative essays.
I am not a big fan of the term ‘constructive criticism’ because the word criticism is intrinsically negative, connoting disapproval based on personal judgment and perception. How can something destructive be constructive? If you think about it as as tearing down to build a-new, then perhaps it makes sense.
However, not all writing needs to be “torn down” before building up. If you must use this approach, remember it’s the writing you are tearing down and not the writer.
Writing can be very personal though, so how do we give feedback in a meaningful and constructive way?
- Feedback should be detailed, information specific and relative to the prose at hand.
- Take the relationship between the two parties into consideration since feedback should not be given unsolicited.
- Remember that behind the words on faceless paper (or email) is a person.
As an editor, returning good constructive feedback is one of the most critical parts of my work. Not the adjustments, but rather how those adjustments are presented to clients.
Feedback should be presented to preserve the dignity of the writer and the written work, while recognizing that the relationship is an honored collaboration on all fronts. Even ‘unpaid’ work is still an honorable collaboration. Any other way is definitely below standard for us here at GFE.
How do you give feedback to or receive feedback from those you work and write with?
Resources and Readings
There are many books that cover the topic of giving good feedback back directly or indirectly. Other ways I think about feedback is through teachings and writings on negotiation and conflict resolution. All of which can be done either/both in person or through the paper it is written on. I share three of my faves below.
- What Editors Do by Peter Ginna
- The Subversive Copy Editor by Carol Fisher Saller
- Getting Beyond No by William Ury
What other resources do you turn to help you frame feedback well? Share your comments with us.
““Criticism [Feedback] like rain, should be gentle enough to nourish a man’s growth without destroying his roots.”
