This is a post that I've been meaning to write for a while. It is not inspired by anyone in particular, but my own critique toward the criticism we have found in many communities as a whole. I am not a stellar example of giving or receiving good criticism. So, hopefully this post will encourage myself, and perhaps others, into a more… shall we say, “efficient“ attitude toward criticism.

Drawing and writing, for business, personal, or even entertainment like fan fiction and fantasy, as soon as we involve the word “Art”, it becomes a personal thing. We cannot help but make strong emotional connections to our creative work. For us, it is more than work, it is a performance, an unique presentation of ourselves, whether we express ourselves through writing, pictures, sculpture, music, or more. This, of course, is not a bad thing. But it can lead to conflicts when we feel that our “personal stuff” is being pointed out as a problem or a shortcoming in someone else's perspective. Some people might even go out of their way to attack others with their criticism, but even then, you can still learn something.

When responding to criticism…

- Don't make excuses. If you just don’t care to put much effort into your work, for whatever reason, guess what? That is fine! It is also ok if you just don’t care to fix a particular mistake, or even, intentionally make it. None of these matter. However, do try your best not to make excuses for doing what you did. That tends to make your critics feel unappreciated at best, and that you intentionally wasted their time analyzing your work.

- Don’t be defensive. It is alright to disagree with someone, but being defensive is a different thing. For example, if someone says “I think you drew the left hand too long” and you agree. Why not just agree with them? There is no point in distracting them with saying things like, “Yeah but the fingers are very proportional, I don’t want to ruin that by fixing it.” unless you feel that your critic might benefit from your own perspective.

- Don’t judge your critic too fast. Sometimes when you look at something, all you can see are the parts that you dislike. Once you have seen something, it cannot be unseen! So do understand that, even when the comments don’t have anything positive, it doesn’t mean the person hates you, they might even actually like that piece of work! Just be careful about how you read critical comments. Most, if not all the time, assuming the person is trying to be helpful is the best course of action.

- Don’t feed the trolls. This one is just obvious, if someone is being an ass, delete their comment, report them, or just ignore them. Don’t let them bring you to their level, or they WILL beat you. With experience.

- Do thank your critics. Disagreement happens, and it is not the end of the world. Even if you disagree with what someone said, or if you aren't planning on working on it more, criticism might still influence you in the future. You never know! Thank them for their time and effort. Reward the good behavior, and good behavior will happen more often.

~ Above all, do not take criticism personally.

When writing criticism…

- Don’t fixate on the negative. As they say, “you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” When making a comment remember to put in the positive things you see too, so the negativity doesn’t get all the attention. Even if you can’t think of anything, be encouraging. Be sincere, do try not to make up something just to be “fake nice". There's a difference between being tactful and being false.

- Be respectful, even if you disagree. Just follow the same policy as responding to criticism; be respectful and everything will work out just fine.

- If you feel qualified, offer advice. Sometimes artists or writers could use more guidance than just having what is wrong pointed out -- they need to be pointed in the correct direction to fixing it. But if they are more qualified than you, be respectful about it. "ur grammer sux needs moar oral vore" never helped anyone.

~ Above all, don't give criticism personally.

Some people benefit from criticism more than others. Some people do well at spotting deficiencies in their own work, but everyone has had that moment where you have a feeling something is wrong, but just can’t put your finger on what! So even if they don’t tell you how to improve it, it can still help you brainstorm in new directions. If you need help, ask for it nicely.

The key point here is respect! Even if you think someone is being disrespectful, that is not an excuse to be rude in return. Show your class, instead of fueling rudeness with rudeness, and we'll have a much more enjoyable community.5 Comments