Here are some guidelines and tips, and a critique template that I've adapted from online sources and past experience. This chapter will be helpful especially if you haven't been in a traditional critique group before.

First of all, many people make the mistake of thinking that 'critical' means looking for the problems with something. In fact, criticism can be both positive and negative. It's not the content that makes something critical, it's the thoughtfulness -- it's connecting the dots and sharing your connections.

It can help to know that critical consideration consists of three activities:

1) Describing the work (what does it look like? what is happening?):

Assume the audience has not and will not read the piece and that you are responsible for their understanding. You don't need to go in detail, just sum up what you understand.

Example of describing: So, what I understand is that this is a lost human civilisation in space and they are on a spaceship heading to xyz. Their primary conflict is alien species uvw and the lack of resources on their ship.

2) Interpreting the work (what does it mean? what is the author trying to do?):

Here you synthesize contextual information you have (story blurb, personal knowledge of the author, what you've heard him/her say in the past) with your own interpretation of the work.

Example of interpreting: So I get that you're trying to show that humans are arrogant, because I read that in your story blurb, but that doesn't come across in this piece yet. From this piece, I got that humans are weak and lost. The fact that the girl is crying in the very first scene shows me that this piece is going to be very emotional and probably sad, dystopian, etc.

3) Evaluating the work (is it interesting? does it "work"? does it grab you and keep you?)

This is the most difficult critical task, and the one most people skip when criticizing writing. To thoughtfully evaluate a piece of writing, you must determine what your criteria are for judging its effectiveness. Only you can provide this information. Do not assume the reader shares your point of view. Explain why you feel the way you do. "That's great!" or "This doesn't work for me" will not cut it.

Example of evaluating: I was turned off in the first scene of the girl crying because I don't really enjoy emotional pieces. The story got better as I went through and I realised the circumstances she was in. By the end, the chapter was very gripping because the dialogue was excellent, well-written and realistic and the pace was speeding up. The transition to the the battle scene was excellent because it was totally unexpected. I could feel their sense of dismay and surprise as the alien species bore down on them.

Note the word 'because' used frequently in evaluations.

WHAT TO FOCUS ON WHEN EVALUATING

Plot: what is happening, where are we in the story and does this live up to the expectations of readers for this part of the story? For example, the first page should 'grab' the reader in some way. Is the first page grabbing the reader? WHY?

Setting: is the setting vivid, detailed, realistic? Is the world-building apparent? Do you get a sense of the world, the location, etc? Why and how?

Characters: are the characters realistic and believable? Are the characters unique and three-dimensional, or are they coming across as flat and stereotypical? Do you like specific characters, and WHY?

Writing skill: is there too much exposition? not enough? Do the paragraphs flow and transition well? Are the sentences varied, long and short, or are they all the same? Are there any specific errors that pop up again and again? (Don't spend time pointing out one error here and one error there. If the person consistently makes the same error repeatedly, then point that out.)

Dialogue: is the dialogue realistic, and can you tell who is talking? Does the dialogue seem relevant and move the story forward or reveal the personality of the character?

Theme: what is the theme of the story, as far as you can tell? Where does the theme come through?

What if thesis: Science fiction is based on a 'what if' statement and that's why it's also called speculative fiction. Are you getting any sense of the possible 'what ifs' of this story? What do you think they are?

Critique Template

Describe - a summary of what you understood - one or two sentences

Interpret - does this fit what you know the author is trying to do - one or two sentences or more

Evaluate - are plot, dialogue, setting, characterisation working? WHY? Is the writing strong? WHY? What can you guess about the theme or What If question of the story? WHY? Evaluation can be 10-15 sentences.