On the other hand...

[kaigou]

Maybe I should stick to technical manuals as the only 'short' thing I can write, if I listen to the slush response at Baen:

All setup, and not even good setup. The relationships between the characters are not at all clear.

Hunh. I'd say we're 2-for-0 on Baen, because the feedback's critical -- as promised -- but hardly constructive. A'course, I'm also possibly 2-for-0 on whether I can write a short story. Thus once again I must remind myself of mikkeneko's comment about writing short stories:

It involves being able to think of all sorts of cool complications and developments that could come of a scenario, and being willing to say, "That'd be really cool. Someone should write it. Somebody who's not me."

ETA: I should point out that this particular short story is one in which, in the fourth paragraph, an entire paragraph is dedicated to a judge's announcement that character B now has custody of character A. And the only other speaking part of note is described immediate upon introduction as working with B, and being B's best friend. So I'm left wondering what relationships are in doubt -- brother, sister, friend/coworker, gee, I thought that was clear.

Then again, I wonder if this is the same person whose "critique" on the Georgetown story was simply, "This is too wierd." Which, again, just such a sterling example of useful crit.

*rolls eyes*

Comments

[meritjubet.livejournal.com]

Not too much in depth reading, if that's what the person wrote... they forgot details like that.

[kaigou.livejournal.com]

I'm contemplating writing the forum and suggesting they just attach polls to every story: a simple choice between "doesn't work for me" and "I'd recommend this" and "needs work, see comments" ... then those folks who want to reject but without actually, y'know, giving anything useful could get their jollies with the "doesn't work for me" but the neutral tone would mask their inherent maliciousness moronicness.