What are some best practices for requesting and receiving feedback on your writing projects?

1 Identify your goals

Before you ask for feedback, you should have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your writing project and what kind of feedback you need. For example, do you want to check your grammar and spelling, improve your structure and flow, or refine your tone and style? Depending on your goals, you may need to seek feedback from different sources, such as peers, experts, clients, or readers.

3 Provide guidelines

When you request feedback, you should provide your reviewers with some guidelines on how to give it. For example, you can specify the deadline, the format, the scope, and the criteria for the feedback. You can also ask them to use a feedback tool or a rubric to make the process easier and more consistent. Providing guidelines will help you get more focused and relevant feedback, as well as avoid misunderstandings or frustrations.

4 Receive feedback gracefully

When you receive feedback, you should be open-minded and appreciative. Feedback is not a personal attack, but an opportunity to learn and improve. Therefore, you should avoid being defensive or dismissive, and instead listen carefully and ask questions. You should also thank your reviewers for their time and effort, and acknowledge their contributions. Receiving feedback gracefully will help you build trust and rapport with your reviewers, as well as enhance your reputation as a professional writer.

5 Evaluate feedback critically

After you receive feedback, you should evaluate it critically and decide what to do with it. Feedback is not always accurate or useful, so you should not blindly accept or reject it. Instead, you should compare it with your goals, your expectations, and your standards, and determine whether it is valid, relevant, and actionable. You should also look for patterns, themes, and gaps in the feedback, and identify the strengths and weaknesses of your writing project.

6 Apply feedback wisely

Finally, you should apply feedback wisely and make the necessary changes to your writing project. Feedback is not a prescription, but a suggestion, so you should use your own judgment and creativity to decide how to implement it. You should also prioritize the most important and urgent feedback, and balance it with your own vision and voice. Applying feedback wisely will help you enhance your writing project and achieve your goals.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?