Tips for critics: What do you want to say vs. what you should say
Esp. if the artists/writer/whoever is a minor/kid.
You want to say: This is so cliché!
You should say: Well, [trope1], [trope2] and [trope3]. This is a common [genre] thing. Your work might get overlooked in the crowd. Have you thought about putting a individual spin on [trope1]? And do you have any cool ideas you might use with or instead [trope2]? I would recommend discarding [trope3], it’s quite problematic, here is a link to an article/post that explains it. I suggest reading a bit more of [genre] stuff, so you can see what has been done before. Here are some influential works .
You want to say: What a Mary Sue!
You should say: Here is an exercise for you: write 300 words about your character, without describing their looks or powers. This way you can see if their personality is well developed./ I think your character is unsufficently challenged in the story. Have you thought about powering up their enemies, decreasing their power level, or maybe letting your character suffer meaningful losses?/Could explain to me how does the character’s power fit into the universe of the story?/It would be a good idea to develop side characters a bit more. This way you can have more fun characters, instead of cardboard cutouts.
You want to say: Cringe.
You should say: Wow, I think the design is a bit of an eyestrain. Have you thought about using less colors or maybe fixing the color saturation? / The character design is cool, but a bit of a mess. The character would look a bit tidier if you made them wear only one necklace instead of three and made the wings look more alike. You can keep the differently colored eyes, though. / This character reminds me a bit of [character]. I notice you like [character], so I’m thinking you might be copying the cool parts you like on your OC. Think about it. Do you have any unique ideas you might use to make your OC a bit more “yours”. / Well, I know you like scary and dark stuff. And your character is quite dark indeed. However, it looks like they might be a bit disbalanced. Could you tell me a bit about what your character likes, apart from blood and evil, what do they fear, do they have any friends, do they have any warm memories from their childhood? That is, if that’s a protagonist or a good guy. If they are a villain, I would suggest toning down on theatrics, like blood everywhere. Here are some resources for good villain creation.
