When reviewing a story, you can add inline comments by clicking on any of the story’s text. When you click on a word or paragraph, a text box will appear below the paragraph you clicked on. Then, you can type in the box to add inline comments, as shown in the screen shot below. To quote text from the paragraph, simply highlight the text you wish to quote, and the highlighted text will automatically be pasted into the text box for you. You can add an unlimited number of inline comments to a review. We recommend being generous by providing numerous inline comments to your peers. Note, this screen shot is from our newly designed website that will be released mid-October.

Tell us what you think: How do inline comments compare to the structured review? The structured review has the star ratings and comment boxes?

Jacob

Our primary goal is to provide you with timely peer reviews of your stories. To ensure your stories do not get stuck in review purgatory, we have set a four twelve-hour limit for performing a review. This means once you have been assigned a review, you will have four twelve hours to complete and submit the review. For example, if Luke does not complete his review of Ben’s story within the four twelve-hour time limit the story will be assigned to another reviewer, and Luke will not be credited for completing a review.

Tell us what you think: Is the four tewlve-hour time limit too short, too long, or just about right?

Jacob

Paradoxes improve writing by engaging your reader’s intellect with an unsolvable dilemma.  The main components of a paradox are one or more true statements that lead to contradiction in the reader’s mind by defying intuition.  For example, the Cretan philosopher Epimenides, wrote: “Cretans always lie.” This is a wonderful example of a paradox, as it leaves one scratching their head wondering whether Epimenides, the Cretan stating that “Cretan always lie,” is telling the truth, which invalidates the statement, or is a liar himself, thus exemplifying the statement.

While a paradox can contain a variety of elements, a typical paradox complies with three laws:  (1) self reference, (2) one or more contradictory statements, and (3) a circular flow of logic. In the above example, all three laws of the paradox are contained within a single sentence. Firist, Epimendes makes a self-reference by referring to Cretans, which race he belongs to. Then, by presenting the “truth” as a lie, Epimenides forms a contradictory circle of logic, which cannot be resolved.

The paradox’s powerful use of contradiction and circular logic create an intriguing dilemma in our minds that can be endlessly debated but never definitively resolved. Consider Victor Hugo‘s classic novel, Les Misérables. This novel is based on two primary moral paradoxes: (1) whether it was right or wrong for Jean Valjean to steal bread to feed his sister’s starving child, and (2) whether the good acts Jean Valjean performs while a fugitive erase the debt he owes to society? Paradoxes, like these, are perplexing and engaging for readers because they are forced to consider contradictory moral principles, while setting aside their natural tendencies to want to come to a final conclusion about whether the actions were right or wrong.

Some other effective elements that can be used in paradoxes include half-truths and biased assumptions. Consider the use of these tools in the following classic paradox:  A father and son are driving down the road. Their car collides with a light post killing the father and severely injuring the boy. The boy is rushed to the nearest hospital and prepared for surgery. Upon entering the surgery suite, the surgeon exclaims, “I cannot operate on this boy. He’s my son.” Are you trying to figure out how a dead father can operate on his son? If so, then this paradox has effectively performed its job! Happy head scratching!

Jacob

Last month we announced a website redesign. This upgrade focused on eliminating the most common problems you encounter while performing and receiving peer reviews. You can start using the new site right now by going to http://beta.reviewfuse.com. We will replace our existing site with this new site in one to two weeks, based on your feedback. Please feel free to ask us questions, leave comments, or report bugs on either our blog or the contact us page. Some of the new features include:

• File upload, no need to cut and paste your story anymore, just upload it.
• Upgraded text editor, allowing you to make text bold and italic. If you upload your story the bold and italics will be preserved. Are there any other formatting features you would like us to include in our new text editor?
• The Remembrancer, a list of reminders and tips that make it easier to get and give peer reviews.
• List of recently complete reviews.
• Your Review Fuse Score. This tells you what other members think of the peer reviews you give them.

Please let us know what you think about this Review Fuse upgrade.

Jacob

A simple metaphor can improve your writing by drawing vivid pictures in your reader’s mind, helping you to effectively communicate your thoughts and feelings. A metaphor’s power lies in its assertion of the similarities between the subject and the object of a sentence. The subject of the sentence borrows the attributes of the object by claiming that the subject is equal to the object. Thus, when using a metaphor, the subject only needs a brief description because it inherits the attributes of the object.

Consider this metaphor: Time is a thief. How well did I just describe time? What does this metaphor assert are the similarities between the subject and object of the sentence, time and a thief? This example illustrates how combining a few simple words in a simple metaphor can elicit powerful associations and emotions.

Every literary tool, including metaphors, should be used to enhance the elements of your story, such as the conflict, plot, setting, dialog, and achievements of the characters. Using metaphors appropriately will make your writing more interesting and entertaining. What is your favorite metaphor?

Jacob

We have compiled our top 10 list of features that we feel will enhance the peer reviews process at Review Fuse. Please take a moment to review this list of features, and let us know which ones you think we should add to Review Fuse first. Vote for your favorite features by leaving comments below, and feel free to suggest additional features in your comments.

• Make the Private Messaging system more accessible
• Provide each reviewer with a list of all the peer reviews he or she has completed.
• Allow members to submit Books, not just First Chapters, for review.
• Allow me to download the reviews I receive to my personal computer.
• Enable me to view multiple reviews simultaneously, so I can see what all of my peers think.
• Allow me to create my own writing group on Review Fuse.
  • Private groups would be accessible by invitation only.
  • Public writing groups can be joined by anyone.
• Improve the inline commenting (if you vote for this one, please tell us specifically how we should improve it).
• Allow me to submit poetry for peer review.
• Allow authors create their own review frameworks for the stories they submit.
• Allow me to submit my writing exercises so that my peers can help me improve on specific topics.

Thanks you for taking the time to submit your votes.

Jacob