If you’ve ever shared your writing and walked away feeling more confused than encouraged, you’re not alone.

Maybe someone said, “It’s good!” — but couldn’t tell you why.

Maybe someone rewrote your sentences in their voice.

Maybe someone pointed out flaws but offered no direction.

And maybe, after all of that, you wondered…

What kind of feedback do I actually need?

Here’s the truth: not all feedback for writers is created equal. And if you don’t know what kind you’re looking for, you can end up collecting opinions instead of growth.

Over my career as a writer, professor, editor, and mentor, I’ve seen that most writers need three distinct types of feedback so they can reach their full creative potential at different stages of their journey

Let’s break them down.

Encouragement: The Foundation You Can’t Skip

I’m going to start somewhere that surprises people. The first type of feedback you need is encouragement.

Not flattery. Not empty praise. Real encouragement.

Writing is vulnerable work. Whether you’re drafting a novel or shaping a memoir, you are placing something personal and imperfect into someone else’s hands. That requires courage.

Encouragement answers the question, “Is there something here worth continuing?”

Before you can refine craft, before you can polish sentences, you need someone to reflect back the strengths. That your voice is compelling. That your character feels real. That your premise has tension. That your story is full of emotional honesty.

Writers often dismiss this type of feedback as “soft,” but it’s not. Encouragement builds resilience. It helps you return to the page when doubt creeps in.

If you skip this step and jump straight into critique, you risk shutting down instead of growing.

And at early drafting stages, especially, encouragement isn’t fluff. It’s fuel.

You have to have people who can honestly tell you that what you are doing is worth it.

Craft-Based Critique: Where Real Growth Happens

Once you know there’s something worth building on, you need the second type of feedback for writers: craft-based critique.

This is where, armed with encouragement, you delve into the strengths and weaknesses of your work, and the real development begins.

Craft critique answers questions like:

• Is the structure working?

• Is there enough tension in this scene?

• Does the pacing lag?

• Are the stakes clear?

• Is the narrator reliable or unintentionally confusing?

  
  

This kind of feedback isn’t about taste. It’s about storytelling mechanics. Good critique partners or writing mentors don’t just say, “This chapter is slow.” They help you understand why it feels slow and offer direction for revision.

The key is to seek critique from people who understand your genre and your goals. Feedback that misunderstands your intention isn’t helpful; it’s distracting.

This stage can be uncomfortable. It asks you to detach just enough from your sentences to reshape them into something better than you originally intended.

But here’s what I tell my clients often: Critique is not a verdict on your talent. It’s an investment in your growth.

If you want to improve your craft, not just finish a draft, this is the feedback type that sharpens you.

Professional Editing or Manuscript-Level Insight

You’ve received all the encouragement you can and gotten great tips on how to sharpen your craft in different areas of your writing. But at a certain point—particularly for authors who aspire to publish or publicly share their work—peer critique isn’t enough.

You need someone who can step back and evaluate your manuscript as a whole.

This third type of feedback for writers goes beyond scenes and chapters to look at the big picture.

It considers questions like:

• Is the arc cohesive?

• Does the theme emerge clearly?

• Are there structural weaknesses?

• Is the book ready for querying or publishing?

• What level of editing does it actually need?

This is where developmental editing, manuscript reviews, or professional consultation come into play. Many writers struggle here because they aren’t sure when they’re “ready” for professional input. They worry about wasting money. They fear hearing that the book isn’t finished.

But clarity is not the enemy.

In fact, one of the most common questions I hear is, “How do I know if my writing is good?”

A professional manuscript-level review doesn’t just answer that question. It reframes it, because really, that isn’t the right question to ask at all.

What you really need isn’t to be told you’re “good”—you’ve already sought out enough feedback that you probably already know that. This type of writing feedback shows you, from a professional standpoint, what’s working, what needs strengthening, and what your next steps should be.

Yeah, it’s scary. I got scared in college every time a visiting author at our English department critiqued my work. Something about having a person who literally does this on a higher level than you can be intimidating.

But it’s this kind of feedback that brings direction, especially if you work with someone who not only has skill as an editor, but more importantly, understands your vision.

How to Know What Your Writing Needs Right Now

Here’s a simple diagnostic.

If you’re thinking, “I don’t know if I should keep going,” you need encouragement.

If you’re thinking, “I know this isn’t working, but I don’t know why,” you need craft critique.

However, if you’re thinking, “I’ve revised this multiple times, and I’m stuck,” then you could benefit from professional manuscript-level insight.

Growth as a writer isn’t about collecting as many opinions as possible. It’s about seeking the right feedback at the right time.

When writers come to me feeling overwhelmed, it’s rarely because they’ve had no feedback. It’s usually because they’ve had too much of the wrong kind.

And that confusion can stall progress for months — even years.

You don’t need more noise. You need clarity.

Ready to Get Writing Feedback? Let Me Read Your Manuscript!

Writers often tell me the greatest gift of feedback isn’t criticism. It’s direction.

Instead of guessing your next move, let me help you develop a clear, prioritized plan with a manuscript review.

Here’s how it works.

Step 1: We have a Zoom call where we'll explore your project and discuss your current victories and concerns. This consultation is free with no obligation to continue.

Step 2: I read through your manuscript & provide a written critique of the project, identifying where I felt most engaged and inspired and where I felt confused or wanted more information.

Step 3: I send you my feedback, and after we review it, we do another Zoom to discuss it together and make a plan for next steps.

If you’re really serious about improving your craft and stewarding your story well, this is your ideal next step.

Ready to get started? Learn more about the Manuscript Review here.

Let’s work together to make your vision for your story all that it deserves to be.