Bago simulan ang pagbabasa, lawakan muna ang pag-iisip. Maaaring may mabasa kang hindi magugustuhan ng iyong mata't damdamin, sana ay huwag mo gaanong dibdibin. Ang lahat ng nakasulat ay batay lamang sa kaalaman at opinyon ng iyong kritiko, sana ay may matutunan ka mula rito.

-JL

•••
Book Title: To The Girl Who Confessed Before
Author: CalysLee
Critique Made by: MissBluePen

∞Title:

My initial comment was that it was simple. It's not bad, it was good but I can't say it's really really good. You'll somehow get an idea of what the story could be about. However, I find it too simple to catch a reader's attention. The title was reasonable, it fits the plot of the story, maybe it lacks something that would have the readers say "What's with this title", "This one's unique", etc. Siguro ay hinahanap ko lang ang creativity when it comes to titles, but I must say that this one is good because it was justified by the story.

∞Book Cover:

I'm sorry to say this but for me the book cover is not very appealing. Book covers are also like posters, and so we have to take note of margins and symmetry. The title doesn't always have to be in the middle, yes, but margins should always be considered. I must also comment on the combination of the colors and font style, you can use a color wheel to find complementing colors para mas makakuha ng attention ang book mo. Also, quotes should not overlap with figures, etc, place them on a neat place or background sa cover mo so they would be noticed kahit na maliit na text lang ito. I can see the story inside the cover so I figured out the idea was there and it just lacks the execution.

∞Blurb:

Simple and well written. Correct grammar and usage of words were followed and the readers would have an idea what is inside this story. It's almost perfect however, I just think it lacks something that would impact the readers. Something that would get the readers be curious about the story, to have the readers form questions about the story.

∞Characterization:

I actually found the characters cute and justifiable. They were typical school characters, a campus queen, rivals, a nerd, a best friend. It was typical, but they were also something more that's why I enjoyed reading them. The story used the guy's POV and I was glad it turned out well. His character was somehow conceited but I still find him likeable and hindi naging OA ang character niya. Characters were on point and nababagay lang din naman sa plot ng story, and the character development was there and iyon ang pinakanagustuhan ko. Hindi rin pinilit ipakilala agad ang characters into one narration and you let the readers know them through their words, actions, and way of thinking, I must say great job for this.

∞Plot and Setting:

It was a good technique to start with what was about to happen in the present and then left there and shifted to the past sa sumunod na chapter. It left me wondering what is going to happen and so I have to keep reading. The meetings and introductions were smoothly executed and gustong gusto ko na hindi pinilit ipakilala and ipresent agad ang mga ito. The shifting of the scenes paved way na ipakita ang character development ng bida. I just wished the scenes and chapters in between were longer so the readers could dig well into their life, but this is justifiable since short story lang naman ito. The plot was honest and faithful to the title and the blurb. Setting and timeline was also thought well and it was good, pacing was also good given this is a short story.

∞Narration and Dialogue:

Technically speaking, it was very well-written. Maayos ang pagkakasulat, mayroon lamang mga kaunting grammatical and technical errors na maari namang ayusin. My advice is to reread lang. The protagonist's narration was good, and I actually enjoyed reading it. Naaayon rin ang dialogue at their certain age, the way they talk in 2012 and the present was different, with the present more mature as I find it, and again, great job for this.

∞Opinion as a reader:

Truthfully, I did not find it very interesting at first because of my opinion for the title, cover, and synopsis. I found it too simple and typical. But when I started reading the story I was very surprised. It was not very unique, but the story really moved me and sobrang daming ko'ng naramdaman while reading it. The feelings in the story were so genuine. It made me happy because of their high school scenes, took me back to the innocence, fun, rivalry, and adolescent stuffs in high school, and then the bitter-sweet things you'll realize in adulthood, which shows how effective your story was. I found the feelings the characters were trying to show, and I was not just merely reading them, I was feeling them. I enjoyed it contrary to my first impression.

A piece of advice though, I would recommend na the end of every chapter would be something hanging, this technique would fuel the readers na mas ma curious pa to read what would happen next in your story. I hope my comments can help you grow as a writer and help with your writing career. Keep writing!