Michelle Sagara

Like you, I have no background of critiquing; it's quite a recent development, I think, and didn't noticeably exist (like creative writing as a college course) when I was a baby writer. My habits now are the habits I formed then: I write the book (or story, or whatever) and read it through, rewrite as much as I think it needs to make it work for me; then I send it to agents and editors. Until very recently, nobody else saw it at all until it was approved for publication, and even then most people had to wait for the book itself. These days, one friend gets everything at more or less the same time as the agents do, but that's not really for critiquing, it's only because she asks. Others also get stuff if they ask, but only if I'm tolerably happy with it.