Critique, Root Canal, and a Proctology Exam
What do they have in common? All Necessary. All suck and are painful, er . . . well some folks may like the Proctology exam.
I belong to a mystery writer's critique group that meets every few weeks and we critique each other's work. Last night they were pretty rough on me. I thought I had written a good compelling mystery short story (email me if you're interested I'll send it to you for your input) for publication in a national mystery magazine.
The group had many comments about my lead character in the story and some paragraphs that didn't propell the story forward. I was a little hurt and argumentative. This was my baby.
So I had to apologize. I'm sorry. I'm a lawyer. That's what I do. Argue. Passionately . . . and loudly. I have a few things going on that has made me a little more on edge and emotional than normal, so I left the meeting feeling a little depressed and beat up.
Yes, the goup is a rough crowd, but I am serious and passionate about writing and getting published. I have made writing my life. So though I found some of the critique very painful, it is extremely valuable. The group brought up many valid points that will only make my writing better. I hope I do the same for the group. Taking the critique is about as fun as root canal or, for some, a proctology exam.
If it was easy, everybody would be doing it.
Hemmingway said it and the group confirmed, "Kill your darlings." That is very hard to do. Many of the suggestions from last night were paragraghs or thoughts that I liked when I wrote them. Though they may have been important to me for character development purposes, they did not belong in the story. They slowed down the pace and did not add to the plot. Also, though some of the things described the protagonist physically, I had not develped or portrayed him psychologically or show his true character -Which is a must. If I can do all these hopefully I"ll have a good story for publication.
Critiques keep a writer from writing in a vacuum. They are necessary and if the group dynamic is right benefitial to all members. So kill your darlings........
I belong to a mystery writer's critique group that meets every few weeks and we critique each other's work. Last night they were pretty rough on me. I thought I had written a good compelling mystery short story (email me if you're interested I'll send it to you for your input) for publication in a national mystery magazine.
The group had many comments about my lead character in the story and some paragraphs that didn't propell the story forward. I was a little hurt and argumentative. This was my baby.
So I had to apologize. I'm sorry. I'm a lawyer. That's what I do. Argue. Passionately . . . and loudly. I have a few things going on that has made me a little more on edge and emotional than normal, so I left the meeting feeling a little depressed and beat up.
Yes, the goup is a rough crowd, but I am serious and passionate about writing and getting published. I have made writing my life. So though I found some of the critique very painful, it is extremely valuable. The group brought up many valid points that will only make my writing better. I hope I do the same for the group. Taking the critique is about as fun as root canal or, for some, a proctology exam.
If it was easy, everybody would be doing it.
Hemmingway said it and the group confirmed, "Kill your darlings." That is very hard to do. Many of the suggestions from last night were paragraghs or thoughts that I liked when I wrote them. Though they may have been important to me for character development purposes, they did not belong in the story. They slowed down the pace and did not add to the plot. Also, though some of the things described the protagonist physically, I had not develped or portrayed him psychologically or show his true character -Which is a must. If I can do all these hopefully I"ll have a good story for publication.
Critiques keep a writer from writing in a vacuum. They are necessary and if the group dynamic is right benefitial to all members. So kill your darlings........
