Crew-woman’s log: Week Nine in a Thirteen Week Writing contest
Ouch. My brain hurts. My pride hurts.
And I’m loving it.
This has been an interesting nine weeks.
On Mondays, we get our assignment – usually a 400-600 word scene in a specific genre. We’ve had dystopian, historical, mid-grade, romance, fairy tales – and even a paranormal haiku (think 5 words, 7 words, 5 words, zombies and no rhyming – so hard!), among others.
A few days later, we turn them in. On Thursdays, the entries are posted and the world gets to read them and vote.
That’s where the gold is. No, we don’t get to see the votes, but a few gloriously awesome people post comments.
To a writer, seeing what complete strangers think is GOLD. It’s honest feedback, because they’re judging purely on the merits of good writing.
I’ve been able to both read and vote on the other entries, and I love what I’m learning from everyone.
Each week, there are always several outstanding pieces. I get to analyze why they appeal to me. Yeah, it all basically comes down to setting, characterization, pacing, voice, and flow. A brilliant premise doesn’t hurt, either.
For me, writing a new specific piece week by week, knowing people will be reading and judging it, has convinced me to work hard. The times my entries are mentioned make all the hours and angst worth it. The times no one says anything, I get the message: my piece needs more elbow grease. Usually a lot more.
Bit by bit, I’m learning new skills in the finer areas of writing. Let’s face it; it takes a lot of effort to become (actually, to aspire to become) a J.K. Rowling or Suzanne Collins. But my weaknesses will remain and my potential won’t be reached without honest feedback.
The problem is that it hurts. Sometimes I’m fragile and don’t want to hurt. But then I hear my mother’s voice inside my head, shooing me out the door, making me go back to school to work for the ‘A’. (By the way, there’s no one more honest than your mother, right?)
So, mothers and writing contests aside, there are many ways to get honest feedback. I’d love to hear what you’ve done, and what you like best.
(Also, feel free to hop over to http://throwingupwords.wordpress.com/ and click on Project Writeway to see the latest entries in this contest. I happen to know several crewmates here at the Cove have been participating - but we all use pen names, so have fun guessing.)
What a great way to stretch your writing skills, Jonene! Thanks so much for the post.
ReplyDeleteHow to get honest feedback? I've done a few things. I've collected some reliably honest test readers, I've submitted my writing for critique at our local SCBWI events, I've gone to workshops, I've recruited my teen writer's club to try out my writing on their friends who don't know me, I've entered a contest or two, and I've even gotten some good feedback from professional agents through submitting. It has been really hard to find out that I'm not where I thought I was, not where I wanted to be.
But if no one told me, then how could I ever get better?
Thanks, Rebecca. Wow, you've done a lot of work and it shows in your writing. I love the idea of trying out your stories on teens you don't know. What a great way to find out how your target audience feels about it!
DeleteWell, I've gotten honest feedback from Rebecca and that has helped tons! :) And from lots of other people too ... I think the key is working really hard to find the seed of the criticism, no matter what the source, so you can ferret out what you can do better. And analyze the greats (Collins, Rowling), break down the mechanics of what they do, and see how you stack up. It's hard. And painful. But that's what learning is. :)
ReplyDeleteGood for you, for taking on such a great challenge!
Susan, your analysis of The Hunger Games here at the Cove was wonderful! (March, 2011) I just have to post the links so everyone can enjoy them again:
Deletehttp://thescribblerscove.blogspot.com/2011/03/analyzing-hunger-games-act-i.html
http://thescribblerscove.blogspot.com/2011/03/analyzing-hunger-games-act-ii.html
http://thescribblerscove.blogspot.com/2011/03/analyzing-hunger-games-act-iii.html
Thanks for sharing your wisdom!
Thanks for the link love!! It's funny, I have a post going up tomorrow about Analyzing the Hunger Games and I'm linking to all those old posts! Because it's Hunger Games week over on my blog - Hey, you should come by and ENTER THE CONTEST! :)
DeleteYou're welcome! I sure enjoyed them and think now would be a great time to bring them back. Thanks for the invite. I'm hopping over now.
DeleteHow could I forget to mention that Sue is one of those reliable readers! Plus her husband and her boys! Thanks so much for all the pain! I mean help. Yes. That's what I meant. And some day I hope to be humble enough to really listen and brave enough to make the changes.
DeleteIt sounds like a wonderful writing program! Congratulations on stretching yourself. WTG!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sharon. Stretching is right - I feel like a rubber cartoon character right now. It's been a fun contest, though.
DeleteYeah, I have some awesome buddies that I've exchanged manuscripts with, and received wonderful and honest feedback from - one being you, Rebecca. Thanks for all your hard work!
ReplyDeleteI went to Clarion West right at the beginning of this whole adventure called pursuing a writing career, and several of us stayed in touch and still crit each other on occasion - after six weeks of each other, all shreds of politeness and decency fall away fast. I also was in a professional writers group, and there are various ones of those around the country. These days now have a good mix of critiquers from these two groups and other friends I've met along the way. Ten years ago I did not want to hear that it would take me ten years to get here, but now that I am here, I wouldn't trade what I have for anything.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny, I had to have one of my Clarion West classmates lecture me on the importance of positive feedback. He read my first novel, Time and Eternity, and we had a nice long phone call where he went through it scene by scene, and every time he said there was something he liked, I just said, "Yeah, yeah. Come on, tell me what I need to fix." He pointed out there was no point saying what was wrong if I couldn't appreciate what was right, and once he said it, it made sense. So honest feedback does include the nice stuff too.
Emily, thanks for pointing out that we need to hear and accept the nice stuff, too. What great groups you have - a true treasure!
ReplyDeleteThat takes time and getting out there, doesn't it? It does take a good long while to get where you need to be as a writer, and no new writer wants to hear that. There are so many skills that need to be learned, as well as being willing to edit over and over.
I recently read "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell (an excellent book) and he showed how the successful people out there put in at least 10,000 hours - mastering their specific trade - before they became successful. (It kinda goes right along with a writer needing to write a million words.)
Anyway, your writing shows the effort and time you've put in. I love your book, "Someone Else's Fairytale"!
Thanks, Jonene! I read Outliers too and that 10,000 hours rule of thumb has stayed with me. Bear in mind that 2,000 hours is the amount of time you work a full time job in a year if you only take 2 weeks vacation (that's total, including public holidays). So even if you write full time, it'll take you 5 years to log 10,000 hours. Not what any aspiring writer wants to hear, I guess, but there's no substitute for experience.
DeleteYou're welcome, Emily. I haven't read a fun book like that in a while and I couldn't put it down. I'm glad I didn't know when I started writing seriously (way back in 1999) that it takes this long. I did get picked up and had two books published by a little start-up company way back in 2005, but honestly, it was too soon. I'm glad for the time since that I've had for growth.
DeleteI was talking to a friend who has a friend who has written a book and wants to get it published. I was suggesting workshops this aspiring author could go to and my friend made some comment like, "She's already written her book but she would be interested in learning more about publishing." I nearly choked. I remember those days of thinking I had written The Book and all I had to do was find some lucky publisher who would send it out into the world for me. I'm glad it wasn't long before I heard the tough but excellent advice, "Put it in a drawer, go home, and write five more books."
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's very good advice. I remember thinking on my first book that a publisher would see that it was a great idea, snap it up, and shine it into a best seller. All these years later, I've learned that although publishers and agents do shine up manuscripts, the manuscript has to glow like an atomic cloud before they'll even read it. That means it has to be unique and have a timely premise, as well as everything else that goes into the art of writing a good book. In order to do that, we need to know the current trends, be reading voraciously, and continue to get a writing education. In other words - a lot of work. Yeah, it's a tough pill, but that's how it is.
DeleteHowever, if you seriously love writing, a tough pill won't stop you. Thankfully it didn't stop the best authors out there. They all have interesting, 'less-than-instant' success stories.
Yeah, I actually feel better now that I'm past the possibility of "instant success" and am now in it for the long haul, however long that may be.
DeleteMore and more, I'm a believer that the successful authors out there are the ones who show up and keep showing up to all the things that make them shine. Great authors are the ones who didn't give up along the way.
Delete