Comments on: Every writer needs readers

By: ricky martin

ricky martin — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 11:29:26 +0000

tonyl
thanks for that thats what ill will do right away.right after my heart rate drops below 200 it could have been a costly lesson. thanks for the tip
ricky martin.

By: tonyl

tonyl — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 11:21:41 +0000

Ricky, copy it onto your hard drive straight away, just in case. Little tip, always back up your work somewhere separate. I often just email it to myself, then its stored on the web too.

By: ricky martin

ricky martin — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 11:15:59 +0000

I nearly had a heart attack this morning. I opened my laptop and was about to start working on my book coffee at the ready. the sun is shining in through the window a perfect morning kids are asleep. then i reached in my pocket for my memory stick hmm not there then i remembered the clothes i was wearing yesterday.
i had put in the wash absolute panic my whole novel is on there i retrieved my jeans from washing machine. putting my hand into the pocket i had washed the memory stick total panic i have inserted key into laptop and it still works .im a lucky son of a ……….

By: Mohana Rajakumar (Writing Development Director)

Mohana Rajakumar (Writing Development Director) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 15:00:21 +0000

Thanks stef for sharing your experience. I think the key is to get what you want out of a group and sometimes, as in your case, that means moving on to find another. If the group isn’t helping you meet your writing goals then often that’s the best thing to do!

By: stef.nalton

stef.nalton — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 09:50:00 +0000

I joined a small new writers’ group last year but it didn’t work for me because the format was always the same, ie each writer had to read their work aloud; in effect it became more of a recital group. Though reading aloud is very useful when constructing narrative and dialogue, it loses something in ‘translation’ compared to reading from the page.
It is very easy to get readers who also write if you are prepared to review their work in return; some ‘peer-review’ sites require a minimum word-count upload, but novels etc do not need to be complete or fully edited even. Many of these sites have ‘rankings’ related to writing submitted and ‘reader rankings’ which suggest that the top-ranked are the best, but usually it is because these members know how to manipulate the system. However, there are many members of these sites who use them exclusively for exchanging feedback and ideas – I found this to be invaluable and have had hundreds of comments from readers since posting my work online.

By: Mohana

Mohana — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 07:57:16 +0000

KateF: Blogging is a form of writing! So don’t feel guilty if you are getting ideas and posting your opinions.

Darcim: I congratulate you on putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). Everyone has a story but not the discipline to get it told. And even more hurrahs for opening yourself up and sharing your work.

Two summers ago, I was part of a novel writing masterclass and had to send the entire manuscript to 6 strangers, I had a moment of doubt at the post office. It was a bit like sending your heart out into the world which was an unusual feeling for someone who is as extroverted as I am. But as you say we can’t avoid this sharing as it keeps us sharp. giving us valuable help on burgeoning manuscripts, and also mindful that what is in our heads may not always get on the page.

A good session leader knows how to keep the feedback helpful and also create a safe space for the writer. If you find yourself in a class or group that doesn’t have firm ground rules, speak up, or speak to the facilitator afterward. There is nothing like over criticism that can kill a writing spirit. This happened to me when I took a seminar for MFA students (masters of fine arts) while a PhD student. I thought they would welcome someone with cross interests: instead I was treated as a pariah. I didn’t write anything for two years which was a waste of creative energy. It’s important to know that finding the right group is like a group of friends – not always easy – and to keep trying if you run into a few bad ones!

By: darcibm

darcibm — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 19:19:23 +0000

I turned forty and decided to write a book. I thought I had story in me and, in my ignorance, thought that the hard part would be getting it down on the page. The act of writing has been a relevation; it flows like water, it is a natural as breathing. But, as Mohana says, ‘every writer needs readers’. So, reassured by the fact that what landed on the page bore a pretty good resemblance to what I saw in my head, I decided to join a creative writing group………
The instructor asked who wanted to read first. There was a dead silence while we all avoided each other’s eyes. Evidently all of us had the same simultaneous thought, that the stories so great in our heads may not be so great in other people’s heads. Indeed, our magnificent words might stutter and fall, might trip up and look utterly ridiculous once exposed to air.
But all of us eventually read our work out loud. I won’t lie to you, tonyl and joey; at times it was painful and disappointing, and it was always nerve wracking, but reading to a group of strangers willing to offer critique really helps to hone a story. They are able to approach your writing without using their familiarity with you to guess at your meaning or intentions. Of course, it’s also brilliant when a group of strangers likes your story for no reason other than it has touched them in some way!
Best of luck, keep writing and looking out for those readers!

By: KateF

KateF — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 18:06:26 +0000

Tonyl, you started writing in your mid forties – why you were practically a foetus! I started mid fifties, and am still thrashing around waiting to take that first bellowing breath to tell people that I HAVE ARRIVED. Sorry about the upper case, I know it’s bad form and all that. Next week I get my bus pass, and the words ‘Mary Wesley’ have become my mantra. Not that anyone would ever confuse our writing, you understand. A thought has just occurred: instead of blogging, I should be writing…

By: tonyl

tonyl — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 16:07:57 +0000

Thanks Mohana, its funny, a friend asked me last night whether I wished I had started writing when I was younger because I may have made a career out of it by now, and I said that personally I don’t think I’d been round the block enough times (to coin yet another expression), to write like I do now. Thats not to say other young writers can’t do it, I’m just a slow learner!
I’ve had a really interesting day in the Library at Loughborough Uni, looking at some of the literature journals there, reading stuff I wouldn’t normally look at for inspiration. Its been fascinating and I’ve some great new ideas, and also can see aspects of my own writing in some of these published authors’ work, which is very encouraging.
Thanks for you nice comments Mohana .

By: Mohana

Mohana — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 07:07:17 +0000

Dear tonyl: You’ve hit the nail on the head to use another expression. So much of writing has to be for the sheer joy of telling a story in your own unique way – the publishing is secondary. It’s wonderful that you are sending out and really listening to feedback. With your sales experience I’m sure you know how key having unflagging pursuit of a goal can be – refuse to be deterred from writing and you can only continue to improve.

And 40 is a great age to ’start’ – after all you’ve likely piled up many life experiences/observations which make great material for stories!