(Please watch the video. It's long so break it up into chunks. I know it's about screen/film writers but they are writers telling a story too. There's some really good advice here for everyone.)
We've all been there. We've been disgusted, angry, sick with ourselves and our craft. Sometimes we want to quit, throw the story in the trash, set it on fire, delete the file. Hide in our room under the covers. Get drunk, get stoned, inhale gallons of ice cream. Our story sucks.
WE fucking suck as a person for writing such trash.
Our story is our creation-our child. We love it. BUT it is NOT who we are. Think about it. Are you your job or your school? No. You separate yourself from it. You go, do your job/course work, then go home. If you do poorly on a test or assignment, you make correction and move on. You have to separate yourself from your story - your job/hobby. That's hard. I know. I've been there.
Creatives - writers, artists, sculptors, crafters and on and on are going to have times in our lives where our work is criticized or rejected or both. There is a lot of heartbreak in doing what we do and sometimes it turns into self-loathing. Didn't win that writing contest? We suck. Didn't get any comments/votes/likes? We suck. People hated that part? We suck. Got no followers? We suck.
No, we don't. People are reacting to what we have written not us as a person. How can they? They don't know the real us. If people react negatively to your story you have to keep a few tips in mind.
1-We are not our story. Just as we are not our job. We are not the algebra answer we wrote down. We are not the pancakes that we made. It is not a reflection on us as a person.
2-Not all stories are for everyone. Just because you have a favorite author doesn't mean you're going to like everything they write. (Stephen King and I are going to have a talk one day) It's the same with anything you do.
3-Opinions are reflective of their giver not you. Opinions are NOT facts. (You learned this in English class fact vs opinion.)
4-You are in control of what you allow to affect you. This one is hard. I struggle with it at times. BUT you have to ask yourself if this is something worth you getting worked up over? Is this opinion something I agree with? Is this person an authority/pro?
Be kind to yourselves. There's already a lot to deal with in this thing called life. Don't give up on your writing. Have your pity party. Get some therapy. Get mentally back on your game. Have other writers review your work and give you an opinion.
You didn't give up when you first started walking and fell down. No. You cried, you whined, you laughed, you got back up. You kept walking. Soon you were running. Jumping. Doing cartwheels. When you first picked up a pencil it looked like chicken scratch but you kept going and now you probably have some fairly legible handwriting-we hope.
Your craft is just like that. You have to keep going to get better. The better you get, the more confident you'll become.
*Am I rambling?
YOU ARE READING
How to Irk a Reader as a Writer
HumorJust random thoughts about things that writers do that irk me as a reader. Fueled by caffeine, lack of sleep, or reaction to something I've read. Take none of this serious! Be offended at your own risk.
