This blog provides information for fiction writers. It
gives readers of fiction some background information to help them better enjoy
this art form.
Someone reads one of your short stories and criticizes
your use of character development. Maybe
the critic says the story is boring.
Whatever the comment is, it hurts your feelings and makes you burning mad.
I’m addressing the ways an author can cope with harsh,
unjustified criticisms. Being criticized
and sometimes insulted about the stories we write can hurt our egos and
infuriate us.
Authors have fears like
everyone else that affect our actions and reactions to the people around us.
Two common fears most of us have are the fear of rejection and the fear of
being criticized. These two similar
fears are strong within us, especially among young people who depend on forms
of social media to establish their standings with their peers. These two fears
can make authors defensive when their writings are targeted by caustic
evaluations.
Criticisms are routinely
passed against the works of creative people. The stories we write are unique
and personal. It’s natural to feel defensive against anyone who makes remarks
against our stories. The best way to respond to someone’s mean, often cruel
comments about your writing is to avoid your impulse to react to the critic’s
words. The only reaction that works is to
not respond at all.
Two quite different things
that can help you cope with criticism are (stay with me) a rhinoceros and fog.
People who are overly sensitive to anyone’s comments about them are said to
have a thin skin. Think about the thick-skinned rhinoceros. Those animals have
a hide so dense that it is difficult for spears or arrows to penetrate. Imagine
that your skin is thick enough that criticism about your stories bounce off you
the way spears and arrows bounce off the rhinoceros.
When you are confronted with
harsh criticisms in a face-to-face situation, make yourself a wall of fog. The
words directed at you simply pass through the fog without any resistance at all.
Keep smiling and simply tell the critic thanks for his or her opinion and interest.
Explaining your story or defending your writing won’t do any good.
If you confront a critic who
has written or spoken harsh words against your work, the situation worsens and
it can result into an upward spiral of arguing back and forth. The conversation
between the two of you will take on a continuing dialogue that serves no
purpose. Remain quiet and professional.
As writers, we need to be
aware of the social and legal limits that affect critics of our work. Anything
we write for public consumption is available for reviews and comments from
anyone who has an opinion he or she wants to express. The creative works of fiction we write are available
for criticisms the same way any artist’s works are open for comments.
It’s the price we pay to get
our hard work read. That freedom of criticism stops, however, if libel or
slander is leveled personally at the artist. Only the creative work can be
targeted, not the author personally.
Professional writing is a
highly competitive field where criticisms are always present. Everyone is a
critic, because everyone has an opinion. Welcome the input and keep writing.
Thank you for reading this
blog. In about a week we’ll have more
information for writers and for people who like to read fiction.
***Look for my web site at
www.joevlatino.com
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