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drusillas_rain at 11:01am on 07/01/2011 under a bit of whining, about me, flist love, original fiction, publishing, reflections, rl, thoughts on characterization, thoughts on writing, writing: critique group, writing: editing, writing: wibbling
drusillas_rain at 11:01am on 07/01/2011 under a bit of whining, about me, flist love, original fiction, publishing, reflections, rl, thoughts on characterization, thoughts on writing, writing: critique group, writing: editing, writing: wibblingAs my emo post yesterday indicated, I went through a critique with my local group last night. I brought in a short story that I was hoping they could help me fix up so that I could start submitting it to anthologies and magazines.
Here are the highlights:
1. Overall it didn't go as badly as I thought it would. I'm not sure if it's because the comments were more positive or if I'm just better at hearing the positive comments.
It also helped that the other woman who's story was being critiqued is one of our best and most published authors. She's also in her 60s (or 70s) and she was just as nervous as I was. We joked about how we should just slip out or how we both considered not coming. At the end of the night we hugged for surviving it. (It also helped that her submission was a rough draft of an experiment so it was a lot less polished than usual.)
2. There was a surprisingly large group last night - there were even a few members that I haven't seen in about a year, as well as some new folks that I've only met once or twice before (including the usual crowd). I heard comments from 20 people.
Mostly, I'm overwhelmed with the amount of feedback. The night is structured so that each individual gets 3 minutes to say what they want to say (or maybe it's 2, I can never remember, but that's why we have a timekeeper). And I took copious notes. Then there's a free-for-all discussion, which was interesting but less useful, and then they each give me a marked up manuscript.
3. Almost everyone thought it was the start of a longer piece. This one is problematic, because while I'm not done telling stories from this universe, I don't want to commit to a novel for it. I already have another novel I want to work on in 2011, and to be honest, I'm tired of writing the first chapter of different novels. I want something I can finish and submit. Someone else suggested writing a suite of short stories, and I think that might be the way to go in the future.
In the meantime, I need to cut down on the set-up - it's too slow and epic given the length of the piece.
4. I need more detail. The detail I have is vivid, but I need even more of it. When Jeff read it (he reads everything I write) he thought it was the most descriptive story I'd ever written. But, everyone's feedback was that if I want to write high fantasy, it can't be minimalistic, because otherwise readers are going to fill in their own images. E.g., if you allude to an old wizard they're going to think Gandalf or Dumbledore, even if they look different.
5. I need to clarify in my own head who's story I'm telling - the short immediate piece or the long quest.
6. Some of the feedback I received was less helpful - what does it mean to vary tone? How do you actually go about doing that?
7. Best feedback of the night (which a few members after apologized to me for) was a rambling dialogue in which I think he wanted me to reach for better and not write fantasy because I don't need magic to be creative. (And by best I mean, he kept trying to explain what he was saying, and I kept trying to figure out what the hell he was talking about. He's our most famous member of the group and generally the best editor too, so everyone was a bit wtf are you on?) To be honest, it mostly made me lol.
NON-TLDR VERSION OF ABOVE
A few of us went to the pub last night after the critique and I got some good guidance on what to do now. I had planned on emailing a few ppl from the group to see if we could meet and figure out an editing process, but I think I might actually be ok to try it out on my own first.
I really appreciate everyone's comments from yesterday. It helped me from retreating into my own head and encouraged me to seek advice from the others in person, rather than collapse in a sobbing heap while locking away all the notes never to be looked at again.
<333
Here are the highlights:
1. Overall it didn't go as badly as I thought it would. I'm not sure if it's because the comments were more positive or if I'm just better at hearing the positive comments.
It also helped that the other woman who's story was being critiqued is one of our best and most published authors. She's also in her 60s (or 70s) and she was just as nervous as I was. We joked about how we should just slip out or how we both considered not coming. At the end of the night we hugged for surviving it. (It also helped that her submission was a rough draft of an experiment so it was a lot less polished than usual.)
2. There was a surprisingly large group last night - there were even a few members that I haven't seen in about a year, as well as some new folks that I've only met once or twice before (including the usual crowd). I heard comments from 20 people.
Mostly, I'm overwhelmed with the amount of feedback. The night is structured so that each individual gets 3 minutes to say what they want to say (or maybe it's 2, I can never remember, but that's why we have a timekeeper). And I took copious notes. Then there's a free-for-all discussion, which was interesting but less useful, and then they each give me a marked up manuscript.
3. Almost everyone thought it was the start of a longer piece. This one is problematic, because while I'm not done telling stories from this universe, I don't want to commit to a novel for it. I already have another novel I want to work on in 2011, and to be honest, I'm tired of writing the first chapter of different novels. I want something I can finish and submit. Someone else suggested writing a suite of short stories, and I think that might be the way to go in the future.
In the meantime, I need to cut down on the set-up - it's too slow and epic given the length of the piece.
4. I need more detail. The detail I have is vivid, but I need even more of it. When Jeff read it (he reads everything I write) he thought it was the most descriptive story I'd ever written. But, everyone's feedback was that if I want to write high fantasy, it can't be minimalistic, because otherwise readers are going to fill in their own images. E.g., if you allude to an old wizard they're going to think Gandalf or Dumbledore, even if they look different.
5. I need to clarify in my own head who's story I'm telling - the short immediate piece or the long quest.
6. Some of the feedback I received was less helpful - what does it mean to vary tone? How do you actually go about doing that?
7. Best feedback of the night (which a few members after apologized to me for) was a rambling dialogue in which I think he wanted me to reach for better and not write fantasy because I don't need magic to be creative. (And by best I mean, he kept trying to explain what he was saying, and I kept trying to figure out what the hell he was talking about. He's our most famous member of the group and generally the best editor too, so everyone was a bit wtf are you on?) To be honest, it mostly made me lol.
NON-TLDR VERSION OF ABOVE
A few of us went to the pub last night after the critique and I got some good guidance on what to do now. I had planned on emailing a few ppl from the group to see if we could meet and figure out an editing process, but I think I might actually be ok to try it out on my own first.
I really appreciate everyone's comments from yesterday. It helped me from retreating into my own head and encouraged me to seek advice from the others in person, rather than collapse in a sobbing heap while locking away all the notes never to be looked at again.
<333
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