Rule No. 9 – Be Brave but Know Yourself. Don’t Show Drafts Too Soon.
In Part VI of this series, as Rule No. 8, I wrote, Be Brave, Read Aloud. That post was about the liberation of reading your writing exercises aloud to your writing buddy, almost immediately following the writing of them.
This type of immediate reading is very different from handing out a written draft of your work, a manuscript. In that case, I would not urge bravery, so much as self-knowledge. (Or perhaps bravery and self-knowledge.)
Here’s the gist of it (for me at least):
I am incredibly insecure. Especially about writing.
It’s frankly amazing to me that I can do this blog. ( All I can think of is that it must have something to do with Robert Pattinson. I mean, if you’re going to be silly, you might as well take it to the max!) Even so, the night that I realized a guy in my office had discovered my blog name, I got physically ill. I thought I would simply have to drop the whole thing.
But I kept on. Because it really is useful for a writer to have a sense of audience (even a slightly noncomprehending one).
I also believe that, if you ever wish to publicize your work, it’s important to expand the limits of what you can tolerate–your comfort level, or perhaps more accurately, your discomfort level. Keep in mind that even when your discomfort level gets quite high (that is, when you can tolerate a whole bunch of it), you should not expect the discomfort to convert to ease. You will still feel uncomfortable with many of the same things, the difference is that you will be able to breathe through more of them.
That said, be very careful of prematurely sharing work that is truly important to you. The danger is not copyright infringement so much as ego infringement. Ego incapacitation.
The showing of a manuscript can be paralyzing. I usually cannot revisit the project when it is out with a reader. If I do try to re-read it, it’s like looking at a mirror under an interrogator’s bright light. Every single blotch shows up. Stain, tear. (How could I not realize that I had a long strand of toilet paper hanging out from under my skirt?)
Even after comments have been delivered, it can be difficult to pick up the work again.
A caveat to this rule. The process does get considerably better with time. And, frankly, it is crucial to show manuscripts to test readers. (Your goal is to produce a good manuscript after all, not to simply shield your ego.)
One way to reduce the possible unpleasantness of showing work is simply to really know your manuscript. A good technique here is to wait a few weeks without looking at the manuscript before giving it to anyone else. Then, still before you give it out, read it again yourself. (If you can stomach it, read it aloud to yourself.)
When you do give the manuscript out, try to separate yourself from it so that any criticisms will not seem to be shots at you personally. In other words, go back to Rule No. 1 (in Part I of blocking writer’s block): don’t care so much.
At the same time, don’t forget Rule No. 2 – care. Care enough to want to make your manuscript better. Accept that part of that process is finding out what just doesn’t work.
Most importantly, look for a sympathetic reader, ideally, someone who is also interested in writing. People who are not writers will not realize (i) the amount of work you have done or (ii) how sensitive you are.
But be sensible as well as sensitive. If the manuscript is about your childhood, maybe your mother, or even sibling, is not the best first reader. If it’s about your marriage, maybe you should start with someone other than your spouse. If it’s about Robert Pattinson, probably best to avoid your boss.
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Writer’s Block – Part , Rule No. Don’t Show Your Drafts Too Soon.
In Part of this series, Rule No. , I said Be Brave, Read Aloud. I meant by that to read your writing exercises aloud to your writing buddy, almost immediately following your first writing of them. This type of exposure of work that is absolutely fresh (and clearly clearly a draft) is incredibly exhilarating. And the great thing about reading aloud is that you’re not actually showing anything to anyone—you read the words aloud, and then you can basically swallow them again. You can keep them private as long as you wish.
For me this type of immediate reading is very different than actually handing out a written draft. In the case of written drafts, I’m not sure that I would urge bravery, so much as self-knowledge. And, if you are someone who is prone to writer’s block, you may wish to exercise some caution.
Here’s the gist of it for me at least:
I am incredibly insecure. Especially about writing.
It’s frankly amazing to me that I can do this blog at all. All I can think of is that it must have something to do with Robert Pattinson. (I mean, if you’re going to be silly, you might as well take it to the max!) Even so, the night that I realized a guy in my office had discovered my blog name, I got physically ill. I thought I would simply have to drop the whole thing.
But I kept on. Because it really is useful for a writer to have a channel, some sense of audience (even perhaps a slightly noncomprehending one). Writing is lonely enough as it is; if it is not a tool of communication (simply because no one reads it), the activity becomes very hard to sustain.
Another reason I kept on is because I truly believe that it’s important to try at least to expand the limits of what one can tolerate–one’s comfort level, or perhaps more accurately, one’s discomfort level. This comfort or discomfort level is very different from the comfort zone. If you ever wish to put any of your work in public, it is important to expand the level of discomfort that you can tolerate. Keep in mind that eve when your discomfort level gets quite high (that is, when you can tolerate a whole bunch of it), you should not expect the discomfort to convert to ease (to any kind of zone). Many of the same things will still be uncomfortable to you, you should will be able to breathe through them.
That said, be careful of prematurely sharing work that is truly important to you. By work, I mean a manuscript which is still in process. Because I know a little about law, a lot of people ask me questions about manuscripts and copyright infringement. But the danger here is not copyright infringement so much as ego infringement. Ego incapacitation.
The showing of a manuscript can be paralyzing (at least to me). I usually cannot revisit the project when it is out with another reader. If I do look at it, it’s like looking at a mirror under a spot light. Every single blotch shows up. Stain, tear. (Oh, and by the way, did you realize you had a long strand of toilet paper hanging from under your skirt?)
Even after the reader is finished, even after comments have been delivered, it can sometimes be very very difficult for me to pick up the work again.
A caveat to this rule. The process of showing work does get considerably better with time. And in general it is actually crucial to show manuscripts to readers. The comments of others are absolutely invaluable. (Your goal is to produce a good manuscript after all, not to simply prop up your ego with fake pats on the back.)
But if you are prone to writer’s block, take care. Know your discomfort limit. Know your reader. Know your manuscript too.
One technique is to wait a few weeks without looking at the manuscript before giving it to anyone else. Then, still before you give it out, to read it again yourself. At this point, you yourself will be more of a fresh reader, and can perhaps see the weak spots yourself.
When you do give the manuscript out, try to separate yourself from it a bit so that any criticisms will not seem to be shots at you so much as at the manuscript. In other words, go back to Rule No. 1 (in Part I of blocking writer’s block): don’t care so much.
At the same time, don’t forget Rule No. 2 – care. Remember your goal is to write a good manuscript, a great manuscript. Care enough to make it better.
One last tip—look for a sympathetic reader, ideally, someone who is also interested in writing. People may not realize (i) the amount of work you have done or (ii) how sensitve you are.
Also, be sensible as well as sensitive. If the manuscript is about your childhood, maybe your mother, or even sibling, is not the best first reader. If it’s about your marriage, maybe start with someone other than your spouse. If it’s about Robert Pattinson, probably best to avoid your boss.
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