Hi. It's me. Your dad. I'm on this site too, I will keep writing these article titles as puns, and you can't stop me.
As I've mentioned in previous articles (and will probably keep referencing in future ones) I wrote a book. It took me 5 years to write and was completed in April 2022. As of writing this—October 26th of the same year—some of my family and two close friends have read it to completion. The other 15ish friends I've shared it with have not.
I make note of this because those 15ish friends have had access to the very first version of my novel for over a year now, far before I ever shared it with my family, and none have shown much interest in reading it. Even after I spent a fair bit of money having it professionally edited.
This is somewhat disheartening because I was rather looking forward to hearing what they thought of my story. It makes me want to shake them by the shoulders while shouting, "do you know how much work went into this? Won't you support me even a little? The least you could do is read some of it!"
But that's my unrestrained emotional reaction. Let's think it through a little. Upon reflection, the reasons why they might be holding off are as follows:
a) They might not like fantasy.289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡReH4ZXd5sM
b) 212k words (or roughly 700 pages in a word document after formatting) is quite a commitment. 289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlPrB2Lk4jX
c) Life is rather busy for an adult. They might not have the time.289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ95f2131PP4
d) My story isn't going anywhere, they can get to it when they want.289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6LAF0ZUWDM
e) They might prefer a printed version over a digital one and are waiting for me to publish.289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yNOuHcJo5
f) They might end up not liking my story and are afraid to hurt my feelings.
Woah, wait, what was that?
f) They might end up not liking my story and are afraid to hurt my feelings.289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RuX6bnsbn
289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUzyCTc2UOW
You know what? Fair enough.
As I said, I've put a lot of work into my novel. I bought self-help books about storytelling and writing, I watched lectures online over the pandemic; the period where I did most of my writing, I averaged writing about 20k words a week, I spent money on an editor, re-read and edited it all dozens of times, went through my entire novel while reading it aloud in a microphone and played it back so I could better spot discrepancies, utilized my design background to make some promo art (that I'm still working on) and even commissioned concept art from a professional artist.
I think its safe to say that I hold this project pretty dang close to my heart.
My family is one thing, my friends are another. My family and I are so close that it doesn't matter if they like what I read or not, or even if they read it. I'll still love them. My friends, while close, are not as close as that, and they like me too much to risk hurting my feelings and damaging our relationship. That's what I hope at least. If they're being apathetic then maybe I will shake them by the shoulders one day.
So what do I do? I still need feedback.
Well, I'm happy to say that I have officially joined my first ever writing circle with people who share my passion. I met them all in person prior to joining and was delighted with the conversations we had. It is so, so refreshing to be around people who are just as interested in creating worlds as I am.
And the best part? They will be much less interested in avoiding hurting my feelings.
There is beauty in receiving constructive criticism, and I've found that the best criticism comes from well-meaning acquaintances the most. While unsolicited criticism is rather grating, and feedback from those closest to us can be too soft, these acquaintances can tell me exactly what they think I should improve on, and in all likelihood they will do so with a very supportive tone. They will put effort into helping me hone my craft just as I will with them.
Teamwork. Craftsman smelting a sword, stressing it until it comes out gleaming. How wonderful is that?
This of course requires that I put my ego aside. Its hard to do when I love something so much, but I try to remind myself that I am merely one perspective. I will see things that others miss, and others will see things that I miss. Feedback from one person is good, but feedback from many people who know what they're doing is great. It allows me to compare what everyone says against each other, aiding me in locating the flaws that the majority points out rather than writing off the criticism from one person as simply being subjective.
On the road to getting published, I've found the people who will help. The write people.
Now go clean your room.
Happy writing,289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBlsipsmcO4
Chris289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9zSL3s7Mbb
289Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJq9ZbCxO0Y
PS: here's a piece of promo art for my novel! I still need to tweak it a little but I like the direction
