I went to book club recently, and I told myself in the car not to bring up writing or my book. But I made a comment about the ancient Egyptian worldview, which I've been learning about for Book the Second, which led my friend to bring bringing up my new book.
This dear friend RAVED again about my writing and my ideas and how so very clever and imaginative I am, and on and on. I blushed and got through my elevator pitches.
It was just like this.
But man, it feels so good to have someone get excited about my book. It feels so good after rejections and the ever-present fears of what may never be. I've missed a lot of baby showers and Pampered Chef parties to write this thing, but to this friend, it was worth it. It spoke to her.
This friend is a naturally exuberant person, and I feel narcissistic when I'm around her. But it feels good. Yay for positive people.
I can do better than that. A-hem.
YAY for POSITIVE PEOPLE!
Who are your cheerleaders and how have they helped you? Can you tell them I want to be friends, too?
Oh boy, that's my Mom. No matter what I write, she says it's wonderful. I don't ever expect to get helpful feedback from her, but it's nice to have a fan. My wife is also a great fan, but she's not afraid to say when she doesn't like things. She knows she has great power to get them fixed, sometimes immediately. And then there's a woman in my writing group who always snaps up my chapters and says nice things about them. Kind of makes up for some of the other critiques.
ReplyDeleteAnd for what it's worth, I really like what I've read of your work.
Hey Ben, nice to meet you! Mothers are wonderful, aren't they? I hope that I can be as encouraging to my kiddoes. And I know not to let my husband read something until it's gone through a few rounds of edits. He's gives great feedback, and is very direct with me. Which is good, because I know he won't say it's good if it's not.
ReplyDeleteAnd you're right, it's nice to have a range of responses in a crit group. I try to be encouraging, while still being thorough.
And thanks for the kind words. I've edited my first chapter several times. Maybe I should update it on the tab up there... ;)
Wow, that's really great. I've got some friends that are just floored that I'm writing a book. They get SO excited and brag that I've got up to 75,000 words. It makes me feel good, because I do keep it on the DL, but when someone finds out it's kinda nice. Plus one of my crit partners just raves about it all the time and kinda makes me blush lol! And then he brings me back down with some really great critiques ;p
ReplyDeleteI know exactly what you mean, Kelly. I always feel like I'm boring people when they ask how the book's coming and I'm like, "Well...it's coming."
ReplyDeleteNatalie Whipple said something not long ago that stuck with me, though: Writing, like most things, is mostly about the boring, day-to-day work. And doing your time on all those little days is what allows you to save up for that big someday.
Thank goodness for moms, who always act so interested about every little secondary character and plot twist:)
Hey Abby- It is a big deal to write a book. It's a huge commitment. Good job! But I know waht you mean, just because you write it, doesn;t mean anyone will want to read it, and there are times when people are less enthusiastic, and it's hard to forget aout those experiences, even when someone is suer excited for you.
ReplyDeleteKrista- Hang on, are you saying my mom doesn't care about my secondary characters? Nah. You're wrong on that one. She's totally interested;)