Monday, April 6, 2009

Feedback Is A Writers Best Friend

On the first Monday of the month, I go to a writers workshop at the downtown library. Some of the other attendees bring something to share, and some come just to hear the stories. After each reading, there is a short discussion where the author explains where they are trying to go with the work, or sometimes they just sit back and listen to the comments and suggestions offered by the other members of the group.

Tonight, I read (actually, I had one of the other ladies read the story because I become too emotional when I read it) a story that I wrote with the thought that it would be a children's picture book. Everyone really seemed to enjoy the story. There were several parents, grandparents, and even a great grand mother in the group tonight, and they all thought it would be a great story to read to their kids/grand kids/great grand kids.

One dad said that while Mary was reading the story, he could see himself reading it to his children, and that even without pictures I did a good job with the descriptions. He also said that he liked the alliteration at the end, and the creative answers for the little girl's strange questions.

It was great to get all that feed back from those folks. This is the story that I'm trying to get to an agent or a publisher, and almost everyone in the group said it was one I should get published (I had not mentioned yet that this was the one I was trying to get out there). It's one thing to have family or friends read a story and tell you it's good, but to have a room full of strangers tell you it's good, then you know they're not just humoring you.

Now that I have so much time on my hands, I think I'm finally ready to get serious about this and really push to get a story published. This will be the year.

So it is with determination, joy and hope that I say...C'est la vie.