I have a phrase I use to describe myself. "I am the ultimate geek, minus three things: I don't wear taped together glasses, I don't wear a pocket protector, and I am danged good looking!" (Note: Last part is edited for younger readers.) Yes, I am confident in myself. I know my skills, I know my personality, and I know who/what I want to be. Why, then, do I find myself so nervous when someone is reading my WIP(Work In Progress)?
Last Monday, at my Writer's League meeting, we broke into two groups to help critique what others had brought. I had brought the first two chapters of my as yet unnamed prequel. Two others in the group brought their WIPs, and five in the group meant that not all of us were reading, some waiting. I waited... It felt like I had handed my newborn baby to a stranger. What would she think? Would she hate it? Was it even worth sharing?
Parts of my prequel are sci-fi, the first two chapters, very much so. The nice lady reading my WIP wasn't a sci-fi fan, and didn't understand much of the lingo. She gave some wonderful advice on a few terms that could use some clarifying. The next round I was able to read someone else's, which took my mind off of my own. What I read was good, and truthfully, there was little I could offer to help her. I received some good feedback on mine: A few sentence structure issues, but otherwise a good start. The next person to read mine is a real-life editor. Within seconds she was marking up my pages and writing in the margins. After page one she looks up at me, and asks if she what she is doing is okay? I'll be honest, my first thought was, If it is that bad on page one, how bad must the rest of it be? Knowing that, just as we sometimes have to let our children get hurt so that they can grow, my WIP needed this in order to get better.
Our meeting ended before she had the opportunity to finish reading. She gave me some excellent advise, and began going over what she had marked. As she turned to page three, I saw how marked up the page was, and was surprised by my own reaction: I was ecstatic! When finished, she told me she wished she had the time to finish reading it. I was more than happy to let her. In the end, she said that it was a good story and really drew her in. She couldn't wait to read the full thing.
At this point, some of you are probably wondering if I am writing this just to brag, or what the point is. I have been called conceited and cocky (Derned right!). I have also been told I am too polite, (I'm sorry). In the end it all boils down to this. When meeting and networking with other people, it is good to be confidant (not cocky), but when it comes to letting others handle your WIP, be very humble. They are not out to destroy it or you. They are there to help it grow and become much stronger.
Tell me in the comments below how you handle others reading your WIP?
It is hard letting someone go through something you've toiled over, but in the end, if it can be better it is worth a few sweat beads. I read a little of my first book and holy crap does it need work. I thought it was good, I thought I'd worked it to death in the year it took me to learn where I was going. I heard that it takes a few hundred thousand words before a writer really starts putting good stuff out. patience, and determination until that point.
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