How To Deal With Criticism

Criticism isn’t easy to deal with even when it’s constructive.

Changing my mindset has helped me. I don’t want to be defensive or reactionary every time someone gives me feedback. That’s not the best attitude to have.

Besides, constructive criticism helps me improve and get better. I should listen to others, especially when they offer suggestions I wouldn’t have thought of on my own.

I try not to take any comments about my work personally. That’s obviously easier said than done, but more often than not, no one is attacking me. They’re just making a statement about my story.

I tend to seek out people I respect. I’m much more open to their opinions if I look up to them.

But when I receive feedback from a stranger or someone I don’t like, I do my best to see where s/he is coming from. After all, nobody has the same experiences as me.

What’s more, we can learn something from everyone, which is why I want to hear from different voices.

That said, I still filter. Not every remark is useful or helpful. The negative comments that serve no purpose are best ignored, forgotten.

Ultimately, I want to keep improving. There’s always room for improvement. I’m not perfect. I haven’t mastered everything, and I never will.

It’s important to hear people out whenever they provide helpful feedback. I’ll take what works and apply it to my own work. I can throw away what doesn’t.

At the end of the day, constructive criticism is part of life.

Monthly Writing Project For June

I have no idea what I want to do this June writing wise.

Throw some ideas or suggestions at me. Anything. Anything at all.

Poems, articles, short stories, plays, novels, etc.

Let it be known to everyone how desperate I am. Any help is appreciated.

Next time I’ll plan ahead so I don’t find myself in this predicament again. You can hold me to my word. When have I ever gone back on it?

My Pet Peeves As An Editor

I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I’ve had to edit rough drafts of everything from essays to short stories. What’s worse, I cannot believe how many times I have received a document via email or seen a draft on my desk that’s in serious need of work…to put it nicely. For the record, these are some of the few things that frustrate me as an editor. Is it so hard to follow a few simple rules?

If the papers are dirty, messy, stained, crumpled, etc.

This shows you don’t care and hello, it’s quite disrespectful. I’ll care enough to edit if you care enough to clean up your act and your papers while you’re at it.

If the handwriting is impossible to read.

The easier it is for me to read what you’ve written, the more accurate and valid my feedback will be. Also, unless you really want to test my patience (which you don’t), print neatly instead of making the handwriting too fancy or messy to make for an easy read-through. I’m more likely to spend additional time and effort on something I understand over something that looks rushed. Take extra time to write legibly and I promise I’ll take extra care to edit your work.

If your entire essay is squished together using tiny font, small margins, and narrow spacing.

I prefer bigger font, better use of the page, and double-spacing, especially when I am editing. Feel free to change everything back to your preferences after the editing stage or for the final draft. However, as an editor, I need room to write in corrections, add in suggestions, and fill in feedback. Don’t make me struggle to find space. Don’t make me cram my ideas on your page. At best, you’ll have to squint to read what I wrote. At worst, I’ll forgo extra feedback-giving if I don’t have enough room to do so.

While I’m no expert on editing, I’ve done it more times than necessary to know editors are great as long as writers cooperate. That’s easy enough to remember right? Say it with me. Editors are great as long as writers cooperate. The more you cooperate, the better your editor will be. Additionally, it doesn’t hurt to ask your editor how he or she prefers to edit either. Asking cannot hurt you; it will only help you.

Day 25—NaNoWriMo: Where are you in the story literally and figuratively?

Where have 25 days of November gone? Into your novel of course.

Now’s a good time to assess your novel from the inside out since you can start validating your novel today. In fact, you have five more days to do so if you’re almost there but not there yet.

Where are you in terms of your story? Where are you in terms of your word count? Where are you in general?

The end is near. Hang on, hold on, and enjoy the ride for a few more days.

Since we’re so close to the start of December, I am starting to get into a giving mood. How about giving back to all of you, my wonderful readers and followers? If you want to me to do a post on any particular topic be it writing or blogging or something random, comment down below. I haven’t planned out any December posts since I’ve been so caught up with my NaNoWriMo ones so send me some suggestions. All ideas are welcome. Thanks.