By Shalleen Mayes
Keywords: write, writer, writing, freelance writer, editor, constructive criticism
Every writer has had her work criticized at one time or another. Despite your best efforts to create a prize-winning piece, there's bound to be someone who won't like it. How do you learn to accept constructive criticism of your writing without feeling devastated?
As a freelance writer, you'll naturally feel uncomfortable when your work leaves the safety of your desk and enters the hands of an editor. However, an editor will respect the work, offering the constructive criticism to make you a better writer.
Let go of your ego. Realize that your editor is not attacking you. Although you may feel insulted, remember that your editor is there to help you through the writing process, which often includes many revisions.
Guard Your Ideas
Keep your ideas private until they are ready to be shared. Although you may be excited about a new piece, give your ideas a chance to grow. In her article "A Writer's First Readers," Helen Benedict quotes writer Cynthia Ovick, who says, "writers have a holy little light within, like a pilot light, that fear is always blowing out."
In short, keep your ideas to yourself while they are still vulnerable.
Confide Your Ideas
When you're ready to share your writing, select a few people whose opinions you respect. Ask for constructive criticism and then evaluate it for what it's worth. For example, if your college English professor thinks your short story lacks plot, consider that he may have a valid point. He wants to help you become a better writer, so take the advice he has to offer.
Prepare Your Ideas
Don't become so attached to your work that you can't revise it. It's through revision, after all, that your writing becomes better and more substantial. However, don't revise your writing too much. Edit your ideas for clarity. Check your sentences for misspelled words or errors in grammar and punctuation.
A Word About Editors
An editor can be a valuable mentor and resource to any freelance writer. A good editor will sandwich constructive criticism in between positive comments and work to preserve your gentle spirit. However, don't be afraid to question your editor. Even the best editors can be a little heavy-handed at times.
Shalleen Mayes is an Ohio freelance writer for Writers Research Group. She writes for several WRG projects (usually at night!). By day she's a stay-at-home mom and helps her husband run his construction business. After graduating from Kent State University with a journalism degree, she developed experience in marketing, public relations, creative writing and editing. She also designs and edits newsletters and other publications.
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