The Blog Fest continues with today's guest E. M. LaBonte who blogs over at The Realms of a Fantastical Mind. I have a guest post over there right now on being a Plotter or a Panster. I met her at AQC, yes I know most of my friends I have on my blog I've met there. Although I've had twitter friends over here as well. (It is called networking) I enjoy E M's comments and feedback in the Spec Fic group and her twitters and retweets. She is a staunch and loyal friend. Someone you should get to know. So to get to know her better here is her post written just for us over here at the Write Time.
Take it away E. M. LaBonte:
The question is: How do I stay motivated?
Here’s an example of how to push a writer away from their work:
I just finished what I think is a masterpiece. I’ve edited and reworked
the chapter 6 or 7 times. I got a new critique partner, I have no idea
how they handle another’s work. It comes back to me and all I see is
red.
Notes such as: You need to change this and this doesn’t work. I don’t
know where you’re going with this and your characters are flat. No
personality.
I get so angry, I did all that work, that person must not know what they
are talking about. Who do they think they are? Yadda yadda yadda.
So I walk away from it, grumble to my husband that my new critique
partner is mean. I vent, and groan. After that I look at my work, see
that the critique partner was absolutely right and cry the tears of
failure. When all is said and done, I get over it, fix what needs to be
fixed, and go for one more round of beatings on my creation.
We all get defensive of our work, it’s only natural, but we must recognize that in order to grow, we need to feel some pain.
I could say it’s easy to give up on writing, with all the distractions
and disappointments that come with creating a novel, but it would be a
lie. I could never truly stop. I stay motivated because writing isn’t
just a hobby, or just a way to pass thetime. It’s a part of who I am.
When I get harsh critiques or find myself having to rewrite an entire
chapter becauseit just doesn’t work, I don’t have that feeling of
quitting. I may need a break, step away from my brain baby, but I can
never stay away for long.
Even during those times where I’m working on the hardest of edits, I
can’t help but enjoy it. Each time I sit in front of my writing, going
over the words, I see the picture I placed there. With every rewrite
and tweak the picture becomes clearer, more real.
It helps to have a writers group. AQC has been amazing for that. Having
other writers to talk with and to grow with gives me that desire to keep
going. The more support, the more it just feels right. The critique
partners that I get from the Speculative Fiction Group on AQC, are a
greater asset than I had ever hoped for.
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And there you have it. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for the blog swap.
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