On Friday I was asked how I cope with my work being criticized. I responded that, whilst letting other people read my story makes me feel very vulnerable, it’s also hugely important consider their feedback and not take it personally. Sure, I don’t necessarily take every suggestion on board, but it can be hard not to be defensive about every little suggestion!
So, recently I read out my first chapter to my local writers’ group. And it got torn to shreds. Well, perhaps that’s a tad dramatic. Let’s say that I received a generous amount of constructive criticism 🙂 Basically, I need to start with a better hook and not try to recap the whole book of Medar in the first chapter. I can flash-back to it later on – and probably use much of the material later on in the story. I haven’t quite figured out how to re-write it, but I know that Tyrelia will be better when I have.
Watch this space.
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Published by Sharon Manssen
A fantasy fan since being read 'The Hobbit' by her father at the fireside at the age of six, S R Manssen has been an avid bookworm her entire life. She is the multi-award nominated author of The Realmshift Trilogy – a YA fantasy fiction trilogy comprising four books (I know!). Sharon had a multi-cultural upbringing, attending high school in Belgium (in Flemish) and working 9 years in Bangkok, Thailand. It was there she realised she had a story inside her which she then proceeded to write over the next ten years, squeezing writing in between raising a family and working full time as a professional engineer. Her books have variously been finalists in the Tom Fitzgibbon Award, the SJV Awards and the Caleb Awards. She served as the President of Tauranga Writers for nearly 5 years and has been the President of SpecFicNZ since 2022. She is a StartWrite Manuscript assessor and Youth Mentor with NZSA.
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