I always knew that being a writer was a lonely choice. Long hours hunched over a keyboard, face awash in reflected light from the screen that is always hungry for more words. What I didn't expect though, was the indifference and lack of enthusiasm from my intended audience.
I always knew that, once I had endured enough lonely hours, others would read my words and recognize my genius.
Therein lies the crux, getting people to read my words. My short stories tend to get read, have even been read by editors willing to publish some (see my list of credits) but mostly they languish in my computer in obscurity. I have not had a single email from a fan.
Having managed to actually finish a novel, The Summer of Grumps, after four stalled, part novel projects, I want to know how well I have done from someone else's perspective.
Despite speaking with numerous people about it and being reassured that, if I sent them a copy of it, they would read it and provide some feedback, I have only recieved that from one person.
Is the book so bad that if you gave me honest feedback you would hurt my feelings? Let me tell you, you wouldn't. What hurts more is not knowing if I should continue refining the book, rewrite it from a different perspective, abandon it and concentrate on my next project, or take up painting.
Offering feedback doesn't have to be difficult. I want to know if the story makes sense to you, is the writing too juvenile, technical, complicated. Are the characters and their actions believable, do they seem real. Did the story make you want to continue reading it was it difficult to turn the next page?
Feedback doesn't mean you need to correct my grammar spelling, so you don't need to identify dangling participle, or verb noun confusion. If you do notice these types of errors it is nice if you point them out.
You won't hurt my feeling, that's the job of the editor. What does hurt my feelings is hearing nothing back. That makes me feel like I don't matter.
Do I matter?