Many people find it easy to criticize others. Slightly less flammatory might be “Many people find it easier to criticize others than criticize themselves.”
Funny thing is, the criticism we offer others is usually less accurate than the criticism we offer ourselves.
After all, we’ve been with ourselves lots longer than we’ve been with someone else.
This post is about learning how to be as critical, truthful, blunt, and unrelenting about your own work as you could be about someone else’s. The constant challenge with both is the lament, “I don’t want to offend anybody.”
Completely understood and agree. But you’re not criticizing the person, you’re criticizing their work, and unless they can separate themselves from their work enough to recognize the difference between themselves and their work…well, get out of the game.
Personally, I thrive on criticism. I know good criticism drives me to improve my craft.
Here’s the thing that separates good criticism from simple antagonism and hostility; Suggestion. Criticism without suggestion is worthless. The suggestion can be way off point and it doesn’t matter. The element being criticized and the suggestion being offered are lenses through which we determine the real issue.
Accept criticism. Seek it. Provided it comes with suggestion, especially when you’re criticising your own work. Get that pure editorial mind going and ask yourself how to improve what you’ve written, how to make it clearer, cleaner, and more enjoyable to the reader.
And be unrelenting on both yourself and others. It’s how we grow.
Think I’m onto something? Take a class with me, schedule a critique of your work, or buy me a coffee.
Think I’m an idiot? Let me know in a comment.
Either way, we’ll both learn something.
Get copies of my books because it’s a nice thing to do, you care, you can follow along, and I need the money.
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