In Today’s Journal
* Quote of the Day
* Yes, There’s a Sequel
* Why I Don’t Like Critique Groups
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Quote of the Day
“Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very’; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.” Attributed to Mark Twain
Yes, There’s a Sequel
As I’ve said a few times recently, if you download the free novel The 13-Month Turn (use the coupon code RRKV66BOWU) I’ll send you a free copy of “The Stipplesuit” as well.
The former has a well-depicted lunar colony and the latter describes a next-next-next generation protective space suit.
In response to a question from several emails, yes, there’s also a sequel to The 13-Month Turn. It takes place on Earth and is titled Rose’s Story.
The Last Current Novel
in the Sam Granger Blackwell Ops subseries, Blackwell Ops 47: Sam Granger | Special Duty, went live today for $5.99 on Amazon and everywhere else ebooks are sold.
Or you can read about it and buy it for only $5 at my StoneThread Publishing online store. Just sayin’.
Why I Don’t Like Critique Groups
As a plain-spoken, opinionated Cajun friend of mine once said (with a stiff finger pointed at my face), “Not to go all Vesuvius on you, Harvey, but….”
In today’s Of Interest, you’ll find a link to a post titled “Try a Little Kindness.” In a phrase, that’s the first major reason I don’t like critique groups.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with delivering a much-deserved punch with your fist wrapped in a well-padded glove. Like the article says, “Try a Little Kindness.”
What I’m saying is that your target shouldn’t be seeking conscious, critical mind input in the first place. But if they bring it on, hey, give ’em what they asked for. Maybe you’ll thin out the competition.
Here’s the thing:
- If you’re attending a critique group in hopes of praise, you’re going for the wrong reason. Praising you unequivocally is your mom’s job.
- If you’re attending a critique group in search of critical input, grow a little confidence in yourself and your characters. How can anyone else possibly know more (or better) about your story than your characters do?
Even if you don’t attend a critique group, you will occasionally receive a critical review of your work, good or bad.
My advice in either case is to smile, say “Ooh, thank you so much!” and move on, leaving the review behind you where it belongs.
And if the critiquer or reviewer insists on handing you a few (or a lot of) “shoulds,” go ahead and state the above, and then add “I’d like to read your version after you write it!” Or, if you just aren’t in the mood, say, “Hey, good luck with that!”
But in every case, let the exclamation points affect your delivery. Emphasis is often useful in driving away braying jackas— Oops. I mean donkeys.
The article also summarizes other reasons I don’t like or recommend critique groups.
From the article, and my responses:
“…you publish a book and wait anxiously to see what other people think about it.”
First, if you do exactly that, publish, you’re ahead of the game. Good for you.
But if you carry an unpublished work to a critique group and “wait anxiously to see what other people think about it,” you’re assigning entirely too much importance to very few opinions.
“…instead of the kudos and praise and coveted stars you are sure the book deserves…”
Deserves? Really?
Um, check in with yourself. It’s Only A Story, nothing more, nothing less. And IF you go ahead and publish it,
- it will be more authentic and true to your voice,
- some will still not like it, and
- some will love it as much as you do.
Of course, if you lock it away in your computer or a desk drawer instead, thereby pre-judging the work on behalf of your potential readers, nobody will criticize it.
Also, nobody will get to enjoy it and like it.
“…you get told that your baby is ugly and you dress it funny. Somebody doesn’t like the name of one of your characters, or they don’t appreciate the research details. Or maybe they are just being mean.”
There’s the other major reason I don’t like critique groups. As Mark Twain famously wrote (I’m paraphrasing), “There is no stronger urge than the desire of a writer to change another writer’s work.”
Even the mindless AI entity is smart enough to know this much:
“Writers are inherently and compulsively judgmental of others’ work. The fabricated quote plays on the idea that writers naturally believe they know better than another author and have a compulsion to ‘fix’ their text.” (AI, from Google)
When anyone other than a professional copyeditor offers to “fix” or “improve” anything for you, I refer you back to “My advice” above.
Trust your characters and believe in yourselves, folks. You’re accomplishing things that thousands of others only dream of. It doesn’t take a village. And you don’t need no stinkin’ critiques.
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
Dr. Mardy’s Quotes of the Week: “Using Time Effectively”
The Numbers
The Journal…………………………… 850
Writing of Blackwell Ops 49: Wesley Stark
Day 1…… 2381 words. To date…… 2381
Day 2…… 3283 words. To date…… 5664
Day 3…… 2934 words. To date…… 8598
Fiction for October………………… 32153
Fiction for 2025…………………… 610691
Nonfiction for October.…………… 7250
Nonfiction for 2025……………….. 217360
2025 consumable words………… 820482
2025 Novels to Date…………………….. 15
2025 Novellas to Date…………………… 0
2025 Short Stories to Date……………… 32
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………….. 119
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)…………… 10
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)……… 306
Short story collections……………………. 29