Accepting Criticism ... Along With a Special Thanks and a Really Cool Opportunity :-)

I truly believe that the reason my novel is still unpublished is that I suck at struggle with accepting criticism.  This is true in all facets of my life, but it's unquestionably the strongest with regard to my writing.

Why?  I suspect because, at least in terms of the tentatively titled Unbreakable, I put so much of myself into it, that I put many years of my life into it, that it has been a part of me for a very long time.

I spent a lot of this summer working on fixing up my novel, based in large part on suggestions and input from you, my lovely readers.

So I'm going to ask you to please do it again ... how's that for grateful ;-)?

Marcy over at Mainewords and Dianne from In High Spirits collaborate on what they call "First Impressions".  Basically, you can submit the first page of your manuscript, and both Marcy and Dianne will critique it publicly on their respective blogs.

If you're a writer, I strongly recommend this great opportunity.  I mean, the hardest thing to hear is that something that you've poured your heart and soul into stinks ... but at the same time, receiving specific feedback on how to improve it from fellow writers is absolutely invaluable.

I'm not getting torn to shreds, actually, which is cool :-)  The big issues seem to be my use of a mother's use of "revulsion" in terms of her son, and my affinity for extremely long sentences.  Both of these are excellent points and remind me that I still have much work to do.

But I'm feeling great about it (my new mindset is permeating all aspects of my life :-)), and am now really interested in finding a critique partner and really, seriously, 100% aggressively delving into getting that book published instead of waiting for someone to say, "I read an excerpt of your novel online, and it's amazing.  I'd love to represent you!" because clearly that is not going to happen ;-)

Anyway, special thanks to Marcy and Dianne, and I hope that you will go over to their respective blogs and add to the critique fest ... myself and my novel need all the help we can get ;-)

And again, please consider submitting a "First Impression" piece to these two wonderful ladies ... you won't be sorry.

The New Philosophy of KLo--Your Feedback is Respectfully Requested

I had a very clear vision when I started this blog. To recap, "Have you ever just wanted to talk ... about anything? About everything? My new fascination with the whys and hows of virtually everything have led me to create this blog. Please join the conversation : )"

As things have progressed with this blog, many things have happened that I didn't foresee. First, it was not well-read at first. Early posts included thoughts on a short story Stephen King wrote on 9/11, thoughts on Martin Luther King, Jr., and a variety of other rather random thoughts. I wanted desperately to get it organized, to have a common thread.

I have written much about my daughters, including a unintentional philosophical observation from both Addie and Belle. Belle's garden dreams and Addie's trip to Florida were documented here.

And then my writing decided that it wanted to take over the blog. There were still posts about teaching, including focuses on Shakespeare and Edward Murrow, a little competition between classes, and my joy over being on April vacation. However, between posting actual pieces and looking at perspectives from writers such as Stephen King, I've started focusing on writing as a craft as well.

Of course, there was the great pancreatitis debacle (I was a hospital blogger for four or five days ... here, here, here, here, and here.

What's happening, now, though, is that I suddenly have 60 followers. I know that's not a lot in the great scheme of things, but it means that I want this blog to be viable (and I don't mean in a financial way--I mean in a way that brings pleasures to its readers and its writer.

With that in mind, my latest approach has been to bring up sticky subjects as I observe them (or that just come up in my mind), talk about them a little on my terms, and then encourage comments. I love responding to comments. I love conversations. I love reading, writing, and thinking, and this blog is allowing me to just ... revel ... in all of those things.

I guess I'm sort of looking for feedback; since my older posts have zero comments and my newer ones get 10-20 comments apiece, I gather that people are liking what they read. This, then, is my plan--to continue to run this blog as a forum for thoughtful conversation to take place.

I am excited, passionate, and willing to work as hard as I need to in order to see this work. If you have suggestions in general, please feel free to leave them in the comments section. If you have topics you'd like to suggest I address, please e-mail to kloud1026@yahoo.com.

It's been a great journey so far, and I hope we can keep it going. I've been enjoying the blogs I've had the pleasure to read almost as much as I've enjoyed writing my own pieces, so I also feel a need to express a gracious thanks to all of you once again.

<3 KLo