Conquering Your Fear of Critique

I recently asked a writer friend why he wasn’t in any critique groups, and his answer surprised me. He told me he’s always been a lone wolf when it came to his writing and that he doesn’t know how to share it without the fear of a group response “killing” the momentum. (Or, I suspect, his confidence.)

Those of us who have been lucky enough to find enduring, supportive and well-organized workshops/critique groups would swear by them. I thought I’d tackle three realistic reasons people avoid or abandon workshop groups in hopes that I can encourage you to find critique partners or even join or found a RMFW critique group in your area. After all, isn’t that one of the reasons you signed up to be a part of this newsletter?

But first, let me remind you that RMFW has published many excellent blogs on the topic of critique groups. To figure out which type of critique, workshop group, or beta read might suit you, try this article by Kelley J. P. Lindberg. And for helpful advice on how to sustain a strong online critique group, try this article by Ann Gordon.

So what has deterred you from asking for feedback on your work?

Perhaps the critiques/draft workshops you’ve tried before were unsatisfying.

I completely understand. Many of us who took creative writing classes (long ago, if you’re me) during college remember workshops as a hodgepodge of posturing, insecurity, silence, envy, and occasional inspiration. Often two or three self-assured students dominated the conversation, sometimes misapplying terms, and raving about “the flow” and how “the imagery was so great — you could, like, really imagine you were there!”

Likewise, our first attempts at community groups might have been just as daunting. Novice creative workshops are also often steeped in damning “faint praise” or vauge assurances that everything and everyone and “everypage” were all just awesome. Maybe these workshops simply afforded you little instruction. Maybe they dinged your self-image or slowed your momentum, and although you’re a plucky sort who kept on keepin’ on, you haven’t wanted to try another critique group.

Developing a rapport in a critique group takes time and momentum. But I promise you, it’s worth pursuing. Now that you’re further along in your writing career, it’s time to try again. Approach it like you might a dating site. Sure, there will be some awkward fails and crossed signals. But the benefits of having a steady group of talented and honest compatriots cannot be overstated. In fact, many writers have confided that it was their workshop mates in their BFA or MFA programs that made the program worth it, not necessarily the curriculum or instructors.

Perhaps you’re not sure how to give constructive feedback even though you know you’re a good judge of good writing.

This all boils down to a matter of confidence, the lack of which is the bane of most writers’ existence. You don’t need to know how to discuss in medias res to participate well in a critique group. Sticking around, and learning the lingo, is the key. Just as writing is the best way to learn how to write, participating in regular critique groups will help you find the vocabulary to frame your thoughts. It never hurts to brush up on your old Intro to Lit textbook, or you can pick one up for a dollar at a thrift store. (Little has changed in the world of literary terminology in the past decade, other than that now we have this “new adult” genre that no one is quite sure how to explain to their teenagers).

Good critiquing is also about authentic reaction. If something confused you in a peer’s WIP, just say so, and try to point out where you got lost. You also don’t need to know the term “metafictional,” to justify that you were surprised when the narrator switched into second person and began calling you Dear Reader halfway through. Honest feedback about the reader experience, even without jargon, is useful feedback. So trust yourself. You’re a good reader. Besides, eventually you’ll be using the word “metafictional” like a champ.

Lastly, perhaps you’re that lone wolf mentioned above, and you’re not sure you really want to receive feedback.

If you’re like me, you probably want to hear that you’re a gifted writer, that you’ll be able to quit your day job, that this latest draft is magical and came out perfectly the first time, and that you are, after all, a worthy human being with amazing thoughts running through your head.

I can help you with that last part. You are a worthy human being with amazing thoughts running through your head. And the first time we share our work and receive criticism, it really can be terrifying and daunting. What helped me was to look around at my other author friends and see how often they revised and edited their own work; I also saw how grateful they were for savvy feedback. My skin toughened up, and yours will too. Eventually you’ll be so appreciative of useful feedback that you won’t know how you functioned without it (especially in those wonderful moments when the entire group agrees about something you might want to change).

We’re also headed into spring, which means writing conferences galore, so this is your chance to try a critique workshop session or make some connections and launch your own!

Here’s one last excellent RMFW blog post to remind you of some of the other benefits of a critique group by Kelley J. P. Lindberg. Remember, if you’re a member of RMFW, you can find a group through them here, and if not, reaching out to your local library is always a good idea! (This is how I ended up co-founding the Clearview Library critique group, which I’m proud to say, survived and persisted on Zoom all through Covid and is now face-to-face again!)

I wouldn’t be where I am today without the support of my critique mates. I’ve been a member of a fantastic RMFW group for five years, I co-advise the Aims Creative Writing Club, I participate in the Clearview group mentioned above, and I’ll be presenting on this topic at the upcoming Writing Heights Writers Conference in late April. Along the way, I’ve had my share of fails and misses, but the process has taught me to be optimistic, open to feedback, and open to new connections. I wish this for you, also!

Cheers, good luck, and happy critiquing!

Image done on Canva