Of stories and parrots.

[hobgoblin13]

Hallo, meine Freunde. I've been summoning up the courage to ask a question of the Advice Forum'ers for a few days now on a minor issue. I have an idea for a series of short stories in mind, and I don't know if I should write them. A few friends who know some of what happens in the stories are telling me to go for it, but I am, in essence, real life the Paranoid
Parrot, and have my doubts.
It mostly comes down to the fact that I fear the characters, who seem three-dimensional in my head, will come out two- or even one-dimensional, and I'll simply end up making SMeyer look like Stephen King. I'm also awkward about the prospect of it being read, due to my extremely thin skin to criticism. So, my first question is, Advice Forum, should I write it? My second is, how can I learn to handle criticism better? Is there any hope, or am I stuck with my thin skin?

 

[Mekado]

Hallo, meine Freunde. I've been summoning up the courage to ask a question of the Advice Forum'ers for a few days now on a minor issue. I have an idea for a series of short stories in mind, and I don't know if I should write them. A few friends who know some of what happens in the stories are telling me to go for it, but I am, in essence, real life the Paranoid
Parrot, and have my doubts.
It mostly comes down to the fact that I fear the characters, who seem three-dimensional in my head, will come out two- or even one-dimensional, and I'll simply end up making SMeyer look like Stephen King. I'm also awkward about the prospect of it being read, due to my extremely thin skin to criticism. So, my first question is, Advice Forum, should I write it? My second is, how can I learn to handle criticism better? Is there any hope, or am I stuck with my thin skin?

I'd say write it, you have nothing to lose, and writing can get better with practice like everything else...

As far as your first few stories go, if you're thin-skinned i'd suggest to have a good friend (or a family member you like) read it and give you their comments, there's a good chance criticism will be expressed in a much more mellow way than by a stranger.

 

[Anah'ya]

The fear of a budding writer...

Oi, This is [http://critiquecircle.com/] where you want to go and where you want to stay. It will expose you to what you fear most at the moment (criticism), but it will also allow you to dish it out and learn in the process.

Don't be afraid of that place. The folks there are generous and will comply to your wishes on how you want your writing to be examined and just how much criticism you want.

 

[SiskoBlue]

Who dares wins. And the only way to get a callous is something rub against that thin skin. Also remember, when it comes to writing fiction there's really no right or wrong. Maybe you WANT the characters to appear two dimensional to contrast the one that appears three dimensional. And a lot of the time it's hard to see where you're going "wrong" until someone points it out to you.

A really good piece of advice. Leave something you wrote for a good month. Then re-read it with fresh eyes. If it doesn't flow right you'll see it. You'll also just have to learn when not to care what other people think (what the hell would they know anyway?)

 

[dmase]

Write it as you planned get people to tell you what they think and re-write if your characters aren't fleshed out enough.

If your not good at taking critiscm then there isn't much that can help that besides pick the people who read your story wisely. Though I think you'll get a thick skin the more you let people read your writing, something you just have to get used to.