Critics? Pshaw!

Dear Kira,

To respond to your question, yes, I think personal ego is very much separate from writing - not to say that I won't throw a hissy fit if you tell me my metaphors are weak and ineffective. I guess what I'm trying to convey is that, if I wrote strictly about what I knew, it wouldn't be fiction, would it?

To go all collegian and academic, let me just remind you of the New Critics (yes, I'm studying for my English theory class, you caught me). One of the major tenents of their philosophy was that the writer should be divorced from there work - that is to say that, while the author may be inspired by events in their lives, the purpose of writing is to take everyday experiences and raise them to the level of art - far beyond the author's experience.

Maybe I'm not making much sense, but I think that's definitely true. I mean, if you think about it, to the average reader the piece of writing has none of the connotations it has for the author. Like, wouldn't it be weird if we all knew what JK Rowling was thinking when she wrote Harry Potter? When you put a piece of writing out into the world, you're giving people permission to interpret it in the context of their own lives/experiences. So, I guess the long and the short of it is that when someone criticizes a piece of writing, they're not necessarily criticizing the author. The writing stands by itself, which, I think, is one of the attractions of writing fiction.

Not to be philosophical or anything.

Sure, it's difficult to deal with criticism of your writing, but it's not criticism of you. Speaking of criticism, one of the most frequent criticisms I encounter is criticisms of characters. It can be really difficult to create a believable character - especially when you're writing about someone who lives a life very different from yours. Remember when I wrote that book about a Victorian ghost who was seeking retribution for the murder of her one true love? Yeah, I can relate. But seriously, I find that I am constantly trying to squeeze my characters into the great, literary archetypes (I am such an English major), but it seems to be they better serve the story that way. So here's the dilemma, do you let your characters determine there own destines to do what seems natural? Or, are they slaves to the plot?

Cue dramatic music now,
Maria