Five Things I Learned in The Twenty Plus Years as a Freelance Writer

First of five more things I learned. Be careful who you let read your unpublished manuscripts. If you let a family member read an unpublished manuscript there is one of three things that will happen: 1. You will be told how good it is no matter how poor it is. (This is the most likely to happen since family members don't want to hurt your feelings.) 2. You will be told how awful it is even if it's good. (This may happen if a family member doesn't like you spending so much time writing or he/she just doesn't know how to write for publication.) Or 3. You will get an honest critique. (This is rare, but it does occasionally happen. And if it does--grand. Bounce your material off this person.) The best thing to do is find a good critique group. And remember, whatever is said about your manuscript is not said to be mean or vindictive, no matter how much it hurts your feelings. A critique group's only purpose is to help you improve your writing. If the group has any other agenda, find another group. In my case, I never let any family members read my unpublished work. Once it is published, they can say whatever they want. I do go to a critique group (one I co-founded).

Second of five more things I learned. Never get mad at an editor for rewriting your material. So many beginners think their words are carved in stone and cannot be changed. You're headed for a hard life as a writer if you believe your words can't be change. I once sent a short story to a magazine and the editor rewrote nearly all of the story. I was a bit disappointed, but my first reaction was to find out why. I put my manuscript next to the published rewrite and studied the two. I learned so much about what the editor really wanted that I was able to write several stories which ended up to be cover stories. An editor's rewrite should be looked upon as a favor--not a disappointment.