Fiction writing is an artform, without a doubt. Like painting, sculpting, acting ... even needlepoint ... it takes a certain degree of imagination, a high level of skill, considerable amount of practice, and an ocean of perspiration.
Now, I haven't a clue what goes on in the world of a painter or an actor or a needlepointer. Each is different in its practice. I marvel at what a painter can do, as I struggle just drawing stick figures. And I certainly don't see how I can act a part out of a play so convincingly that the audience would believe I am some character who is possibly a very different type of person than the real me. But what I find is very similar amongst all the arts is the need for criticism. The need for perspective.
Like I said, I haven't a clue how it is for painters and other artists, but I am fairly certain that a serious practitioner would want criticism on their finished product or performance. An actor needs a coach or a director to show them that perhaps the emotion the actor thought they were projecting is just not quite there. The painter may look at the canvas and say this is really cool looking, but an objective eye might see things differently. And then there is the opposite conclusion. Where a painter or a writer or an actor might feel that what they have created is terrible, a valued opinion might reveal that actually things came out great, lending confidence where perhaps little existed.
Additionally the criticism should be constructive. I am a big fan of Simon Cowell. He tells it like it is. He is a bit gruff about it, and it certainly appears to be excrutiating when he gives a negative criticism. But despite the lack of diplomacy in his remarks, he is constructive. He does know of what he speaks. And as painful as things might be, he is helping the artist to become better. Then there are others that can be rather scathing but really do it out of perhaps jealousy or sometimes malice. I recently saw a critique written by a "so-called" expert from Writer's Magazine that eviscerated a book already published and had one some awards. I had read the book myself. Actually, I had assisted the writer over the years in polishing manuscript to get to where it is now ... in the bookstores. Albeit this was a friend and colleague, I found the criticism quite unfair and my friend was rather hurt by it. Still, unfair or not, the criticism was helpful, if for anything other than at least building scar tissue on my friend's lacerated ego.
For writers, the value of criticism is critical. Perhaps it is even more critical for a writer than for other art forms. Perhaps. And I am not really here to debate that topic. Instead, in terms of writers, what I find to be true is that they find themselves immersed in their story and become emotionally connected to the piece at hand. The story becomes like a baby to them that must be raised and nursed to adulthood. And so, like a mother or a father, writers often have difficulty seeing the flaws in their "perfect little bundle of joy". So, a critique of the work is often necessary. No, it is mandatory if one thinks they can seriously get a story to the finished product (or at least finished enough) to where someone might consider publishing it. This is even more so if the piece is self-published, as nothing would be more embarassing (at least to me, anyway) than putting something out there that really stinks and the writer doesn't see it until the readers start rejecting it outright without the piece first having had any professional criticism or editing whatsoever.
Over several years now, I have been a part of a small group of writers in my local community. Each of us at one time or another has actually put out work that has managed to be published and read. We did not start out that way, though. It was actually because of the criticism we lended to one anothers' work that we improved to the point where we all managed to garnish bylines. We saw what each one of us was doing with our individuals pieces. We each received written and verbal evaluations of what had been written, and as we consistently have met together over the years, we have grown in our ability. Although none of us are household names, because of the criticism we have given each other of our collective works over the years, we have managed to become better writers. We have been shown where we went wrong, where the characterization was one dimensional, the plot was flawed, the description of the setting was lacking. It has made us into what we have become. Not just would-be writers, but published authors.
So, for those of you out there seeking to better your skills, even if you are already published, find like-minded souls. Gather around you other writers and critique each others' work. Take the time to give valued criticism to make the members of your group better, and they in turn will do the same for you. In the end you will all benefit, as will the reader who opens the pages of your latest "bundle of joy".
