The Value of Critique Partner (today!)

It’s just great to have a critique partner who “gets” your vision for your book. This morning I begged Megan to get over here and help me with the outline of the scenes. I was stumped and stalled and needed a sounding board. She hasn’t read the whole rough draft (and neither have I! Not since I wrote it, anyhow) and that’s fine. She magically could tell what I needed to do to help organize the scenes.

One thing my main character lacked was a deep seated fear, and I needed a way to make that work in the context of the story. I already had a certain scene built into the story, one of the strongest in the draft, and I love it. I mentioned it today and said I might want to make an element of the scene be the big problem my MC faces, and Megan helped me sort that out.

That’s just gold right there.

If there are any writers out there who have been winging it without a critique group or a critique partner, I have to say see what you can do to locate another writer or group of writers who can help you focus your vision of your book. I know being part of ANWA and having Megan around to bounce ideas off has changed my writing dramatically over the past few years. It’s such a boon!

And I had instant oatmeal for lunch, the kind with maple and brown sugar. What a great day. So much better than my Friday the 13th was. But I’m not going to revisit that. Let’s just say there were bugs involved. Ew. Lots. Ew, ew.