Urgh, it's nerve-wracking having your parents read your work...

I let my family read my work all the time. It doesn't bother me really as I don't write anything that I wouldn't want people to read. What I don't want people to read, no one can! hehe! But I can understand the nervous feeling of family reading your work. I used to get like that myself. But I don't care what others think of my work now, most don't like it, they think it is disturbing and horrid, others see my work for the beauty that it is. (I write pretty out there horror poetry) THe only thing that matters is that I enjoy writing it and I know that there is a small group of people that DO enjoy reading my poetry.

I understand what you are saying. It is like showing a piece of your insides to someone. I find that I usually put a lot of myself into what I write and so when someone reads even the silliest of things that I have written, I feel like they are getting a glimpse behind the eyes.

I feel the same. I have no problem showing my friends my work (sorry, I must bombard you a lot with my random pieces of writing crap...) but when it comes to my family I get really nervous, and I have no clue why. Mostly because I'm affraid they'll have me commited after seeing some of my, er, darker poetry and short stories. But in all seriousness, I have no clue why, I just AM, especially with poetry. Its not like I don't want my parents knowing what goes on in my head but... ehhh... some of it I don't, and I express it through poetry. For stories its not a huge deal, since they are far less personal.