So I have had many breaks where I didn't write and then I would start back up again but I never felt this...disconnected from my writing until now. Since 2020, I've worked on three series. The words just flew out of me. I didn't need an outline, I didn't have much to think or really plot, my passion just blew out of proportion. I truly believed it was some of the best writing I had ever done up until that point. Due to over controlling, religious parents, I am waiting to publish until I finally move out and marry. That way they can't have any say in what I do or write even if they voice their unwanted opinions at me. I'm 29 and still single so the wait is taking a while but in that meantime I am writing as much as I want while I get my series beta read and self-edited for a while. As I was working on series #3 I started beta reading and found two beta readers I really clicked with so I kept sending my works to them. They were invaluable to me. But then last September/October everything fell apart. I sent one beta my first series I had completed (she received #2 and #3 then #1) and instead of getting positive feedback, it was the most negative I had ever received from her, and she mentioned my dialogue was strange. I went over it time and time again but I just couldn't see what she meant so as I was editing book 2 of the series for her, I carefully inspected my dialogue and sent it to her, thinking it was fine. Book 2 came back and she was even more critical of my dialogue. So that, paired with an old wrist injury flaring up, unfortunately on my right hand, my writing one, I took a break. I didn't think it was going to last so long but it did. I don't take constructive criticism well, and I think this one just really upset me for some reason. But I never got back to editing or writing anything new. I tried, but the words just never flowed as freely as before. I have some new ideas but oh my God, it feels like my writing is awful and I lost my edge. I'm really concerned this is going to be forever, and I'll never have that words flowing out of me type inspiration ever again. I don't know what to do, or how to fix this. I have a good idea now but I just can't get it flowing. This sucks.
I wouldn't keep going to the same person over and over for critique, unless it's a professional editor and you have a good relationship with them. You don't know what might be going on in their life, or whatever. Possibly you've been sending them too much and it's stressing them out? I have no idea. You're probably a lot better off getting critque here and/or at other writing forums, where multiple people can see it and comment. But of course even that doesn't guarantee you'll always get good crit, but it makes for a better shot at it.
There’s also the issue that every writer has moments of thinking their work is brilliant and others of thinking it’s terrible where the reality is somewhere in the middle the ability to take constructive criticism is key to improving as a writer, it was Hemingway who said that “ the first draft of anything is shit” so the problem could be with the beta reader but it could also be that there is a problem with your dialogue. Did she tell you why she thought the dialogue didn’t work ? I tend to agree with Xoic do a couple of crits for other people then pop an extract in the workshop for us to look at
Well for self publishing and any publishing really it's good to have betas read for plot holes and mistakes, and since she had given good feedback on the other two I believed we had racked up a good rapport with each other. But she could have been going through something, I don't know. At the time I was on another writing forum that I was banned from unjustly and attacked by the owner and main moderator and I was posting some things for help there but it took me a while until I found this website to join. I will certainly post some for help here.
Everyone takes it differently and I'm one of those that doesn't handle it well. It's been over a year since it happened so I don't remember if she did but I do recall at the time wondering what parts she meant because she didn't outright say what didn't work. Maybe mentioned at one part or two she thought the sentence was off at the time but then said overall my dialouge was off. I do have her feedback report so I can go back and see if I can find a part to post here for crit. I just hope it doesn't demotivate me even more...since everything happened I haven't even worked on all the editing I have to do that she found problems with. Bleh.
That's something you'll need to work on as being able to deal with constructive criticism is an essential part of succeeding as a writer. As you're self publishing what did your actual editor say? If you haven't used one i strongly suggest that you do, especially if this is your first book. On your actual point about getting the connection and motivation back, its not unusual to lose the mojo after completing a book so don't beat yourself up about not feeling it... I'd suggest a short break and doing some research around whatever your next idea is to refill the creative well
Yes, I want to work on it to make myself grow and become better. I have not acquired an editor yet. That's the next step after beta reading. Since I've only had one beta go through the whole 5 books in the series, and the other one she only got through book 2, I still feel there's more I should acquire to have another look to find things I have missed after my own eyes have seen it like a thousand times by now. When I feel comfortable that the betas are rarely finding anything to fix than I'll send it to an editor. That's the thing, I've taken a year long break. I still haven't found my mojo back. I struggle to write a mere few pages and it feels like the passion in my writing is gone. But unlike with my three other series I could write up to a couple dozen pages in one sitting. So after this long I still worry it will never come back.
So, you are going to let some stranger who read an early draft of your books completely shut you down? Did you get a chance to read this person's work? Like you guys did a swap? What did you think of their writing? I think it's important to know where feedback is coming from. You also have to keep in mind that most of the time a beta reader is trying to help you. It would be a waste of their time and your efforts not to bring up things that aren't sitting right. And you can't really count on them to tell you how to fix it. They might not know, but that doesn't mean that they can't spot something as being off. You should feel grateful that this was brought to your attention so you can work on it. I know you said you couldn't see the problem on your own, but maybe now that some time has gone by you'll be able to pick up what's wrong with a better sense on how to tackle it. Or maybe this is something that will help you in your next project. I think it's rare that early attempts at writing (first few or several stories) are any kind of home run or successful. But we, as writers, have to write those stories to be able to go on and write better stories. That's just sort of the way it is. To say writers need thick skin is an understatement. This is a competitive industry. If you attempt trade publishing, plan on A LOT of rejection, maybe even years of rejection. If you self publish, you are still subject to bad reviews or ratings. Or maybe even worse, no sales. Really, the competition is fierce are there are no participation ribbons. If you really want to be a writer, there are classes and writing programs designed for just that. I know that's not for for everyone, but if you are feeling stuck it could help. That's what I did, and I don't think I would have become the writer I am without that. Actually, I'm sure of it. I was a pretty good writer before taking classes and getting an MFA, but now I write and publish at a professional level. I think I'm also able to spot problems and know how to fix them. Good writing classes are not easy, and you could get way harsher feedback than you did with your beta. I spent many years training and many years facing nothing but rejection. That's just the way it is for a lot (most) writers. As for writing feeling more difficult, I think it's true that we can get a little rusty if we take too much time off. Setting up a routine helped me. You'll get it back if you want it bad enough. One more thing that's off topic. Personally, I don't think you need to get married before you move out or try and publish anything. You're almost 30. If you are making those things a prerequisite to your writing career, I, personally, think you're just making things harder on yourself. These are just my thoughts. Good luck!
Tbh I’d be inclined to forget the beta readers and get a professional to look at book 1 as a priority It’s not a good idea to make a lot of changes based on the feedback of a single beta who may well be wrong that said a good editor will give a lot of feedback and it won’t all be positive so you need to be prepared for a lot of feedback on areas that don’t work or could be improved but the difference is that a good editor will tell you why rather than just giving vague feedback and leaving you to guess I’d stress here the need for a good editor not some chimp off of fiverr or upwork
No, I did not read their work or swap. It was a beta reader I paid for on Fiverr. And before you come at me for it, yes, I started out for free/swaps with other people on a Facebook beta reading group. I only had a rare few that actually would complete my beta, while I completed theirs in its entirety. After having upwards of 10+ people ghost me part way into my book, I got real tired of it and started paying for it on Fiverr. That way I knew I would get a report back and good feedback too. That's how I stumbled upon the two betas that were invaluable to me. Yes, I'm glad she brought it up. She always let me know if something was off but it was never usually dialouge, more so a plot hole or something she thought wasn't needed. Maybe after this break I'll find what it is. I agree, our first arent always the best. I still think its a good series though, as it was the first I wrote after starting writing back up as an adult. The last time I had been writing a lot was in high school. And my two series after I really am proud of how they turned out. I know how hard it is both for trade and for self publishing. I interned with a literary agent remotely last year and was one of her best manuscript readers so I know how hard it is to get in. And I see the struggles of indie authors out there doing it on their own but I'm taking this time before I publish to really research ways to stand out, to market my work, and do the best I can to acquire sales before I publish. As far as classes, I have taken a remote writing class before, more like a workshop. But as far as an MFA I'm not sure if I want to go that route as I'm also not sure what job I want to get with it either. I did try a few years ago to apply to my alma mater's program but they only take 6 people out of 500+ applicants per year, and I was denied. But I'm not against doing other workshop classes again though. I've been trying to just write some per day hoping my spark will return. So far still nothing. First, I don't want to have my maiden name on my work. My family is quite toxic and I have a lot of trauma stemming from them. But I also don't want a pen name. So I'm waiting for marriage just so I can put my own name on it. And in this time of waiting I again can keep working and editing it as long as I want too.
I believe betas are mandatory for me. A line editor does not look for plot holes or any type of development, and a developmental editor is only really needed after betas pick it through. They help catch any last problems and make sure everything like character, world, and other areas are developed right. So I think it's not financially smart for me to invest in a line editor just to look at my dialogue before I am ready. The rest of the book may still have stuff needing to be fixed. Also I don't always accept every change she makes, and I have more than one look at it than her. If multiple betas say the same thing on a part that I didn't change yet, than I take that into account.
Yeah… umm it’s your choice of course but I’m not sure it’s a good one… I’ve written about 40 books and self published 8 ( and I’m currently negotiating a book deal with a big 5 publisher) so far for context, I’m well aware of what the various types of editor do a good developmental editor can entirely replace beta readers especially where the beta reader isn’t giving useful feedback on point you originally said that you stopped writing for a year after feedback from one beta reader that your dialogue had problems… if you now say you only make changes if several beta readers agree what did the others say about your dialogue?
Maybe it's not a good choice for you but you can't say for others. I still say its good to have more than one eye to look at it even if you hire a developmental editor. I also beta read for a current self published author who already had a good bit published. She had multiple people beta read for her and she listed my name alongside them inside the book. And I recall catching a plot piece she missed. I was one of many that looked at it and I was still finding things others did not. I'm not saying an editor will be perfect, things do slip sometimes (my current author I read I've noticed some stuff that wasn't caught before publishing) but to me I feel better having betas see it alongside an editor. That's the thing no one else really said anything about the dialogue. She was the first one too. I think maybe one mentioned she felt it read not as adult as I wanted but other than that nothing about dialogue.
That being the case why are you investing that particular betas feedback with such weight that it inhibits your writing? If only one beta said the dialogue didn’t work but several others said nothing much about it then it’s likely that beta isn’t correct and you should take little notice of their opinion.
I can't honestly say why. I think it just shocked me to have her say something so negative after reading 6 of my other projects with little to none of that from them.
It sounds like you held that beta reader in higher esteem, so that's why the comment has affected you more than perhaps another single beta reader would. Emotions justified. Her criticism might too vague to be helpful though. She's still just one beta reader. You need more opinions than that, and from a wider pool. Thicker skin is eventually a must. If you need to be sad about it, fine, take the time to be sad about it, then recover. You can't really force mental recovery, just make sure you're getting enough microfractures so that the bones won't snap when you're popular and getting a few really mean reviews.
When you're writing, not everything you write is going to always be receptive to a singular person. You're going to write stuff you love but others may hate, but you can't take the criticism as a reflection that you're failing as a writer, or losing your skill as a good storyteller, because you're not. Not every piece of art is made equally, and understanding that helps you not repeat the same mistakes. It's fine taking constructive criticism but not everything beta readers say is always going to be on the mark. I'm happy to read an excerpt of your dialogue and give you some pointers.
I needed to hear this. Thank you. I'm going to open it up and look through it and post some in the workshop soon. I'll be glad for any pointers.
