Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Topic 18 Mentoring




Greetings,
 
I know it's been a while since you last heard from me even though I had promised to write 2 blogs a month. But I have a darn good excuse. The end of October we sold our home and have been busy ever since gathering our belongings collected over the years from a million different hiding spots in our log home. If you've lived someplace for any length of time and then moved, you understand the process.

Of course, as soon as friends and relatives heard the news they offered a lot of sound advice just like a mentor would. Some advice was good other information not so helpful involving packing, downsizing, what moving service to use, and weather or not to hold a moving sale in Minnesota this time of year. When someone offers advice you take it with a smile. Then you take some time to think about the suggestions and decide which to follow through on and which not to. After all you're the one moving and doing all the work, not them.

Being mentored to as a writer is similar. You sort through the suggestions and then you make the final decisions, whether they're right or wrong. What should you keep of a story or discard? What writing tools should you use or publishing company? Do you feel your story fits middle school readership as well as the over twenty age bracket?

Today we gathered the things we no longer wanted, but were still in good condition, and took them to a thrift store where someone else can take possession of what we thought we couldn't live without. Some day when you're ready to mentor a fellow writer maybe you'll do the same. Don't be afraid to pass on suggestions that you've found helpful to another writer who is looking for that specific information.

In Writer Unboxed, -"Getting the Most Out of Mentoring from Both Sides of the Fence" author Sophie Masson states, "Writers experience mentoring in one way or the other at every stage in their careers." And it's true. Whether you're a new author or have been writing a long time. Most writers belong to one or more writers groups and share what they've written to get feedback. Those listening to the reader try to offer solid suggestions to the authors. Not tear them down. Trust is the essential ingredient for mentoring or being mentored to Masson says. Without trust no one would feel comfortable exposing their writing to fellow writers.

A lot of us are thin-skinned though and it's hard to swallow what others think of our work. Try to remember it's just a critique. You can heed their advice or not. It's up to you. Just smile, say thank you, and keep your thoughts to yourself.

Years ago when I joined a writers group in my area, one or two writers would really tear other writers' works to shreds. It didn't matter if the  story was great or not.  But guess what? Something amazing happened. One of the long-time writers spoke up and said, "I think there's too much negative criticism of the work being read. We need to start being more positive about our feedback." And that's when our meetings got better for the writer as well as the listener.

Well, it's time to end my blog on mentoring. Tomorrow I still have more packing to do. Friday we move to our new home in the Twin Cities.

Happy Thanksgiving A Little Early
Until Next Time
This is Marlene Chabot


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