Wednesday, 22 February 2012

Why can't . . . Writers Judge the Quality of their Stories?


In an interesting post, a few weeks ago, Luc Reid explores in his post, "Your Opinion and Twenty-Five cents: Judging Your Own Writing" 

Luc says, "I don't know, personally, whether it's merely difficult or actually impossible for writers to judge our own writing well"

I've often bemoaned the fact that I never know what's going to sell. It's very odd. But is this the same as quality? I wonder. 

A recent sell to a good market was on it's 12th sub. So you could argue that it's just a case of hitting the right market with the right editor. There's an art of matching story to venue. It's all very difficult. 

This week I've revisited some of my older stories, to give them a quick polish before submitting. Definitely distance in time makes a lot of difference in the ability to make judgments about a story. 

What do you think? Are you able to tell the quality of your own work? Does it matter? If you don't know what you're doing right, is it possible to improve?
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21 comments:

  1. Lydia Gray22 February 2012 at 11:32

    Hi Debs.

    I have no idea.
    I always fell like I am throwing mysterious objects into the dark for reasons I can't fathom.

    I have no idea why some sell and some don't, so my only answer is to keep throwing them out there in the hope that they'll stick.

    Other than that, I'm baffled by it all.

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    1. Deborah Walker23 February 2012 at 06:38

      It's frustrating really. I had a story out the other day had a really good feeling about it. But the rejection soon came skimming back.

      Story is so mysterious.

      Delete
  2. Golden Eagle22 February 2012 at 15:23

    I think that if you read enough on the craft then you will be able to judge your writing and catch mistakes like plot holes, weak dialogue, too much description, etc., to a certain extent. But if what sells counts as "quality", then as you said, it's a lot harder to tell what is quality writing.

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    1. Deborah Walker23 February 2012 at 06:40

      Hi Eagle,

      Thanks for your comment. I think leaving a good space of time really helps with this.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous22 February 2012 at 17:43

    I like to think I can, but you're absolutely right: "hitting the right market with the right editor" is what it takes -- and at the right time, when nothing in the slush pile was in any way similar to yours.

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    Replies
    1. Deborah Walker23 February 2012 at 06:36

      That's interesting, Milo. Do you use any techniques to help you judge, or do you just know?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous24 February 2012 at 07:56

      If I don't think it's crap, and if I think it's got a shot at publication considering what else is out there, then I know. The rest of the time, I resort to blind luck.

      Delete
  4. Rusty Carl22 February 2012 at 18:09

    I used to think I did, but if the opinions of other people are accurate, then no, I can't. Stuff I think is cringingly bad now got all sorts of rave responses from test readers. Stuff I still think is among the best thing I've ever written has gotten mediocre responses.

    So, no. I can't tell.

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    Replies
    1. Deborah Walker23 February 2012 at 06:34

      That seems to be the common response. I can only suggest that we strive to be mediocre, then everyone will love our stories.

      Delete
  5. Paula RC23 February 2012 at 04:05

    I always think it's best to work on something else then go back and have another look at your work after having a break, before sending out into the big wide world. Fresh Eyes see mistakes.

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    Replies
    1. Deborah Walker23 February 2012 at 06:34

      I hardly ever wait. I'm just so impatient.

      Delete
    2. Mark K23 February 2012 at 23:37

      Hello Deborah,

      Just found your blog via the very amusing review blog run by Mr Upstream (his writing style is so funny, but slightly scary at the same time!), and thought I'd say 'hello' with a comment.

      Personally, I find I'm overly critical of anything I write and never consider anything 'good enough', but I keep tapping away. I am a mere novice with a vast amount to learn about h craft of writing; you wouldn't believe how much it's taken for me to post my fiction on the pages of my blog - I feel way too precious and guarded about my writing, but only because I'm thinking it's not that good.


      So, in answer to your question: no, I can't judge my own work because I'm too close to it and I always feel I could do better, right or wrong. It's a real pain in the butt at times, because you end up fighting against yourself for no good reason. But if I were asked to describe my writing, I would have to say average at best.

      Delete
    3. Deborah Walker25 February 2012 at 11:26

      Hi, Mark. Thanks for the follow and the comment. I think a lot of the time we judge our work harshly. It's never as perfect as the story in your head, is it?

      I just abdicate responsibility to the editor. It's their job to judge if my story is publishable or not.

      Job done.

      Delete
  6. Simon Kewin24 February 2012 at 05:09

    It's hard ... and subjective. I think I know that an initial idea is good, but it's hard to maintain a perspective once you're deep into a story, I find. And it still surprises me which stories end up being accepted and published and which ones don't.

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  7. Deborah Walker24 February 2012 at 06:51

    I've been making reprint subs this week sending out my best work, or at least work that has been published in good venues. And still it gets rejected! (well not all the time).

    So this tells me that matching story to venue, is more important than an objective value of quality.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Mark K26 February 2012 at 16:14

    Hey Deborah,

    Thanks for the reply :) Your words make very good sense, but as a newbie 'writer' I don;t have access to an editor, so I'm stuck with me, myself and I.

    Loved your fish so much, I added some to my blog :)

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    1. Deborah Walker27 February 2012 at 04:13

      Mark, the only editors I have are the ones I send my stories to. *laughs*

      And I saw the fish! Excellent. Spread the fish.

      Delete
  9. Mark K26 February 2012 at 16:15

    And thank you so very much for joining me round the hearth :) I hope you find things of interest there.

    Kind regards,

    Mark ED

    ReplyDelete
  10. Elizabeth Twist29 February 2012 at 09:40

    Sometimes the good feeling I have about a story is more about its potential than what's actually on the page. This is why I seldom auto-send something out if it's been rejected. I usually take another look at it and tweak this, that, or the other. These are not usually trivial tweaks - often, they are the things that make a story make sense.

    I would wait until I've completed all the tweaks before I send it out the first time, but like others here I have little insight into whether something's good enough as is or good in potentia.

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