hemingwaywantabes

Hello hemingwaywantabes. I hope you are writing away toward that special day when, not if, you will be published.

I admit to not being certain whether Ernest Hemingway ever permitted anyone to look at first drafts of his books (if you know, please let me know), but I’ll bet he thought it was a good idea for aspiring authors and poets. Another fine writer thinks this makes sense. His name is Stephen King and perhaps you know he has sold a zillion books during the past twenty years or so.

In On Writing, King’s terrific book about the craft, he writes, “When you give out six or eight copies [drafts] of a book, you get back six or eight highly subjective opinions about what’s good and what’s bad in it. If all your readers think you did a pretty good job, you probably did . . . If everyone who reads your book says you have a problem, you’ve got a problem and you better do something about it.”

Currently, the two books I am working on, a biography of spiritual guru Thomas Merton, and one presenting a fresh look at the JFK and Lee Harvey Oswald assassinations, are being read by others. I try to pick a variety of people re age, knowledge of the subject matter, gender, etc. so opinions will be received from a variety of viewpoints. Each person hopefully will be direct so that I may learn a number of things about the books.

If you have finished a workable first draft of your book, consider some critique. You might stay away from family or close friends since they will inclined to tell you what you want to hear. Instead, try to find some people who will be frank with you so you may truly learn from their comments and suggestions. Constructive criticism is a great learning tool. Try it on for size.