Let us all bow down to the caring souls who slog through our unedited early drafts.
And then let us ignore them. Maybe.
I used to think that if only one or two people didn’t like something in my writing, I could ignore them. My rule-of-thumb was “three” for a manuscript change.
The problem is, there’s no way to know what that critical mass (pun intended) actually is, so it’s important to pay attention to every critic, every beta-reader, every nit and every pick.
Sometimes, It Only Takes One
In the truly first, fresh-off-the-fingertips draft of my novel, Sandblast, I wrote, “she slipped on an oversized tee shirt that was lying on the floor by the bed.” One woman in my writing class said she thought the character had fallen down, had “slipped.” I meant that she had put the tee-shirt on.
No one else in the class had that problem, but I changed it anyway. That woman could have represented millions of others. Easy change. No problem. “she put on an oversized tee shirt.”
Other times, you’ll want to stick to your guns, you will believe in something even though all of your readers hate it. That’s fine. But there might be a way to satisfy the haters and yourself.
Modified Yoda Rule
Yoda says, “Do. Or do not. There is no try.”
I say, “Do. Or do not. Or there might be another way.”
In Sandblast, the main female character, Bridget, is a thirty-eight-year-old West Point grad and combat zone veteran with a Ph.D., who runs a division at the Defense Intelligence Agency. Her boyfriend of three months, Will, is a thirty-four-year-old Navy SEAL.
And he calls her “kiddo.”
Well, cue the firestorm.
My female writing teacher hated it. My all-women-except-me critique group hated it. My wife hated it. Every woman I told about it, hated it. They said it was demeaning, infantilizing, condescending and inappropriate. And those are just their printable responses.
Did I Change “Kiddo?”
No, I did not. I made the character hate it, too.
So, we see Bridget tell Will she doesn’t like being called “kiddo.” We see Will’s reaction, which is to suggest alternatives: “sweetie…honey…lamb chop…sugar pie.” And we see Bridget’s reaction to that, which also is not printable in a family-friendly blog.
“Kiddo” becomes a topic of banter between them, and we see their relationship develop, in part, through that issue. It’s a thread that starts in Chapter Two and goes through to the last chapter, when they finally resolve the dispute in a way that indicates the future course of the relationship.
Vindication
Since then, I’ve avoided “kiddo” in my writing. But maybe I didn’t need to.
In the Anthony Award winning novel The Murder List, Hank Phillippi Ryan’s character Jack says to his mid-life law student wife Rachel “Knock ‘em dead, kiddo.”
Rachel doesn’t seem to mind.
Well, if it’s good enough for Hank, it’s good enough for me. Thank you, Hank, for legitimizing “kiddo” as a love name, or perhaps furthering its status as a love name to hate.
Maybe I didn’t need to go through all those machinations in Sandblast. But if I hadn’t listened to the haters—or if I had simply cut or changed “kiddo”—I never would have had that device to illuminate the Bridget-Will relationship.
Even When They’re Wrong, They Might Be Right
Always try to take some benefit from every edit and critique. Make the suggested change. Don’t make it. Or best of all, use the suggestion to find a third way, and deepen the story in the process.
And, here’s looking at you, kiddos.
Shutta Crum
Thanks. Enjoyed reading this and completely agree. Sometimes there is a third way… and it’s often the best.
Peggy Lantz
Always, always, there is another way to express something. Maybe better, maybe not, maybe just different.
David Edmonds
Interesting and informative. Good advice for critique groups as well, but if I were editing Sunblast, which I have not read, I would not care for the protagonist. Too perfect. West Point grad. Combat vet. Ph.D. Good position with the DIA. Hunk boyfriend who happens to be a Navy Seal. I imagine she’s gorgeous as well. In short, she has everything. I think most readers would prefer a character who is struggling for those things. Additionally, her gripe about a harmless endearment like Kiddo sounds petty. This would be more credible if it brought back painful memories (for example, he also called his ex Kiddo) or if it related to an unattractive physical feature. Perhaps this is described in the book. In any case, thank you for an excellent article on writing.
Lee Gramling
If there is one thing I learned from being involved in a very active and perceptive writers’ group it’s that whenever something in your story receives multiple criticisms there IS something wrong with it. Don’t discount it; believe it. But having said this, I also learned that WHAT, exactly, is wrong is not always (or even often) so clear to the critics. THAT’S the part you should probably ignore. It”s always up to the writer to figure out what the problem is, and what should be done to “fix” it. YOU are the expert on your characters and story, and YOU should have the confidence and skill to make any needed improvements.
alicia minor
We are grateful to share writings with our critique groups who like us, spend their precious times helping each other’s manuscript shine. I hear a lot of success stories saying that without their critique groups, their stories won’t be in the shelves. Whether we take or ignore each other’s critiques, the fun and the quest go on-let’s keep writing.
alicia minor
Each time I leave suggestions and comments to each story I critique, I always end saying, these are just suggestion, as always, it’s your story and I feel good when they take it. It boosts my self- esteem. Whether they take or ignore it, our goals are always the same and remains- We are here to help each other. We share the same success. Let’s keep writing.
Jack Courtney
Catchy pun, Al! Gives critical mass a whole new meaning … Jack
Teresa
This is an excellent blog post. It’s a great reminder that critiques can and are definitely helpful in the editing process, but not gospel.
Nancy J. Cohen
It’s inevitable that I’ll hear from readers after my book is published. If they find a glaring inconsistency, I’ll change it. If it’s a matter of word choice, I won’t. It can be costly and time-consuming to make corrections so it has to be something noteworthy. It’s easier when the critique groupers make a comment in the draft stage. Then I will heed their words.
Mary Ann de Stefano
A long time ago a writing mentor taught me that critiquers are often right about where the problem is in a piece of writing, but very often wrong about how to fix it. I’m glad you listened to the critique, but found your own way of dealing with it. It surely made the work better than it would have been if you had ignored the advice entirely or followed it exactly!
Barbara Cronie
Yes, I was the female writing teacher who hates “kiddo”, but I applaud how you used it.
It almost becomes a theme. I love your characters. I will pass along this blog to my
Critique Group 1 members. We just started up again as a part of The Writers’ Colony.
Waiting for your next book—
Barbara Cronie
Wendy Samford
I loved your blog! I have been back and forth with my publisher on changing things to protect the identity of the people I interview. The people I interview want a certain thing written a certain way and the publisher says “no, too much information.” Finally we came to a happy medium but wow I had to adjust and so did they. Thank you for your story.