I was a Diva once.
A dancing diva.
No, seriously. Along with a bunch of other ladies we learned jazz dancing and performed in front of a paying audience.
Yeah, okay, it was just our family and friends, but still there was a stage, costumes, make-up – everything!
Well, everything but co-ordination and rhythm.
Being that kind of diva was fun.
But not being a diva about important things is vital.
Lia Weston makes a good point in her latest blog What Makes A Bad Writer where she points out that it’s inability to accept or take criticism that makes a bad writer.
This week I received feedback from a number of different sources. In the main positive, but there were a few points of criticism there as well.
- Too many POVs
- More than one POV per scene
- Intrusive narration
How much of the criticism is simply ‘house style’ and not right or wrong per se? How much is subjective opinion? How much is it about the craft that I’m still learning to master?
These are questions I’m pondering with Moonstone Obsession.
I can point to dozens of books which have multiple POVs, more than one POV per scene and a highly involved narrator.
Writing a novel is such a personal endeavour, everything which exists between the covers you’ve created from whole cloth. It’s like some stranger criticising your children.
But the art is not to be a diva but to take a step back and look at this objectively.
I know I have a good story. How much of these observations should I take on board to make it a great story?