Mamalicious!

…holding someone’s infant and saying, “She’s beautiful, generally speaking. But I do think a bonnet would help distract from that gi-normous dome of hers. And those ears…”

Polite, tactful people don’t say things like this, of course. But when you share your writing, or any art, with someone for feedback, it really is like handing them your baby. And if they really care about you and your progress they will tell you what works and what doesn’t. You hand your baby over because you aren’t able to be totally objective about her, and you are trusting this other person to be caring (tactful) but also honest (helpful).

TechBoo showed that kind of caring and honesty today when I handed him my baby, a chapter from my novel-in-progress that’s just been rubbing me the wrong way. Early on, he used to caveat his feedback by telling me, “I’m not a writer.” But he is a reader, and he does appreciate and recognize good writing.

(Plus, he’s the only person I can email a chapter to and say, “Read this right now and then call me. I have to leave the house in fifteen minutes, and it’s driving me insane!”)

So, I value his feedback. He read the chapter today and the same things that rubbed me wrong, rubbed him wrong. And a couple of other things rubbed him wrong too that I hadn’t caught, and his comments are spot on.

I’m thankful that TechBoo loves my baby almost as much as I do (nobody loves like Mama loves!), and loves us both enough to do more than just gush over her. So it’s back to the drawing board…to find a bonnet that fits just right.

FYI…TechBoo and I are now officially out to our daughters–all five of them. Fun times!

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 31st, 2008 at 11:05 pm and is filed under Books and Writers, Fun Times, Love 101, Mama-hood, Offspring, This and that, Wordsmithin'. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.