Know Your Weakness

Before I became a writer I was a psychologist, and a lot of what I learned about human nature applies to our work and that includes writing. I’m a big proponent of self-knowledge and growth. If we don’t know ourselves, our tendencies, our flaws - how can we grow?

All writers have areas in which they are stronger than others. On the flip side, we all have weaknesses. (See? Right there I just used a clique.) But the key to being the best writer you can be is in realizing where your writing needs improvement. Maybe your descriptions are stilted, or your dialogue is wishy-washy. Perhaps you fail to convey your characters’ emotions powerfully enough, or maybe you tend to be long-winded and stray off course.

To help you assess your writing, have several people whose opinions you respect critique your work. You will probably begin to see a pattern emerge. When one person complains about your pacing it’s one man’s opinion, but when five people notice the same thing – you’ve found a weakness.

Consider this a victory rather than a defeat. Because if you didn’t know you needed improvement – you’d never improve. While criticism can be painful it can also help us get in touch with our strengths and weaknesses so we can work to improve them. And every opportunity for growth gets you closer to being the writer you want to be.

A former psychologist, Normandie has always been fascinated by human behavior. She loves writing quirky characters that are all too human. Fiber arts, baking, and Pinterest are a few of her favorite pastimes. She lives on a farm with a passel of kids, an adorable husband, and a pet pig who’s crazy for Red Bull.

www.normandiealleman.com 

7 Comments

  1. Goddess Fish Promotions28 May 2014 at 13:08

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  2. MomJane28 May 2014 at 19:01

    Sounds like good advice. Enjoyed your comments.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous28 May 2014 at 19:24

    Very intriguing post with good advice!

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    ReplyDelete
  4. bn10029 May 2014 at 03:49

    Sounds helpful

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lisa Morfitt29 May 2014 at 12:26

    Hi, my name is Lisa Morfitt and I am the author of Little Shytes...Confessions of a Toddler. My ebook is about me being a new mum to my son Ben, all his little antics and how he persistantly tried to send me crazy! I wrote the book because after all the advice I had been given on how to be the best mum you can be, I realised I had lost focus on my son as an individual, this helped me understand him and also laugh at what I, at the time, was pulling my hair out! As I mentioned, it is an ebook and I have received so many requests for hardback and have submitted to a few publishing houses. I really need some assitance in this area, if anyone is willing to help me. There is more to the ebook than just a great read, 10% of every ebook sold will be donated to the Kids Cancer Project here in Australia to help fund a cure for kids cancer. Please visit my website to see why and what we hope to achieve www.littleshytes.com.au
    Please contact me via the website or at info@littleshytes.com.au
    Many thanks in advance
    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  6. Unknown29 May 2014 at 16:22

    Thanks for hosting me! Sorry I'm a bit late to the party. We had a storm yesterday and my internet was out most of the day. I visited by phone but was unable to comment.

    I love your site, such a great place full of writerly ideas and info!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Mary Preston30 May 2014 at 10:46

    This does sound like good advice to me.

    ReplyDelete

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