A Rant About Classroom Workshops: "Do"
A couple years ago, I went to a series of writing seminars at DragonCon, a big sci-fi/fantasy/comic/pop culture/fun convention in Atlanta. I relished the opportunity to glean knowledge from bestselling authors on topics like character development and using social media to promote myself as an author.
As a sophomore majoring in creative writing, I was a bit out of my element (and very aware of my potential ivory-towered-ness), but I appreciated the opportunity to get another perspective on writing. Of course, the seminar leaders discussed many of the same things as my professors - character, plot, scenery, voice, etc. - but with a slightly more practical bent ("how to sell books" versus "what do books mean").
I took extremely detailed notes and learned a lot from the presentations, but one of the best (and most entertaining) parts of the seminar were the people around me: the full-time IT professional who still manages to write several thousand words of his sci-fi novel every night, the older woman next to me talking about how "Alan Rickman is the hottest man alive," the precocious ten-year-old whose mother walked him in every morning. While I had the privilege of working with talented professors and authors, the luxury of feeling overworked when I had to write a prose poem for a Slate magazine editor every week, these people were committed to their writing, their ideas, in spite of the rest of their busy lives.
Especially because I felt such camaraderie with my fellow attendees and the speakers after three days in the freezing Hilton basement, I was crushed by one speaker's answer to the final question I asked on the last day. At the podium, he spoke about how to continue this experience - always keep writing, reading, and, most importantly, workshopping.
I was very familiar with workshopping - more so than most of my peers, most likely - because this process (reading, marking up, and constructively critiquing a peer's work as a group) was a key component of every writing class I took in college. I've known people who had horrible workshop experiences at my college, but mine were at worst, moderately helpful, and, at best, extremely encouraging, supportive, and motivating. I love workshopping - I genuinely enjoy reading all of my peers' work and giving them comments to help them grow their ideas, often writing three-page letters about their stories. And when it's my day to workshop, it feels like Christmas - I'm excited about every comment, good or bad, because it makes me better, and people are actually reading my work!
I nodded along enthusiastically as the speaker talked about how to put together a group, what the protocols are, etc. Targeting the vast majority of the crowd (not college students), he gave tips for meeting at friend's houses and finding a supportive group, how to know who to take seriously and who to ignore in a critique.
When I raised my hand, I asked what his tips would be for succeeding in a creative writing class workshop, where you don't get to choose your readers from your group of friends. His response? A chuckle, and one word: "Don't."
He moved on to the next question so quickly that I don't know if he mean't "don't" take writing courses, "don't" workshop in classes, or "don't" try to succeed in that environment, but I felt deflated (and defiant) regardless. I know from my own experiences that workshops in writing courses can be wonderful, both because they can be helpful and even if they aren't. If you're going to make it in the writing industry, you need to be able to deal with competing egos, overly harsh comments about your work, invalid criticisms, etc.
The worst part, though, is that an entire room of people had heard "don't" to creative writing courses from a person they admired and trusted. I don't think that creative writing courses or majors are the only path to success, but to categorically dismiss them is a mistake. In my work as a freelance writer, I've had to take criticisms from clients I vehemently disagreed with and figure out how to make improvements regardless. I was much better prepared to do so because I had to workshop with my fellow students rather than just a close group of friends.
I would hate for that IT professional to shy away from difficult critiques, for my Alan-Rickman-fan buddy to miss out on a great community college course that looks interesting to her, or for that ten-year-old kid to avoid majoring in Creative Writing, just because that speaker said "don't."
Workshops can be emotionally trying and harsh, but learning to deal with that kind of criticism is just as important as character development to someone who wants to sell their books.
kianamaiart
stormborns
origamiaround
jacobvanloon
izzy806
