Workshop

Today my first novel excerpt for this residency was workshopped.

Workshop is always a little nerve-wracking. You never know how your piece will be received. You have to sit there for 30 to 45 minutes in silence while your workshop-mates critique it. Generally they start with compliments on something you did well, but once it turns to criticism it stays there for the duration. And that's fine. I want to know what people feel isn't working, and most people are tactful and offer suggestions constructively, but every once in awhile someone decides to be mean-spirited, and not all workshop leaders are good at quashing that.

This time, my workshop sample was well received. There was some criticism but it was on finer points, which to me is an indication that my sample is in relatively good shape (and my workshop mates and the faculty leader argued for a good 30 minutes about whether my use of "holla" in dialogue as opposed to "holler" is appropriate).

And someone gave me a piece of incredibly flattering praise (I don't want to retell it here for certain reasons, but trust me, it was one of the highest compliments I've ever received).

So I feel like I'm in good shape. Now we'll see how the second workshop goes.