Have you noticed how the experts can sometimes get it wrong? It happens more often than we realize. This is why writing for the critics never works.
Consider these early reviews of a few books we now consider classics:
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman:
“Whitman is as unacquainted with art as a hog is with mathematics.” — The London Critic, 1855
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck:
“Will appeal to sentimental cynics, cynical sentimentalists … Readers less easily thrown off their trolley will still prefer Hans Andersen.” — Time Magazine, 1937
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë:
“The only consolation which we have in reflecting upon [this book] is that it will never be generally read.” — James Lorimer, North British Review, 1847
Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner:
“The final blow-up of what was once a remarkable, if minor, talent.” — The New Yorker, 1936
CATERING VS. CULTIVATING
If you’re writing for the critics you’ll frequently find yourself frustrated and forlorn. In their never-ending quest to identify something critiquable in each piece, critics often fail to recognize truly remarkable writing … even when it’s right under their nose.
Keep in mind: this also goes for editors, publishers, and the general public, as well. They don’t always know what they’re looking for.
This is why, at some point, each writer must decide: Who am I really trying to impress? Who do I most want to enjoy my work?
The best answer, of course, is yourself. Write to impress you. Write the kind of content you like to read. Write in a voice that feels real to you. Tell the type of story you’re eager to hear. This makes it so much easier to pour your heart and soul into every page.
You can wear yourself out catering to what you think the book-buying public might want, or what you hope the critics might accept … or you can immerse yourself in creating art which genuinely reflects the world you see before you.
In doing so, you will, in time, cultivate the audience that is right for you.
This kind of writing beats catering any day.
- Writing for Critics - July 29, 2024
- Your Media Kit - April 10, 2023
Great reminder.
Great food for thought here.
“Without critics, we might never flip the painting inside down.”
Donna Hensley Nelson
Correction:
“Without criticism, we might never flip the painting upside down.”
Donna Hensley Nelson