In 1999 my computer sat in a tiny office in the upstairs alcove. By 2002 I felt like a seasoned writer and attended the Oregon Christian Writers Conference (OCWC). I paid Cec Murphey, a man who calls himself an “Old Curmudgeon,” to critique my work. He said, “Set your novel aside. If you finish it in the future, fine. For now concentrate on your real life stories.” I came home to build myself a great reputation as a published freelance author.
Five monhs later, my husband was diagnosed with a rare cancer. No longer could I sit at a keyboard upstairs. With help, I moved my office to the laundry room where I could listen to the needs of the patient, and work towards publication.
Five years after diagnosis, Gary helped me move my office upstairs once more. The move forced me to reorganize. In switching files from one drawer to another, I stumbled into those critique pages from Cec in 2002. Wow.
At first I felt embarrassed at my quality of writing, and then amazed. Cec slashed through several items, corrected my poor grammar, and then said, “Flesh out your characters. They need a sense of ....”
You get the idea. I might have quit if I’d received only the written critique, but the good news is, he may call himself the Curmudgeon, in reality he’s a great encourager and teacher. My checks these last few years are proof, that with hard work freelance authors can succeed.
Five monhs later, my husband was diagnosed with a rare cancer. No longer could I sit at a keyboard upstairs. With help, I moved my office to the laundry room where I could listen to the needs of the patient, and work towards publication.
Five years after diagnosis, Gary helped me move my office upstairs once more. The move forced me to reorganize. In switching files from one drawer to another, I stumbled into those critique pages from Cec in 2002. Wow.
At first I felt embarrassed at my quality of writing, and then amazed. Cec slashed through several items, corrected my poor grammar, and then said, “Flesh out your characters. They need a sense of ....”
You get the idea. I might have quit if I’d received only the written critique, but the good news is, he may call himself the Curmudgeon, in reality he’s a great encourager and teacher. My checks these last few years are proof, that with hard work freelance authors can succeed.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment