Off to a literary conference this summer? Novelist and creative writing teacher Alex Chee posts some rules on how to behave at literary conferences: Don't force someone to read your work; don't latch onto someone*, and don't let someone latch on to you; and more.
Based on my bad behavior last summer at Squaw, I would add something. Most people know that it's bad form to be overly defensive of your own work, or to fish for compliments by putting it down. But I would suggest: don't get too passionate, in any direction, about someone else's work either. You're there to give helpful suggestions; so is everyone else. If you find yourself being so passionate about someone else's work to the point of making more than your share of comments, or insisting on your point of view, it's probably time to back off and be quiet.
Last summer a story by one of the people in my group hit a little close to home, because it reminded me of a relationship from my past that I had never resolved. It was a good piece with good writing, too, but I got so caught up in analyzing the characters' actions and motivations that I began to over-dominate the discussion. After that most of the people in the group treated me like I was a complete idiot, though, come to think of it, things were sort of going that way already. Nobody likes a loudmouth -- a lesson I still haven't completely learned, after 40 years.
* Or you could be like F. Scott Fitzgerald who, according to this piece, greeted James Joyce by sinking to one knee, kissing the writer's hand, and asking "How does it feel to be a great genius, sir?"
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2 comments:
Unfortunately, the folks who need to read the advice about not latching on never will. Ditto about those energy vampires.
I'm sorry I didn't meet you at Squaw. I was in the non-fiction group.
Mark, Dashka's story was great--it struck a chord with me, too, and was easy to get passionate about. Please don't feel bad!
The Alex Chee post is great. The energy vampire part is chilling.
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