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Monkey Cars and Deriding Brutes
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John Caruso
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Apr 28, 2003 12:42 PDT
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MONKEY CARS AND DERIDING BRUTES
We all have an inner critic. I know for a fact that mine is more
critical than any human to whom I’ve ever shown my work. Being a fellow
writer, I suspect you and your inner critic have a similar relationship.
Before this denigrates into the ol’
“take-your-inner-critic-and-toss-him-out-the-window” post, let me say
that without that inner critic, we would write wheelbarrows full of
drivel. Yes, we’d write some amazing gems, but we’d have those pesky
wheelbarrows, too…possibly with flies buzzing around them. The keys to
working WITH your critic are to identify and define the voice, allow
your critic some latitude, and take your inner critic and toss him out
the window.
Take some time to get to know your critic. Identify all the voices that
coalesce to form the chorus of your critic. And your critic IS a
conglomeration: all those negatives sentiments and ego shattering
realizations do not come from a single source. You may identify one (or
both) of your parents. Another may echo your 3rd grade English teacher
who smelled like mothballs and insisted if words weren’t arranged
correctly, they were WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. You may hear friends, spouses,
relatives, or those know-it-alls who are de rigueur in every workshop or
writing course. Think about these voices and their motives. What can you
learn from them? What is just detritus? Keep what’s helpful, jettison
the rest.
Next, recognize the roll of the inner critic, and cut him/her some
slack. For example, without my critic, a Daily Grind would sound
something like: Monkey cars warble filling mess. Speech ho! Speech ho!
Loopy stop nodding rail. Some would say they already do, but that has
nothing to do with MY critic. (Interestingly, even as I wrote that bit
of nonsense, I couldn’t fully exorcise my critic: notice the
capitalization and punctuation.) Our critic tells us when something just
doesn’t sound right. It tells us when a plot point doesn’t make sense.
It keeps us from spinning out of control like a clown hugging a high
pressure water hose.
Finally, remember that there is a time and a place for your critic. Most
importantly, keep that deriding brute away from your free writing and
idea generation. This is writing that benefits from a few monkey car
warblings. Free writing and idea generation should be times when your
creativity can relax and play without any fear of the bully showing up
on the playground. Furthermore, when you’re working on the early drafts
of a piece, cut a deal with your critic. Demand he stay away until you
finish a draft, then invite him back to help you edit and tighten.
Ok, so this week’s Grind is a bit cerebral. For a time, my critic kept
saying that it wouldn’t be appropriate, or helpful, or good. But I threw
him out the window and wrote it anyway.
John Caruso
jo-@coffeehouseforwriters.com
Copyright 2003, John Caruso
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