When a writer comes up with a story idea, they want to share it just as they would good news about love, work, or family. However there are very good reasons not to tell others. To prevent anyone feeling rebuffed, here a few reason I feel I shouldn’t write about what I’m writing about:
- You may have questions I don’t know the answers to yet. I want you to be excited, not inquisitive, and avoiding the subject until every detail is set can prevent unwanted queries.
- You might influence the writing. You may give feedback that leads me down a path that would not have been as good as the one I would have carved for myself. Feedback can feel refreshing during creating but can also plant doubt that I’m not good enough to think the idea through on my own.
- When you read it, I want you to experience it afresh. If I’ve given you information about it beforehand you will have notions going into it and not be able to give feedback as if you were a reader picking it up off a shelf.
- Not telling you will make me want to finish the story. Planning, writing, editing, post-editing, and preparing to publish are all intense processeds. Knowing I will not get to share the story idea I’ve found so important I put the effort into it unless I do my best and complete it all will give me motivation.
These are my thoughts, and the reason I held back on plans after an engagement and a child’s name before she was born.
What are your thoughts on telling a story before it is complete?
Ashley Crookham's Writing 