: Re: How do you get feedback when sharing your ideas makes you not want to write? I have a problem in that if I ever tell people about my story ideas, I lose motivation and eventually stop working

@Nimeshi163

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The other responses give wonderful advice that alleviate the symptoms. I find the root cause for my own block is perfectionism.
Becoming enveloped in the world I’m trying to portray, writing as many details as possible, mentally watching the characters, describing their inner worlds etc. Over months, it feels as if this is a part of me. When I give it to someone else to read, it’s not mine anymore and even constructive criticism can feel like a personal attack. If I feel like putting the pen down for awhile, I’m struggling with my own expectations.
Rationally, I understand that no book is perfect as a rough draft. As someone who perpetually held everything I did to a higher standard, I find I still need to adjust. The last time I froze was after getting good constructive feedback, I had to tackle my expectations again. I gave myself permission to be a student and admitted some of the areas I need practice. At that point, I knew there is only one way to get practice. I tried a different outline technique and read up on a few others before writing a few scenes where the characters accomplish multiple plot points in one scene.
All my life, I wrote stories, so I never questioned why. Once I found out what purpose it served and what is most important to me, I was able to target the perfectionism. When I can’t bring myself to edit a story, I write something else. Keep the momentum going.
The bottom line is always the characters for me. These are people I want the world to meet, the more I understand what readers are expecting, the better chance my characters will interact with more readers. I want readers to react emotionally, to suspend their reality because they can’t put the book down. I’m too objective to polish and tighten a novel by myself, constructive criticism will let me know what is more interesting to an outsider.

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