Month Five, Day Three.

[wintergrey]

"We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us something is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit."
~e. e. cummings

Feedback is a big thing for a lot of writers—hell, a lot of humans. Sometimes, it's what keeps our heads above water when we're feeling terrible. Craving that little shot of approval is totally normal. Most of us aren't well-schooled in being impervious and self-sufficient. Personally, the more honest I am about seeking approval, the more I accept that need it, the easier it is to get by without it... the brain is an odd thing. Regarding the quote above, I do feel it's possible for that "someone" to be one's self, but it can take a real leap of faith.

How big a deal is feedback for you? Is a little enough or do you find that getting any at all makes you need more? Do you feel like your work is less valuable or less accomplished when you see that someone else is getting tons more approval or are you able to keep perspective, do you really know that the social forces behind popularity and "blockbuster" stories aren't necessarily about relative quality and value and validity? Would you be writing differently if feedback didn't matter?

( Click me for one gold star. )