Whose writing is it anyway?

Do you have a phantom editor sitting on your shoulders? You know what I mean. You have written your daily quota of words for your romance novel and decide to read them over before quitting for the day. You heave a great sigh as the phantom whispers in your ear.

That phrase doesn't make sense. Your dialogue should be tighter. Your hero sounds like a wimp in that bedroom scene. If your heroine is a virgin how come she knows the right moves to turn him on? She's shaking her bootie like an old pro.

Okay, here's what to do with the phantom who really is your conscience into which you have stored a lifetime of good and bad messages from authority figures, Moms, Dads, Sisters, Brothers, Teachers, etc.

I came across this wonderful little essay by Mark Twain. "Your conscience is a nuisance. A conscience is like a child. If you pet it and play with it and let it have everything that it wants, it becomes spoiled and intrudes on all your amusements and most of your griefs. Treat your conscience as you would anything else. When it is rebelious, spank it - be severe with it. argue with it, prevent it from coming to play with you at all hours and you will secure a good conscience; that is to say, a properly trained one. A spoiled one simply destroys all the pleasure in life. I think I have reduced mine to order. At least, I haven't heard from it for some time. Perhaps I have kill it from over-severity."

So threaten the phantom editor. If she wants to play, she has to play nice and offer positive comments to enhance your writing. If she sneaks in a negative comment, ask her what she hopes to achieve by it? Make it positive! Negative messages are bad for the soul, they are especially bad for writers who work alone. Negative messages have a purpose. Take them, turn them around, find out what the phantom editor wants from you. If it's to make your writing better, have her turn the negative to a positive.

That's my big speech for to-day. I studied Neuro-linguistic programming to the Master Practioner level. It's important in everyone's life to consider where the negative message is coming from and its purpose. I think the phantom editor wants the best for you and me. She has to learn how to pose her comments so you and I can hear them and learn.

Must run along. We are taking friends out to dinner and I have to paint myself up and dress in something other than the jeans skirt and knit top I've been wearing all day. If you have time have a look at: www.mycharacters.blogspot.com and read my interview with Alan Tremaine, the hero in my time travel romance, Ring Around The Moon.

Anita
www.anitabirt.com