Show Notes: (audio feed below the notes)

Use the Rubric (available at valerieihsan.com for free) after drafting to have shared vocabulary to use with your critique partners and editors. And for self-editing. Find the parts that need work and study them as needed. (Read craft books on that subject, or listen to podcasts.)

If a reader says:

• "I just don't seem to connect with the character," work on inner dialogue, and character motivation (needs and wants).

• "The character seemed flat. She didn't change at all," work on the character arc by giving her a potentially life-altering flaw at the beginning of the book, and a big global choice at the end of the book where she can kill her flaw.

• "The ending was just 'Meh',", beef up the global choice (it needs to be a Best Bad Choice or an Irreconcilable Good Choice, and related to the character flaw), and make sure you've got a theme--take away message, the 'point' of the story, or what you are saying about the world.

• "I kept waiting for the story to 'start'," make sure the character's needs/wants are clear from the very beginning. That's what tells the reader, "OK, now the story really starts. We're going to see how he gets the thing he wants." Plus, make sure you've got a good hook to keep them engaged until your character reveals his needs/wants.

• "It was boring. I just couldn't get into it," means that probably you are doing more Telling than Showing and you can fix that with more inner dialogue and concrete sensory details. 70% of communication is non-verbal. When "in scene" (as opposed to a reflexive thinking segment between action), only write what the "camera" can see or hear. What does disdain look like? What does fear sound like in a voice?

All of this takes honesty with self and a healthy inner-analyst; What does you book need? What are your weaknesses?

Next Episode: How to Give and Receive Feedback in Critique Groups

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