When friends ask me to edit or review their writing, I worry that they are really asking me to tell them what great writers they are. After all, I’m their friend and I’m supposed to be nice to them...right?
My dilemma is that my idea of being nice might not be the same as theirs. I don’t think it’s nice to tell them that their novels/stories/essays/articles are great when there are problems with them. To me, helping them make their writing as strong as possible to give them the best possible chance of publication, is being nice...even if that means telling them that a character is not real enough or a storyline sags.
If you don’t buy that, take a look at these posts by a couple of literary agents:
Janet Reid, aka Query Shark (that blog alone should prove my point) posted some statistics to torture yourself with in 2010. Publishing is a tough business.
Rachelle Gardner tells you what your friends might be afraid to and suggests you Wake Up and Smell the Coffee. For a (in Ms. Gardner’s words) “kinder, gentler, and much more informative” take on the same topic, she refers you to Michael Hyatt’s post.
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