Loft Writing Minute: Why You Need to Start Sharing Your Writing
Sharing your writing can feel a little like handing over your diary. Even if your writing isn’t directly about your life, you still put your heart and mind into characters, lines of poetry or the argument of an essay; your writing carries a piece of you with it. You’ve spent hours choosing the right words, wrestling with sentences and wondering whether anyone will understand what you’re saying, so of course sharing your writing can be oddly vulnerable.
If you’ve ever hesitated before clicking “send” or reading your work aloud, you’re in good company, since nearly every writer experiences that fear, but despite how vulnerable it feels, sharing your writing is one of the most valuable things you can do for both your craft and yourself.
Fresh Eyes Make Your Writing Better
You can’t read your own work like a reader can because every writer develops blind spots. You know what you meant to say, which means your brain often fills in missing information without you realizing it. Another reader would catch awkward phrasing, confusing transitions, plot holes or moments that don't quite land the way you intended. Feedback doesn’t mean you failed.
Constructive Criticism Teaches You Things You Can’t Teach Yourself
One reader might notice a sentence that deserves to be cut, while someone else might point out the paragraph they couldn’t stop thinking about. While subject matters might be objective, analysis and writing preferences can be subjective, so it helps to hear multiple perspectives, especially from someone who is your “ideal reader.” Sometimes the biggest and best surprise is discovering what is working for your writing. Readers often highlight strengths we overlook because we’ve been staring at the same draft for weeks. Writing may begin alone, but it almost always gets stronger through conversation.
The More You Share, the Less Scary It Becomes
It’s a little like going into a haunted house. The first time, you nearly pass out with fear, the second time, your heart pounds a little faster, but the third and fourth times, you know the jump scares, you’re a little less afraid of the dark. It still may be a bit scary, but at least it is familiar.
Like any act of courage, sharing gets easier through practice. You’ll begin trusting that your work doesn’t have to be perfect before someone else sees it. You’ll learn that revision is a part of writing, not proof you’re doing something wrong. Confidence is created with consistency.
Writing is Better When You’re Not Doing It Alone
Writing can feel like a solitary activity, but it doesn’t have to stay that way. Some of the best motivation comes from surrounding yourself with people who understand what it is like to wrestle with a difficult chapter or celebrate a breakthrough paragraph. A supportive writing community provides accountability, thoughtful feedback and encouragement on the days when you’re convinced you’ll never finish your project.
Your Writing Might Be Exactly What Someone Else Needs
When thousands of books, videos and articles get posted every day, each genre, trope, archetype and theme feels saturated, so it can be easy to believe that your story is too ordinary, that it doesn’t stick out in the Never Ending Pit of Content. Yes, someone else has written about grief or family or love or anxiety or hope, but no one has written about those things in the way you can.
Somewhere, someone is looking for the exact perspective or story that only you can offer. Your poem may remind them they aren’t alone, or your novel may give them a laugh when they need it most. The words you put to paper might just describe the impossible feelings someone has tried so hard to describe but didn’t have the vocabulary for. You’ll never know whose life your words might touch if they never leave your computer. Writing begins as something personal, but once it’s shared, it has the possibility to build a bridge between people who may never have met.
Your Turn
One of the greatest joys of writing is watching your words move from the page into the world. If you’d like to hear how accomplished authors share their work, join us for Loft Connect Live! A Showcase of Loft Talent on August 19th. You’ll hear readings from Anika Fajardo, Emily Bright and Ty Chapman, followed by a conversation with the authors and a reception where you can meet fellow readers and writers.
Even further, if you're looking for a community to begin sharing for yourself, Loft Connect+ offers live peer feedback sessions, accountability groups, writing challenges and shared workspaces where writers can exchange drafts and help one another grow. Because the story you’re most nervous to share might be exactly the story someone else has been waiting to read.