Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

It may be a good idea to have your friends test your system.

Who should test your system? Who should tell you what they think about your idea? Who should read the manuscript of your novel?

Friends or a “friendly audience” may be the answer to these and related questions.

Consider the opposite—let a grouch or someone who hates everything you do perform the above. They may come back and say, “Your system flopped. Your idea stinks. Your novel is awful.”

Now what do you do? Well, that grouch who hates everything I do hates everything I do. Of course that grouch hates my system, idea, and novel. I hate that grouch more than ever.

Not much of an outcome.

What, however, if a friendly person or a close friend tells you that your efforts flopped? They like you and usually like everything you do. This time they don’t like what you did.

Now you have some valuable information.

Of course, your friends could tell you everything is wonderful when it isn’t. They could be so friendly and nice that they won’t be candid with you. That is a risk. If they tell you all is well, move on to another critic. If they tell you, “Sorry, I don’t want to ruin our friendship, but this isn’t very good.”

Now you have some valuable information.