by Elizabeth A. Marion

Created on: July 24, 2010

Talking about a writing project can be challenging. How much should you say? What should you leave out? Who should you talk to? Should you even say anything at all? Whether your trying to decide how much you want to tell a friend or how much you should tell your blog readers when you are advertising these questions can be tricky.

If you're at a point where you are looking for advice and feedback, you need to be able to show someone your writing. Telling them about it can help, but it won't be as good as showing them so they can give you an informed decision about it. If you are working on a project and your friends know about it have something prepared to say in response when they ask you how it's going or when you are going to have it published. I personally feel uncomfortable talking about projects that are not yet completed. I feel like it will be judged unfairly because it is not completed. You don't have to show people works that are not yet finished, but be prepared to say something when they ask you about it. When your friends ask about your writing don't be embarrassed or shy. View it as an opportunity. One day you could be asked about your writing in an interview. That practice can help you prepare for those sorts of things, even though it may just seem like a casual conversation with friends.

If you are trying to advertise and promote a published piece will require you to find the balance between advertising your work as something that is well written and worth reading without being arrogant. This is much more of a challenge. You want to draw people to your work. You want it to be interesting and you want to send them the message that they are going to be reading good writing. Arrogance does not always drive people away, but it can give you an image or reputation that you don't want to have. This doesn't have to be too difficult if you pay close attention to how you word things instead of saying things just off the top of your head. If you just say things off the top of your head you will probably end up regretting something you say.

As a writer you should learn to become comfortable talking about your writing. Take advantage of every opportunity in front of you to practice and build on these skills.

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