LETTERS

STAR LETTER

Getting better all the time

Adam Hughes, I was so grateful to read your letter (Letters, WM, April) this morning. Your advice was very much needed, as I have been feeling particularly despondent of late.

Just this week, I participated in a new workshop with experienced and successful writers. Being a ‘newbie’, I was apprehensive about sharing my writing. Then, when the first comment I received began with something like, ‘I think you’ve missed the mark here if I’m honest’, I was hurt. Also, reading through the other workshop submissions, I was overwhelmed with how beautifully crafted and impactful the writing was. I felt disheartened, as though I could never be as good as them. That my writing will never be worthy of publication.

I definitely feel mediocre at the moment, but Adam’s letter has provided the reassurance I need by reminding me that writing is a skill that can be improved, as many bestselling authors would testify. At a recent literary event, the panel also emphasised that great authors, such as Margaret Atwood, worked with