Ask for Reactions, Not Solutions, to Fix Your Work
Novelist Jennifer Egan reads drafts aloud, asks for reactions instead of advice, and starts with what is working.
Better in Person with Stephen Dubner · “I Trust Almost Anyone More Than Myself”Jennifer Egan still brings new pages to her longtime writers group. The Pulitzer Prize winner said, "I dedicated the Candy House to them," and says she could not do what she does without early feedback on whether a story feels alive.
Her method starts with hearing, not homework. She reads aloud so everyone hears it together. Listening keeps attention on the big questions instead of small things, and on sound, since, as Egan put it, "music and rhythm are the basic tools of literary expression."
The group starts with what is working, which Egan admits sounds Pollyanna-ish. She says, "what is working is the roadmap for how to fix what isn't working," and it is hard to hear anything good after the criticism starts.
She collects reactions, not fixes. She trusts almost anyone more than herself because she is compromised by knowing what she meant to do. When asked if she gets defensive, she says, "I just listen." When someone offers a solution, she works back to the problem behind it and, if she agrees it is a problem, finds her own answer.
That is what happened with Manhattan Beach. When the group loathed the self conscious asides, she dropped them entirely, and felt relief at letting go of something she had worked hard to save.
A disappointing session brings a period of anger and hopelessness, and thoughts of quitting. Then comes what she calls a scurrying sensation, a problem solving mechanism throwing out ideas even while, as she puts it, she is "considering law school or whatever it is." She wants to know how people react, and she will find her own solution.
Questions people ask
Why does hearing writing aloud change how people judge it?
Listening is faster and more continuous than reading on the page, so small errors and awkward rhythms stand out while larger issues with pacing, clarity, and feeling become harder to ignore. Cognitive research also finds that hearing your own work in another voice or setting makes it feel less familiar, which helps you notice gaps a silent reread can miss.
How do I find or start a feedback group like hers?
Start with three to five people whose taste you respect and who work at a roughly similar level, then meet on a regular schedule with one person's work per session. Set two rules up front: respond to a read-aloud draft, and begin with what is working before discussing what is not, which keeps criticism specific and usable.
What should I do if my feedback readers disagree with each other?
Treat disagreement as information rather than a vote to tally. If readers propose different fixes, look for the shared confusion or flat moment underneath their suggestions, keep what several people say is working, and test one revision of your own before asking again.