Do you share your book ideas - and would you continue a book if nobody liked it?

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Fiona

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I was wondering if anyone here shares their story ideas with friends/family/colleagues? And if so, what would you do if they said they didn't like the sound of your story - would you continue with it or take their opinion into consideration?

I know a writer should believe in their work but outside input can be important. I know its helped me in the past. I normally just write and then let others read the completed work at the end... but anyway....I had a friend who recently listened to the outline of a story I was "mapping out", and he said he didn't like the sound of it at all. He said he wouldn't read a book like that. I feel like I still believe the potential of this story. I feel I will carry on with it. I wouldn't say I was too invested in my idea - after all it's just at the seed planting stage...but my friends opinion (who I trust and who reads similar works to me) has been on my mind.

What would you do if you had bad feedback - go ahead or not?
 
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If it was bad feedback on a mere idea I was kicking around, I'd carry on. Why? Because I already know the stuff I write is good enough to be published. Too, a kicked-around idea is often vastly different to the finished product.

And it may simply be that whatever you come up with isn't your friend's cup of tea.

I certainly wouldn't stop writing a book on one person's say-so, especially before I even had one word down on paper.

The only external validation I need these days is "We are pleased to be able to offer you a publication contract..."
 

maggi90w1

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Nah. You can't really expect all of your friends to like it. Most of my books are Urban Fantasy and that genre isn't for everyone. Even if they like the genre the story can still contain elements they don't like. One of my friends who liked most of my ideas disliked one of them because it had werewolves and he liked all kind of supernatural critter except werewolves.
 

Parametric

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I'd consider it a bad sign if after many attempts I couldn't make my novel sound good to fans of the genre. I wouldn't worry so much about somebody's opinion if they're not in my target audience, and I'd bear in mind that it may take time and effort to nail down exactly what makes my novel awesome.
 

ChaosTitan

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I don't talk about the books I haven't written yet, or am in the process of writing. I talk about them when they're finished. Some authors like getting feedback on ideas before they start, but I don't (the only exception might be my agent's feedback).

And you're right, it's just one person's opinion on an idea. And books aren't just ideas--they are the written execution of an idea. Even bestselling novels can sound so-so when you try to explain them.
 

Fiona

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It was a little silly to second guess my idea because of my friend but I suppose it was because this person has enjoyed most of my writing in the past, and also shares my taste in horror/supernatural. We normally "get" the same things. I was so excited about this idea that I thought he would be on the bandwagon too.

But I think I will try to take it somewhere.

It's true - you can't please everyone, nor write a book for everyone. And also my book ideas tend to turn into whole other worlds when I reach the finishing line :)

PS ChaosTitan - Your book looks great! (A Glimpse of Darkness).
 
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brainstorm77

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I chat my ideas with one person who is also a writer. Most friends and family find my writing talk boring and couldn't bother to be interested. But I can understand that. They're not writers and don't understand the process or the excitement that I feel at times.
 

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If they came up with a reason why the story might not work, like something technical or whatever, then I might consider it but I wouldn't abandon ideas right away just because people said they didn't like it. I only really discuss my ideas with one relative, who can sometimes be helpful to bounce ideas off, other times not so much (like when he suggested adding in aliens that paint everything blue - fine idea, just not really in a modern detective story that had nothing to do with aliens), and a couple of colleagues. Some things they like the sound of, some things they don't, but at the end of the day, the amount of time and effort that's got to be put into a book, I need it to be something I believe in or I won't finish.
 

happywritermom

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It's all in the execution.
I will sometimes share the very general idea, but I find it too tiring to explain the whole thing to anyone.
 

Miss Plum

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I bounce ideas off close family and friends (actually it's about two people total). I usually do it when I feel I have a problem and I either want help with a solution or I just need to confirm that I must go in a different direction.
 

DancingMaenid

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Just because someone doesn't like an idea doesn't mean it's bad. I'm more likely to consider more specific feedback -- "Why doesn't this character seem to care about almost being abducted by aliens? Her reaction doesn't make sense!" vs. "A book about alien abductions? That sounds dumb."

If I like my idea, I keep going with it. There's an audience out there for almost anything. But then, I'll also be the first to admit that I get a little defensive sometimes, too. If someone has a problem with the execution, then I consider their point.

I actually kind of like it when people don't like my ideas sometimes. It gets me off the hook of having to talk about them if I don't want to. This thread reminded me of a few years ago when a new in-law asked about a novel I was writing:

"What's it about?"
"Well, it's about vampires."
"...Oh. Interesting. *changes subject*"
 

kaitie

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I have a couple of people that I talk it out with, who actually know some of the details of my story. I've noticed that I tend to get a lot of bad advice, but I can generally throw that off pretty well. As for someone not liking it...I guess it would depend on the reaction.

I wrote a book a couple of years ago that had a particular plot twist in it. I discussed it with a friend because it totally took me by surprise, and he hated it. He thought it would just ruin the story, was completely against it, etc. I knew he was wrong, though. I knew it did something amazing to the story and added to it, so I went ahead and did it anyway.

My beta readers who read it after that have consistently pointed out that particular plot twist as the best part of the book. I understood my friend's concerns, but I knew better, and it turned out I was right.

Now, if upon reading the book everyone had hated it, I'd have definitely gone back and rewritten it, and I'll take into consideration people's concerns, but generally speaking, I'll trust myself first if I'm feeling confident about the scenes in question.
 

AlishaS

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I don't share idea's with any of my family or friends. I may, however, bounce idea's off a trusted (writer) whom I count on for telling me how it is and his opinion means a lot me.
That being said, I don't discount an idea until it's written down, polished and has seen the likes of beta's.
 

Jamesaritchie

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I was wondering if anyone here shares their story ideas with friends/family/colleagues? And if so, what would you do if they said they didn't like the sound of your story - would you continue with it or take their opinion into consideration?

I know a writer should believe in their work but outside input can be important. I know its helped me in the past. I normally just write and then let others read the completed work at the end... but anyway....I had a friend who recently listened to the outline of a story I was "mapping out", and he said he didn't like the sound of it at all. He said he wouldn't read a book like that. I feel like I still believe the potential of this story. I feel I will carry on with it. I wouldn't say I was too invested in my idea - after all it's just at the seed planting stage...but my friends opinion (who I trust and who reads similar works to me) has been on my mind.

What would you do if you had bad feedback - go ahead or not?

There's no such thing as a good or a bad idea, there's only good and bad execution of the idea.

You can a book, or you can talk about writing a book. If you talk about it, you'll probably never write it.

And no can tell you whether a book will be good or bad from the idea, or from an outline.

If you want to write a book, you should write it. If you friend doesn't want to read it, many others will, and he can write his own book.

Either way, the worst possible thing you can do is talk about what you want to write before it's written.
 
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If it was bad feedback on a mere idea I was kicking around, I'd carry on. Why? Because I already know the stuff I write is good enough to be published. Too, a kicked-around idea is often vastly different to the finished product.

And it may simply be that whatever you come up with isn't your friend's cup of tea.

I certainly wouldn't stop writing a book on one person's say-so, especially before I even had one word down on paper.

The only external validation I need these days is "We are pleased to be able to offer you a publication contract..."


I second this.
 

KTC

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I don't have any ideas until I sit down and write. And I usually write my novels in one sitting. So, no. I don't share my ideas. If I did share an idea and it was met with adversity I would write it anyway...it could be that the idea in my head is being lost in translation when I tell it. You don't know from an idea if a story is going to be good or not...it turns down so many roads from the kernel of an idea to the writing of THE END when you're finished.
 

blacbird

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Funny timing on this question. I worked some tonight on two separate novels-in-progress, a few hundred words on each, and I'm pretty certain nobody is ever going to like either one of them. As to why I worked on either of them . . . shit, I don't have a clue. Probably because I had nothing better to do, like vandalism or bank robbery or something.
 

seun

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I don't talk about my writing until the book is finished, edited and polished. My dad asked me the other day what I was working on and I managed to avoid answering in any detail.

Writing comes first. Talking about it comes second.
 

whimsical rabbit

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There's no such thing as a good or a bad idea, there's only good and bad execution of the idea.

Exactly this.

The only person I talk to about my ideas is my husband who's an experienced screenwriter and his feedback always focuses on making aspects of the idea better, rather than accept or reject it altogether.

Remember that an idea may not be appealing to someone for a million different reasons, and that often the person that listens to it won't be able to visualise its execution, either because perhaps you don't know how you're going about it yet and thus are unable to explain it properly, or simply because they're not writers and so their feedback stays on the surface.

If you're unsure about an idea and want an opinion before you embark on putting it on paper, thus spending time from your life on it, find somebody whose opinion you value and trust, and who has suitable 'qualifications' as a writer or reader to advise you on it.

If you love your idea, just go ahead and write it, period.
 
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