InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "gottahavawawa!"

auctasinistra (auctasinistra) wrote,
@ 2008-11-08 07:13:00

Current mood:

curious

"My best work"

A fellow writer just mentioned something was not her "best work." (I won't name names even though of course we've all said this or summat similar and there's nothing wrong with saying it.) It set me to thinking (yes, I'm avoiding actual productive work, why do you ask?).

Writers: You don't need to tell me your best work or your worst work, although you can if you want (links are OK), but I'm wondering: How do you define "my best work"? I mean, fill in the blanks: "This is my best work because it has ________." What does "my best work" mean to you, specifically? I'm interested in how different people articulate those aspects of writing, or of the story itself - or even, if that's what floats your boat, of readerly reaction - that make them sit back, smile, and go "Yeah. I done good." That's if you articulate it at all, and being writers, I'll bet you do. :-)

(Post a new comment)

	amorettea 2008-11-08 11:14 am UTC (link)
	This is my best work because it doesn't make me cringe when I reread it. Some of my stuff qualifies. (Reply to this) (Thread)

auctasinistra
2008-11-09 09:47 am UTC (link)

:-) But that can't be your only standard! (I assume) We all have our body of work, and in it we have (I presume) the whole range of quality (self-perceived, not what others think). You can't have only one that doesn't make you cringe! (Although, to be fair, even in the stuff I consider my best work there are moments that make me cringe). Are there OK stories, stories with a little cringe, no-cringe stories - then the one (or two or whatever) "best" that not only doesn't make you cringe but sometimes makes you smile?

I mean, do you really not have shades of grey in your feelings about your work? It's either bad, or it's your best? Maybe I'm not understanding quite what you mean...

I'm not trying to "correct" your interpretation of your work, of course, just trying to understand what you mean - your phrase just sounded black and white to me, you know? It's either bad (cringe-worthy) or your best work, no in between.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

	lilyseyes 2008-11-08 11:59 am UTC (link)
	This is my best work because it so gripped me as I wrote it, Sentinel in the Shadows is one. And, as amorettea said, the stories that I can reread without making me cringe. I have a few stories I am particularly proud of that qualify. (Reply to this) (Thread)

auctasinistra
2008-11-09 09:49 am UTC (link)

This is my best work because it so gripped me as I wrote it, Sentinel in the Shadows is one

I can definitely understand that feeling - for me, though, it's more how I feel about the finished product, but I've actually found that if, at the end, I think "that one's good," it is one that did grip me during the writing - I felt very intensely involved and immersed in it.

None of my fanfic makes me cringe, but it was produced after I'd been writing a long time; I wish I had all the stuff I'd written as a teen - that would be cringe heaven, but it'd be fun!

(Reply to this) (Parent)

	klynie1 2008-11-08 12:37 pm UTC (link)
	I don't know. I don't think that I've written my best work yet, because I can see such a progression in my writing abilities from one piece to the next. My best work will probably be the last one I write just before I kick the bucket. And it still probably won't be good enough for me. g (Reply to this) (Thread)

auctasinistra
2008-11-09 09:52 am UTC (link)

I don't know. I don't think that I've written my best work yet

That's not quite my question, though (aka "Cop out! Cop out! You know that's not the question I'm asking!" *g*).

I'm asking regarding a known quantity - your best, in your view, of what you have written. You must think something (or more than one!) of what you've done is, in some way, simply better than some of the rest, and there would (I presume!) be a quality in it that you recognize that makes you go "of what I've written, I think this story, and this one, are best."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

klynie1
2008-11-09 10:28 am UTC (link)

Fair cop. *g*

It's really hard to quantify. It's almost easier to define the stories that I'm unsatisfied with: they're the ones where, for whatever reason, I posted before I gave them my best. Yes, I cringe quite often at older things that I've written, but I don't think they're bad - it's just that I've learned more since I wrote them. If I gave a story my best shot and then posted it, no matter where I go in the future, at that moment I felt it was a damned good story, probably my best-to-date.

On the other hand, if I knowingly post a story where something isn't right - characterization, or a big plot hole, or a gift for someone that I haven't taken the time to get to know well enough to create something unique and special for them - I don't feel any pride in it. I just feel like I never should have posted it in the first place. Luckily, there's only a handful of my stories that I feel like that about, and none of them recent. I think they were probably part of my learning curve, in retrospect.

So, I guess that my statement would most likely be: this is my best work, because I accomplished what I set out to accomplish. It's clean. It's consistent. It flows well. The plot makes sense and the characters drive it. The characters are well-rounded, with weaknesses and strengths, and I manage to make them sympathetic no matter how selfish or cruel they are towards the other characters in the story.

Though I'm always relieved if people enjoy the story, too. :D

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

auctasinistra
2008-11-09 12:18 pm UTC (link)

It's almost easier to define the stories that I'm unsatisfied with:

I think this is absolutely true, which is part of the reason I ask the question. I can point to everything I'm dissatisfied with in any given story of mine. The ones I think are "best" are harder to quantify, because it's a confluence of things, as you describe.

On the other hand, if I knowingly post a story where something isn't right - characterization, or a big plot hole, or a gift for someone that I haven't taken the time to get to know well enough to create something unique and special for them - I don't feel any pride in it.

Yes. I feel that way about a certain story I did for a challenge. I wanted to do the challenge, but somehow I didn't ever feel the story. I felt too constrained by deadline, etc., to really enjoy writing it, and it's dead to me when I reread it.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

dancing_serpent
2008-11-09 07:24 am UTC (link)

This is my best work because it expresses exactly what I wanted to say. No information lacking but not one little bit too much - it's exactly how I wanted it to turn out.

This is my best work because it pleases me again and again, every time I re-read it or think about it. It follows are deliberately chosen stylistic pattern from the beginning to the end, never breaking from what I intended.

This is my best work because it puts me right back into the mood I was in when I wrote it. It makes a powerful impression even on me as a writer and makes me feel joy and wonder that I was even able to create something like this.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	auctasinistra 2008-11-09 10:00 am UTC (link)
	Yup. That's basically how I would describe my best work. :-) (Reply to this) (Parent)