I’m working on an assignment and I’m stuck. This is an attempt to get unstuck.
The hardest part for me of working on assignments for someone else is the concern (justified or not) that the editor who is getting my work is going to be disappointed by it. I know that from past experience that’s unlikely to happen on this particular gig – not that they won’t see something to fix, but as long as it’s turned in on time and is the right shape and size I’ve had pretty good luck with getting the work approved.
It’s very different writing for someone else than it is for myself. Blogging has its own trials and travails, but pleasing an editor is not one of them. Rather, there’s a terrifying time when you hit “publish” and the world either sees your headline and says “meh” or they pick it up and share it with their friends.
Ultimately, most of my writing is for the world or for myself. I’ve written here before about keeping an open notebook and what that means for my tolerance for the incomplete image in my own writing. But when you’re writing for someone else the whole package really wants to be neat and tidy and polished, and that brings with it a separate set of expectations.
This entry was posted in Writing on September 27, 2013.