Ok - I confess

[Tariel]

I rate my friends. It's kinda sad, really. I don't think of them in terms of "best friends" "closest friends" or "bffs" or anything like that. I think of my friends as "first draft friends" "second draft friends" "only drafts that I really like friends" and "you're going to have to wait until it's published" friends.

In an effort to get WG activity back up, I ask: do you ever think of your friends as people you get to force your writing on? I do.

 

[Radagast]

I'm sure every writer does, perhaps without admitting it...

 

[Tariel]

You're probably right

 

[mochagirl]

Hmm.

I guess, yeah. I've always been one of those people who get mortified at the thought of people--in general, but especially those I know--reading what I've written, so it takes a lot for me to "force" my writing on others. (More often it's been the opposite; them forcing me to let them read it. Heh.)

 

[NeoScribe]

There are some friends who will read what I write gladly because they like it (mostly older people).
And then there are some who will barely glance at my work no matter how much I beg... Oddly enough these are the same people who have no problem asking me to write stories for them. Go figure

 

[Subdood]

I'm kind of with Neo on this one . I've my "interesteds" and my "never interesteds." I've come to realize that one issue in general seems to be true, the latter group aren't really readers themselves. My wife is my best critic and always willing to read and comment on my writing - good or bad - she's honest - often brutally so . My other friends, for whatever reason, rarely will take the time to offer more than a shrug when I try to submit something to them - so I've quit doing so. I suppose if I ever get "good" at writing, some may take the time to read my work, but any more, I'm looking for those who don't know me to offer substantive critique.

 

[sunstruckdream]

A handful of my friends read my stuff. They're the ones who are interested in writing also. I have one friend who I switch work with via email on a several-times-a-week basis, if we've both been productive. I have another friend who (and this irks the heck out of me), asks for copies of my work to read, then promptly misplaces or loses them or forgets them long enough to need another. (Consequently, he doesn't see my work that often.) But yeah, I have a few friends who seem to like staying up on my stuff. I don't usually 'force' the work on people, though. I don't want someone to feel pressured to read it and like it less because of that.

 

[Peace Eternal]

I don't think I've ever shown my work to a friend, and only one story to an adult, which turned into a total mockery of my work and why on earth was I writing something so stupid? So, to answer the question, I don't rate my friends as in who can read my drafts, but I do rate them as character material. Which parts of them will fit where in a story? kind of thing.

 

[SkyArk17]

Welcome to my world.

 

[Kokopelli]

I don't think I've ever shown my work to a friend, and only one story to an adult, which turned into a total mockery of my work and why on earth was I writing something so stupid? So, to answer the question, I don't rate my friends as in who can read my drafts, but I do rate them as character material. Which parts of them will fit where in a story? kind of thing.

Given that it seems most of my friends are a couple of friendly chaps named "Morgan" and "Sebastian," I don't expect much help from them in the reading department.. They do however, provide excellent help on clearing the mind. Unfortunately, it can become too clear, resulting in me being unable to write before seeking their advise.

Other than that, there is a female co-worker who has read some of my stuff. She enjoyed, though I don't know if it is because she was just being nice or what the case was. I have to be careful on what I let her read however, as there have been characters that were modeled after her that have not seen the light of day of day yet.

 

[Antebellum]

Not at all... Many of my friends aren't even writers. There's only one I know of, and we don't really share writing that often. We're both so busy we rarely get the chance, I suppose.