Achievement unlocked - hearing my work read aloud without cringing
So, back on September 24, I wound up going to the meeting of t he writing group all the way down by Chicago/Indiana border. Like I said - I enjoyed myself back in August, and I had to take some photos in Woodlawn for an article anyway. And WOodlawn, while not quite as far south as East Side, was still more south than I usually go, so going from 63rd Street all the way down to 110th totally makes sense, right? *sweatdrop*
In spite of my best efforts, I was able to make it down there in time (which is a long story in on itself, which involved me waiting for a Metra Electric train at a wrong stop, taking three buses and, at one point, running after another bus for almost a block). And I am glad I did.
People who have only known me recently may be surprised to learn that, for quite a while, I was terrified of reading my work out loud. The only reason why I started reading it at open mics was because the alternative - having someone else read it for me - was even more mortifying. As people who knew me back in my high school and college days can attest, when somebody read my work out loud, my reaction was basically to curl up in a ball, plug my ears and chant "la la la I can't hear anything" to myself.
Having attended more than a few open mics over the past four years, I (mostly) got over my stage fright. I mean, it still feels awkward, but it's awkwardness I can manage.
Having someone else read my work, on the other hand, was still a no go. So, when, back during the August meeting, Matt the Facilitator said that part of the process was having someone else read the work we bring in, my first reaction was "oh, hell no!" But I kept that reaction to myself. Because another part of me was like: "Okay, let's not reject it out of hand. Let's see how it goes. If you wind up squeezing yourself into a ball of embarrassment, so be it, but maybe you can try it out, see how it goes?"
So when, during September 24 meeting, Matt had us all do just that - and his wife, Tiffany, wound up reading mine - I braced myself and hoped for the best.
And you know what? To my immense shock, nothing happened. Hearing my words read to me felt no different than listening other people read their own work.
Maybe it was because that particular piece of Chasing New Dawn was narrated by a female character, so having a woman read it was more natural than me reading it. Maybe it was because I already read that part aloud several times before in other groups. I don't know. All I know is that it was basically the opposite of a complete disaster I was terrified it would be.
Sure, Tiffany stumbled over some words and some non-English names, but that was to be expected to someone who was coming in completely cold. For the most part, she got the tone and flow exactly right, which I suppose says something good about my descriptions.
I'm going to see how it goes when the group meets this Monday.
What? After what happened last time, of course I was going to go again.
Assuming some journalism stuff doesn't get in the way.
In spite of my best efforts, I was able to make it down there in time (which is a long story in on itself, which involved me waiting for a Metra Electric train at a wrong stop, taking three buses and, at one point, running after another bus for almost a block). And I am glad I did.
People who have only known me recently may be surprised to learn that, for quite a while, I was terrified of reading my work out loud. The only reason why I started reading it at open mics was because the alternative - having someone else read it for me - was even more mortifying. As people who knew me back in my high school and college days can attest, when somebody read my work out loud, my reaction was basically to curl up in a ball, plug my ears and chant "la la la I can't hear anything" to myself.
Having attended more than a few open mics over the past four years, I (mostly) got over my stage fright. I mean, it still feels awkward, but it's awkwardness I can manage.
Having someone else read my work, on the other hand, was still a no go. So, when, back during the August meeting, Matt the Facilitator said that part of the process was having someone else read the work we bring in, my first reaction was "oh, hell no!" But I kept that reaction to myself. Because another part of me was like: "Okay, let's not reject it out of hand. Let's see how it goes. If you wind up squeezing yourself into a ball of embarrassment, so be it, but maybe you can try it out, see how it goes?"
So when, during September 24 meeting, Matt had us all do just that - and his wife, Tiffany, wound up reading mine - I braced myself and hoped for the best.
And you know what? To my immense shock, nothing happened. Hearing my words read to me felt no different than listening other people read their own work.
Maybe it was because that particular piece of Chasing New Dawn was narrated by a female character, so having a woman read it was more natural than me reading it. Maybe it was because I already read that part aloud several times before in other groups. I don't know. All I know is that it was basically the opposite of a complete disaster I was terrified it would be.
Sure, Tiffany stumbled over some words and some non-English names, but that was to be expected to someone who was coming in completely cold. For the most part, she got the tone and flow exactly right, which I suppose says something good about my descriptions.
I'm going to see how it goes when the group meets this Monday.
What? After what happened last time, of course I was going to go again.
Assuming some journalism stuff doesn't get in the way.