Critique Circle: First Story Submission

I’ve almost reached the three-month mark at the writer’s forum Critique Circle and I finally submitted a story. It wasn’t an easy choice. I write a lot and in different styles, so I really had to think where I needed the most help. I finally decided to go with The Gregoryville Ghost, a mystery/ghost story I had written after a friend told me about his wife’s family.

I chose this story because mysteries are a weak point for me. I’m really not sure how to build mystery and I’m not good at plot twists. After a week of submission, I’ve received some great critiques with different points of view. So different that my surprise grew after reading each critique. They were all good in their own way and I really felt like the people critiquing were trying to help my story improve.

Now the hard part; the revision. Since the critiques are very different from one another it would be impossible to include all suggestions. I will let the critiques decant while I decide what I really want from the ghost story. Growing mystery or rapid twist? And how will I make it available to the public? Online? In a compilation? I think answering these questions will have an impact on the revision.

A word about revisions. Sometimes I dread them. Sometimes I actually enjoy them. I start dreading them all, but in about half the cases I actually enjoy the revision process as much as writing the story itself. I suppose it’s like taking that dreaded walk after a big meal. You know it would be good for you, but the couch looks so inviting. You know that the fabric of the couch has been soaked in a vat of sedatives, so you put your shoes on. By the way, why do couch makers drug their textiles?