One of the most challenging aspects of being a writer is holding within yourself the conflicting identities of stubborn visionary and receptive toiler. I’ve become increasingly convinced that true success as a writer–to me, this means creating one’s best work and ensuring that work reaches your audience–rests on a writer’s ability to discern what’s negotiable and what’s not, when it’s time to do your own work and when to incorporate the feedback of others.

Before you can listen to how your writing can be better, you have to write and discover your own voice and vision.  It’s not something that can be done by committee. There is a great deal of work at the beginning of any writing career and any individual writing project that must be done alone.  There are many blind alleys that we must run up, trying to find our destinations.  While we might want the help…