Tin House Summer Writer’s Workshop with Charles D’Ambrosio made me wish that everything I sent out prior to the workshop gets rejected. I don’t want to win contests or get anything published.

I want it all back because I know three new things:

1. What I need to fix
2. How I need to fix it
3. What I’m doing well

Fixing it won’t be easy. I’ve got a lot to learn, test, edit, read, and re-write.

I’m also a little afraid of killing my short stories with craft. Some well-written stories die a slow death in the name of craft. Asphyxiated by the lack of characters, consecutive scenes erase each other like waves which can seem pleasant, but then you realize, nothing really happened because all the characters are dead or never existed.

As a result of this workshop, I understand my responsibilities to the reader so much better.