Being open to criticism and the role of drafts

Something strikes me more and more, year on year, as a writer and a teacher and a student. That is, the importance of being open and positive about reader critique of your writing, and the role of drafting and proofreading in your own work. Both are vital to good writing, I think. Good writing takes time, work, and many drafts, it is not generated spontaneously. And, it is often enriched by accepting reader feedback of strengths and weaknesses from experienced readers.  

Here are two links that reminded me of this recently:

From the Mslexia blog, Rebecca Alexander,   Becoming Open to Criticism, see here

And, a video from Jon McGregor (a Davy Byrnes Short Story Award 2014 judge) - notes and drafts from a novel, How to Write a Novel in Less than Two Minutes  here  This is a visual representation of drafting a novel.

Accepting reader feedback from trusted and experienced readers, and being prepared to edit and re-draft will improve your writing. We live and we learn, and writing definitely is a learning process.