Hanes vs. Thick-Skin

Sometimes I wish I wrote Christian fiction so I could have queried literary agent Rachelle Gardner. It's just, she's so nice. You know?

Alas, I do not and cannot. *sigh* But I always read her blog, and so should you. Especially her most recent post about thick-skin. They're having a great discussion over there on whether people have it (the ability to tolerate criticism)or not, and how it affects you as a writer.

I have it. Quite literally. A few years ago, a doctor actually bent a scalpel while cutting into my upper back.

Nice. I know.

Anyway, my suspicion is being thick-skinned is way overrated. That I'd probably be a better writer and person if things didn't bounce off me quite so high and with the frequency that they do. Just saying.

Maybe the answer should be thick-skin isn't as important as possessing a good pair of big girl panties. Because it's inevitable (or should be). Things don't always bounce. Sometimes they seep in and they burn. And they make you cry. But the secret is those Hanes. No matter how much you hurt, you hike'em up and you go back out there. You don't let them see how you cried or that it stung. You just learn from it and stay strong and move on.

Maybe. :)