1)  There is no "right" and "wrong" concerning art or creativity. Everyone's opinion is just that - an opinion. For example, I dislike the work of Ernest Hemingway. If I had been a contemporary, I might have told Papa not to quit his day job. Would he have been wise to accept my opinion?

2) Author Georg Christoph Lichtenberg said, "A book is a mirror; if an ass peers into it, don't expect and apostle to peer out." This is not cited to characterize those who disagree with you, only to make the point that people bring their own experiences and perceptions along when they read your work.

3) Our egos tend to dictate that all the advice given us regarding our work is wrong. This is what I like to call the "you just don't get it" syndrome. Sometimes that same advice sounds a lot saner and more workable a few days later. In a critique situation, it helps to write down everything that's said and sleep on it.

4) Try saying nothing when faced with advice. When you begin to argue, you stop listening. Even if the person really is saying stupid things, arguing will only make him or her say more stupid things. Right or wrong, just listen.

5) Your reader is important. If your reader doesn't get it, you're not done. Then again, there will always be someone who doesn't get it. If it's one in 10, you can please everybody. If it's nine in 10, it's time to listen.

6) Important as your readers are, their names do not go on the finished product. It's your own sensibility that you ultimately have to please. No matter how strongly someone disagrees with the direction of your work, it must remain your work, or you've lost everything worth having.

7) One of the biggest breakthroughs I ever had was when I learned to stop saying, "Is it good or is it bad?" and switched to, "What is the market for this? Who would like this kind of work?"