It’s amazing what I find when I clean out my notebook!
So, I’ve been thinking of writing an inspirational memoir sort of book. I’m thinking of calling it Failing to Fail: Tales of a Writer Who Didn’t Quit. It’s been on hold for a little bit, mainly because I haven’t the foggiest idea how to organize it and how much should be writing guidance and how much should be memoir. And also because I’ve got a horrendous memory and can’t really remember a lot, so how am I supposed to write a story I can hardly remember?
Anyway… I came across this:
Writing is a craft. It’s something all but a handful of people need to study and learn. Very few writers are born with the knowledge of how to put together a compelling story, of how to create a fascinating world, and build characters that readers can relate to. These are all things that can be learned.
Writing is a practice. We study it, practice, and study some more. We learn, get better, and try harder with every book, every story. We don’t always succeed, and we never get it right the first time.
It takes discipline. It takes passion. Yes, it takes creativity, but it’s something that anyone who has all of those qualities can do.
What’s sad–and sometimes disturbing–is when someone tried to get around the necessary learning, when they try to short-cut the process. Then we get pieces of trash that aren’t worth anybody’s time to read.
Sadly, we must all go through the process of learning to write, and many of us go through it again and again with each book we sit down to create. Every book is different, every story needs to unfold in its own way. We need to be open to trying to discover how each story wants to be told.
Is any of this new? No! It’s all been said before, but it’s important enough that it needs to be said again. We all need to be reminded of this–even those of us who don’t have memory problems.
Next week, I promise a longer post. I’m planning on writing about secondary characters–till then!