The open book: what writers don’t tell writers about writing (part 6)
As I’ve worked, on and off, on this series, I’ve tried to consolidate the questions and blind spots I see (and have personally encountered) on creating — and thriving — in a writing career. I get asked, and see others asked, what the single best piece of advice they can give to writers just starting out…and the best answer, across the board, is to read. Read everything. Read, read, read. Reading does more to help develop voice, style, and a sense of narrative shape than a hundred writing workshops will.
It’s never the answer people like to hear. But it’s true, nonetheless.
The second best answer is: write. Write a lot. Write garbage. Write well. Doesn’t matter. But write something, revise it, finish it — and repeat. For the first several hundred thousand words, no one writes anything worth much, usually. Maybe you’ll glean a story or two from it. But don’t assume that this is when you’re productive. Assume this is when you are learning to be productive.
This is also very true, somewhat unpleasant advice. And I give it, along with the reading shtick pretty frequently. But I also realize that I haven’t been centering the third piece of advice that is also very good and true, if not kind of a pain in the ass — the bit of advice that helps actual writing, albeit indirectly, but…
