(Un)Welcome Advice

The first time someone sits down and thinks to themselves, "I have a great idea for a story, I think I want to be a writer", that person will often spend time wondering what life as a writer is like. I always pictured myself in a cabin somewhere with an office that had a view overlooking a lake, spending day after day bringing

my creative ideas to life with millions of people around the world loving the colorful worlds that would spring from my mind. What I didn't imagine was the massive amount of self-doubt I would fall into. The self-doubt came, and still exists, and it came from an unexpected place.

Making the decision to really put some effort into a writing career means being committed to constant improvement of your craft. When one can't afford to go back to school and get a degree in English, assuming they don't already have one (ahem ahem), then this comes in the form of networking with other writers by connecting on social media, joining a local writer's group, or attending conferences. You get really excited at first because feedback means you will be privy to the secrets of the industry which will get you one step closer to your goal of being a published author.

So eager to get that first "bestseller" stamp at the top of a hardback, you begin implementing every piece of advice you receive from authors who have accomplished even a little bit more than you. Then, one day, you notice something that makes your mouth a little dry. Your story doesn't look like your story anymore. It looks like someone else's story.

This just happened to me recently. I was given advice, put it into practice by rewriting the first chapter of my manuscript, and thought it was fantastic. It was a game changer. I did my second chapter, and then was given further advice which I immediately implemented in the first chapter, but suddenly I found myself in a tough position. The advice made sense. There was very logical rationalization for making the changes I was making, but suddenly that first chapter had become something I wouldn't want to read. It was streamlined, plot focused, and moved quickly. Those should all be good things...right?

This brings me to the ONE piece of advice that I will always choose to follow going forward. I don't remember where I first heard it or read it. I don't know who should get credit for it, so I apologize for a lack of citation—but here it is:

Write the story you want to read.

Some people want to read that streamlined story that gets right into the bones of the action. But, some people like fluff! Some people want to read the vivid, colorful descriptions of beautiful or ominous scenery. So many writers will disagree with me here, but the fact is that if YOU would enjoy reading it, there is definitely someone else out there who would enjoy reading it! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE CRITICISM BY ADHERING TO THE "NORMS" OF THE CRAFT AS IT IS PORTRAYED BY OTHER WRITERS!

You are you, so BE you. What do you think people told the writer of the first comedic tragedy? Those things don't go together! A tragedy is a tragedy, and a comedy is a comedy. Don't do it! You're wrong! Yeah, well...Shakespeare...need I say more?

Here's my point. All writers are going to be inundated with advice, not necessarily unsolicited, that should all be taken with a grain of salt. For every writer who gives advice, there is another writer who gives the opposite advice. At the end of the day, write the story you want to write, and understand that it will take patience (A LOT of patience) and persistence to find the right reader for that story. But when you do find that reader, the connection will be real and then expand to more readers. It will turn into a following over time. Eventually, that big ticket publisher will be unable to ignore you—whether you fall within their guidelines of "what makes a good writer" or not.