Read Around the Rainbow
As you’re probably aware, #RAtR is a blogging project I am doing with a few friends who also write LGBTQIA romance. You can find everyone by clicking here or on the image to the right.
This month, we’re all blogging about writing advice we take with a grain of salt… and…I’m not sure about this one! Do I say I rigidly follow all the rules? And have people think I’m a formulaic work-to-rule sort of writer? Or do I say I pick and choose what received advice I follow, and have people think I’m arrogant and self-important and not a proper writer?
It’s a dilemma! Probably the first advice I should actually listen to is to ignore imposter syndrome 😊.
In all honesty though, there’s so much completely conflicting advice out there for people who write, whether they’re published or not:
Write every day. It doesn’t matter if you write every day. Attend a writing group. Write alone. Self-edit. Always have an editor. Have lots of social media. Don’t bother with social media. Write different genres under different pen-names. Put everything under one pen name. Hone your skills in fanfiction. Take a course. Self-publish. Look for a publisher. Get an agent. Don’t bother with an agent.
And Oxford commas…well. That’s how decades long feuds begin.
I think the only thing you can say for certain is that what suits one person won’t suit another and the less you get hung up on all the dos and don’ts, the happier and more confident you’ll be.
I’m definitely not confident enough to self-edit for example. But I know several people who do, very competently. The writing every day thing…well. My life is very, very fragmented right now and that’s impossible for me. But it doesn’t make me any less of a writer. Everything is still ticking away inside my head and when I do sit down with my laptop I often find it springs more fully formed onto the page than it does if I’ve been writing every day. Not always! But sometimes.
So, I’d have to say that the only thing I’d take with a grain of salt is to follow all the advice you’re given. Pick what works for you and have the confidence to say ‘I tried that and it was rubbish for me, it didn’t work’.
It’s not a competition, there are no rules that dictate conformity or success. If you’re happy as you’re actually writing and happy with what you’re creating, then…that’s working. You’re a successful writer.
Here’s everyone else who wrote this month. Click through to read what they have to say!
Nell Iris : Ofelia Grand : Lillian Francis : Fiona Glass : Amy Spector : Ellie Thomas : Holly Day : K. L. Noone : Addison Albright
So basically “f-ck all the rules!” I’m on board with that 😀
I mean, that would be a very short post, but in essence, er…maybe? 🙂
Excellent point. It’s not even possible to follow all the advice because it’s all conflicting!
I think as a writer, you’re always writing. Not in the sense that you’re putting words on paper, but you see something that sparks an idea, a thought pops up that you’re gonna use later, and the solution to why the plot isn’t really working comes when your hair is foaming with shampoo. So maybe not writing words, but you’re in your story several times a day.
I was nodding in agreement while reading this. Very wise advice! We all have to find which writing recipe works for us as individuals, knowing that might change as life shifts so will our writing patterns accordingly.
Yes, yes, yes, especially the ‘keep doing what you’re doing as long as you’re happy with it’ bit. And Ofelia’s comment (above) is such good advice.
So much agreement with all of this! And I love the point about having confidence: knowing what works and doesn’t work for you, and trusting that.
I constantly berate myself for not writing every day, but my schedule is too unpredictable. I need to let that go as a goal. *sigh*