Sometimes I say that I only know three things about writing. This is of course ridiculous. An imprecise description created to chase a good line.
It is not even accurate to say I have only been given three bits of good advice about writing by other authors, though this is much closer to the truth. I hold to the wisdom imparted to me by Henry Rollins, Dave Sim and Andrew Collins as it is among the best advice any writer could ever receive. However, beyond their guidance, I have learnt one or two other things about my craft.
Recently I have been mentoring and teaching some other writers. There is not a single guru bone in my body, but working to try and help empower others has made me reassess some of my own beliefs. It has forced me to think about the counsel I would want to share.
One thing it has made me realise is that one of the biggest hazards you face when writing is becoming a tourist. Even the best writers and authors, even all those who are something close to heroes in my heart, screw up grandly when they become tourists instead of travellers.
As soon as you start to write about things you think others will find cool, you are in trouble. When you dwell on the bits of the map already highlighted by others, you are wandering away from what only you as a writer can do. Only you can report on and tell the stories of your life. Only you can put together the words that translate your eyes – translate you – to an audience.
No-one else can replicate your smash and grab raids on Ideaspace. No-one else can describe the archaeological excavations you have made of our collective morphic fields. No one else can give an account of all the artefacts you successfully smuggled across the border between your imagination and this world. When you write, your words become the paint which coats the invisible so it can be revealed to others.
Given a choice between painting the invisible – from the interior symphony of your heart to the secret movements of temporal shade – and just creating another picture postcard for day-trippers… Well, as an author, you should know what to do. Taking the tourist trail, following the guidebook to report on someone else’s sense of cool, there is no more guaranteed way to fail as a writer. Just as importantly, there is no more certain way to fail yourself.
2 comments:
I should have left a comment, I found this very inspiring.
I thought of this again when I saw this and thought of you: http://www.howtobearetronaut.com/2010/11/a-room-to-let-in-old-aldgate/
It just seemed like the kind of thing you might like.
(I'm also struck by how difficult it is to leave someone a link in a comment without sounding like spam)
Dear David,
As always, your insights are refreshing, and – as another reader pointed out on your 'I am Actually Quite a Good Writer' entry – "the casual ease with which you use language so effectively" is a gift to be admired.
Your advice here points out the eternal dilemma of balancing what one assumes to be 'reader expectation' and what is truly in one's heart that needs to be written.
In the contemporary commercial marketplace, based on my anecdotal observations of late, too many writers are preoccupied with anticipating what they think 'should be' written, based on external factors.
This is as true in non-fiction as it is in fiction. In my recent edits of the academic texts of other writers, for instance, the writer's own voice gets swamped in the process of merely summarising the works of others, rather than contributing original and thus valuable insights. The opportunities are there, but the writer holds back. Much of the same can be seen in fiction, as you point out in your own way above.
David, you may be interested in reading some insights from my colleagues and I here ('Does the shoe fit?'): http://www.lilydale.swinburne.edu.au/journal/vol4_essays.htm
We consider the role of postgraduate writing courses in the creative development of the writer. This area requires more research, but it's an interesting topic for general discussion too.
I've posted some basic musings here: http://danielzalec.livejournal.com/3053.html - including a link to a Guardian article titled, 'Can you teach creative writing?' You may wish to discuss this with your students.
Once again, thank you for your continuing efforts on this blog. Not sure if you remember, but you and I actually met via a Private Message years ago on a discussion board. I think it was the LooseChange boards. I had cited your Conspiracy Files book within the forums and you contacted me. At least, it was someone who claimed to be you. If it was, I'm so sorry I never got back to you, but I'm here now and I still have the aforementioned book on my bookshelf.
Anyway, take care.
Daniel.
PS. I have re-posted your (this) entry to my Facebook page for other writers to consider.
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