Gordon's Writing Advice
Why Should You Listen to Me?
By Gordon the Friendly Dragon
I am not published beyond this website, I have a bachelors in secondary language arts (High School English), but I was a B student, and neither of my twin reptilian brains is larger than a walnut. So, why should you listen to me? The answer is simple. You can learn from any writer. I open my eyes and ears to anyone who cares to discuss writing. I've learned from masters of the craft, failing authors, school teachers, and toddlers. Heck, I've even learned from copy writers. I view every example placed before me as another opportunity to grow, no matter the source.
Great writing provides a guide post, benchmark, and goal in a single package. Reading great writing makes you a better writer.
The best writing inspires, and provides a goal to achieve. How often have you finished a truly fantastic story or read a particularly fine passage and thought, “That's it! This is what I need to do!” I believe most people who take writing seriously have experienced this moment and come away better writers. Great writing provides a guide post, benchmark, and goal in a single package. Reading great writing makes you a better writer.
The worst work provides hope, and a long list of pitfalls to avoid. If you've ever finished a truly awful story, you have likely thought something along the lines of, “What moron looked at this manuscript and said, 'Yup, that'll do,'” or, “If this got published, I'm a shoo-in.” Reading bad writing can lead to improved self esteem, increased self efficacy, and greater writing ability. The very fact that something so abominable managed to find an audience (Of course it found an audience, you read it. Didn't you?), and that you were able to recognize the vile nature of the work, suggests that in some ways you are already a better writer than a published author. It also proves that there is a wider range of readers than you previously thought. I've read some stories that would never have traveled beyond the earliest imaginings of the author in a sane and reasonable world, yet the author continues to publish, and, for all I know, managed to publish his or her way into a comfortable life. There is a lid for every pot, and an audience for every author. Reading bad writing can lend you the courage to find yours.
Perhaps the least valuable of all writing is that of a writer equal to your own skill; still, I can think of at least three reasons to read writing which is, by your standards of excellence, average. First among these is the entertainment value. If you consider the writer on par with yourself, and you find no pleasure in his work, you must admit that there is no value in your own. If that is the case, then why bother to write at all? Why not uninstall your word processor, free up some system resources for World of WarCraft, and finally give over the last shred of your time, money, energy, and soul to Blizzard's Binary Devil, or I suppose you could take up shooting heroin, as it amounts to the same.
Secondly, what are the odds that any two writers will ever be of exactly equal skill and ability? Two authors who are often compared in my reading circles, R.A. Salvatore and Timothy Zahn, have provided equal joy to me over the years, but I would never suggest that either one could not learn something from the other. The same could be said of J.R.R. Tolkien and Isaac Asimov. I could continue with this list for a dozen pages and never come to a pair that posses exactly the same skill set. One draws fantastic characters, another is a master of plot twists, a third handles exposition like a champion, and a fourth can create a milieu so enticing that I feel I can slip away from worldly burdens with the turn of a page. I happen to evoke humor and despair in writing more easily than other writers I know, yet I would never dream of ignoring their advice on characterization and description simply because I possess an ability they do not. Any time I start to feel uppity, as if my cronies might not be able to pace the brilliant rising star that is Gordon F. Dragon, a tiny voice pipes up in the back of my mind to remind me that they could easily think the same of me.
Finally, assuming you manage to succeed to some degree, this same group will one day become your peers. Who is more likely to understand your love of writing? What other group is likely to be scouring the same resources looking for support? Who is going to be more accessible than people striving for a common cause? As this group rises in status and ability, who better to provide business associates and networking opportunities? Your equals make up the group to which you belong. Don't shun them.
So, why should you listen to me? Because, no matter your ability, I reside in one of these three categories in relation to you, along with every other writer under the sun, and by virtue of your decision to spend valuable time and effort on self improvement you have already earned a small part of my respect. Listen because you can be sure I will do all in my power to help you along. So long as you wish to read and write, I'll be your teacher, your student, your peer, and your friend.
Sincerely,
Gordon the Friendly Dragon
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Writing Advice