What do you do when you know it's not your best?

[d4rk4ngel]

Ok, so everyone who writes out there, help me out. I am one of those writers who just writes when a mood or emotion takes over my mind and I have to write to get it out of my head. I never write a structured story because it never turns out readable. Recently (and I do mean recently) a good friend of mine RT questioned me as to why I never write for money. I pointed out to her that my stuff is always short and explained that, for me, it was just a brain dump. She told me to try it, so I did. I just offered it up to the god's of submission and it is now in their hands.

Now, here's my question:

Do other writers have the same problem? The harder you try the less of a story you end up with? Is that indicitive of a lack of talent? What can I Do to get over that?

HELP!!

I love to write and would do anything to fix the first problem I have. Can a person get past a hurdle like that? *plays dramatic music* Will I ever be able to truly write?!?! I am despairing over here. Someone, ANYONE, help me!!!

 

[rgraham666]

If you can get the stuff down 'on paper' you're a writer.

And don't sweat that it's not your best. If it's your worst is something you have to worry about.

Write, learn, read other's stuff, learn, write some more, learn. That's how you get better.

I can't believe how much my work has improved in two years. Yours will as well.

*HUGS* 4ngel.

 

[d4rk4ngel]

*hugs back* Do I just continue to write as I always have or should I keep plugging along attempting to consciously write? ARG... Why does my one passion have to be something I know nothing about?

 

[rgraham666]

*hugs back* Do I just continue to write as I always have or should I keep plugging along attempting to consciously write? ARG... Why does my one passion have to be something I know nothing about?

If you can read, you can probably write. And I know you can read.

Keep on trying. And keep on pushing yourself. Write what you want how you want. Find someone you trust to edit for you, and some proofers as well. They'll help steer you in the right direction.

Have faith in yourself. I know lots about this last one as I keep losing mine.

 

[AngeloMichael]

My advice:

Read a lot. Read authors you enjoy, try to make a conscious effort to observe what they do. How they put a story together, how they use characters and their plot techniques. Get a feel for their style.

Don't try to copy them, every author has to develop their own style. Just get a feel for how it's done.

If you feel the need and desire to pull jumbled random thoughts and ideas in your head and convert them to words on paper, then you are a writer. Above all else keep writing. Even if you think it's garbage. Just keep writing. The more you practice the better you will get. That's a given. The more you put into studying grammar, style, technique, etc. will determine how much better you get. Don't worry about being a success at it, that will come or it won't.

I posted this in another thread as a joke, but it doesn't make it any less true. This guy can give just about any author hope.

Terry Good(Bad)Kind has a sample chapter of his new book Phantom online.

I shit you not. This is an actual sentence in this book and it isn't an anomoly in his writing either:

Kahlan couldn’t always judge exactly when Sister Ulicia would lash out and just because she so far hadn’t didn’t mean that she wouldn’t.

Goodkind is Tor's second best selling author. He makes millions of dollars from this...stuff. So to any author who thinks they aren't good enough to become a successful writer, I offer you hope, to any editor reading this...I suggest you take 2 or 3 advil before your brain implodes.

 

[d4rk4ngel]

*hugs all around* Just cross your fingers for me. It would suck to enjoy something this much and not be good at it!

 

[carsonshepherd]

*hugs all around* Just cross your fingers for me. It would suck to enjoy something this much and not be good at it!

But the nice thing is, if you keep doing it because you enjoy it, you get better and better.

 

[sophia jane]

But the nice thing is, if you keep doing it because you enjoy it, you get better and better.

That's so true. It's amazing how much you will change and grow as a writer just by writing.
And I agree with the other advice you've gotten. Read lots. Write lots. Not everything you write (or anyone writes) will be great. Keep at it anyway.

 

[SeaCat]

I'm in somewhat the same boat as you.

I write what is in my mind.

I rarely have a structured story, I just write it as it pours out.

One thing I have learned though, from a writer here, is that once I get the words on paper then I have to start working on it.

I'll write a story then let it sit for a while. Then I'll read it. Then I start making changes to the story, making it understandable and readable. I'm not that good at this, I'm still learning as are we all.

If you really want to read the stories of masters, well there are several here. Some of them make me wonder why I write at all when I read their works.

We are graced here by some of the best writers I have ever read, even if they don't agree with me. Rob, Og, Cloudy, Shang, and several others will blow your socks clean off. (Me? I'm at the bottom of the tree looking up but having fun with my writing.)

Cat

 

[dr_mabeuse]

If you can get the stuff down 'on paper' you're a writer.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with Rob. Just putting words on paper does not make you a 'writer' as I understand the word.

A writer's job is to find meaning in the things that happen to us. A writer takes the raw material of experience and chips away at it until he shapes it into something special that teaches or reveals or just entertains in some way. He doesn't just scribble down whatever words come to mind and call it a story.

I wouldn't worry that much about story though. Story (meaning plot) is not that big a deal. I'm not that big on story myself, and I've never been able to sit down and plan a story first and then write according to plan. Things reveal themselves as I write.

Stephen King said writing a story is like excavating a fossil. You start with the gleam of an idea like a shard of bone seen in the ground, and you start scraping away at the dirt, revealing more and more of it. You're still not sure what it is, but it's pretty interesting, and finally you have something. You still might have to think about it to figure out what it means and what the story's really about, but it means something. It has that feel.

I think writing is an art and a skill, no easier to learn than drawing or painting, and if you want to be good at it you have to work at it, and like Angelo says, you start by reading your ass off.

 

[Guest]

You've heard truth here. I'll quibble just a little when I say not everyone who wants to write will become a "writer" in the sense of being paid to write with fans clambering for the next tome. Not everyone who wants to dance gets good at it. Not everyone who drives a car will drive in the Indy 500. You do have to work at it.

There was a thread for a while here that argued "talent" over "technique". I came down on the side that a lot of mediocre talents become very successful via having good technique (Tom Clancy comes to mind, and Terry Goodkind is another. There are lots). These are competent writers, not geniuses. Still, they are writes, they do what they do, and they have an audience (I'm a Tom Clancy fan, actually.)

Read. Read especially things people praise highly. Read what you want to write, and read stuff you'd never think of writing, just so you know what's out there. Read to feed yourself, to see how others have conveyed ideas and feelings.

Spend a little time on the very short and easy to learn books that cover the basics of punctuation and sentence structure. There are many to chose from. Find one you like. Remember, if you are writing to communicate to others, make it easy on them with good spelling, good sentence structure, and proper use of punctuation. If you are not writing to communicate with anyone else, you don't need those things, but don't expect too many people to wade through your writing.

One day you may want to break into the heads of those writers and figure out in detail how they do that. You can find books for that, or writing groups, or classes, or one person you know online whose writing just knocked you over and you want to be when you grow up. Do what works.

Be prepared to have your ass handed to you. Be prepared for having sunshine blown up it, too. Learn to view your own work critiqually and to pick through the critique of others for the gems you can use. Toss what smells like bullshit. Write what you want, when you want, and worry about your own reasons for writing, whatever they are. Most people who write (MOST, that is, not all) are writing to talk to other people in some way, some how.

Keep writing until you don't want to write anymore. And good luck.

 

[sophia jane]

Spend a little time on the very short and easy to learn books that cover the basics of punctuation and sentence structure. There are many to chose from. Find one you like.

This was a great post (as was Dr M's), but I want to quibble on this point. There are, in fact, many many style guides but they are not all created equal. So while it's a good idea to find one you like, it's also a good idea to make sure that it's a reputable book too. Because there are some absolute crap writing books out there.

Also, highly recommend Stephen King's On Writing (which Dr M mentioned); it's a great little writing directive without actually being a boring how-to.

 

[Guest]

This was a great post (as was Dr M's), but I want to quibble on this point. There are, in fact, many many style guides but they are not all created equal. So while it's a good idea to find one you like, it's also a good idea to make sure that it's a reputable book too. Because there are some absolute crap writing books out there.

Also, highly recommend Stephen King's On Writing (which Dr M mentioned); it's a great little writing directive without actually being a boring how-to.

I'll agree there are many books on writing, but I intended to specify books on punctuation and sentence structure. The ones you are more likely to find (Elements of Style, Transitive Vampire/Woe is I, Chicago Manual of Style, and any number of others) are all pretty universal. I even have a dictionary with three pages covering the basics of punctuation. I've got...oh...seven different ones on my shelves, and they all say basically the same things, with some concentrating more on certain aspects of writing (one covers in exhaustive detail everything you need to know for writing academic papers. Not useful now, but damned handy when I was writing papers for psyche class! Who knew the period could go so many different places in a citation? Bastards.)

 

[FallingToFly]

<snippage>

Now, here's my question:

Do other writers have the same problem? The harder you try the less of a story you end up with? Is that indicitive of a lack of talent? What can I Do to get over that?

HELP!!

I love to write and would do anything to fix the first problem I have. Can a person get past a hurdle like that? *plays dramatic music* Will I ever be able to truly write?!?! I am despairing over here. Someone, ANYONE, help me!!!

I post it anyway, and ADVERTISE for flames. That way, as long as I can stay objective, I can rewrite and fix it through negativity.

It works for me.

 

[Weird Harold]

Do other writers have the same problem? The harder you try the less of a story you end up with? Is that indicitive of a lack of talent? What can I Do to get over that?

As long as your spelling and punctuation are good, don't worry too much about trying to "improve" your stories. Worry about whether the story you're trying to tell is the one your readers are going to see.

Technical details like sentence structure and plot consistency can often help tell a story better, but a rigid adherence to "structure" can sometimes get in the way of what you want the readers to see and feel.

Consider what a "redneck joke" would sound like if it was told in perfect grammar; it just wouldn't be the same.

If you graduate to loger works, Plot consistency and detail becomes more important, but for short works, worry more about whether your story says what you want it to in a way that the reader will be able to understand.

One thought about books on writing and/or punctuation -- narrative writing is different from technical writing and academic writing. Some things, like spelling and punctuation, don't change much whatever you're writing, but everything else is different because the purposes are different.

Narrative Writing -- writing stories -- doesn't have the same requirement for formal structures as Technical or Academic writing does; a book on how to write term papers isn't going to be much help in writing fiction.

 

[Recidiva]

The way you write sounds a bit like the way I write.

I don't want to be a professional because for me, that means someone has to edit it and sell it.

I write because it's an extension of my thoughts. What I want to eat right then, so to speak, to compare it to cooking.

I won't write something usually if I can find it in another book. Then I'll just go read that. But sometimes I need home-cooked thought that I can get outside myself and say "It's there, it's part of the Universe now."

I don't want to become a professional writer for the main reasons why I don't want to do anything else professionally...I don't want to make it less personal so it appeals to more people.

 

[angelicminx]

Lots of good advice already. IMO, you have already taken a huge step toward becoming a better writer- You joined Lit AND you frequent the AH.

Do other writers have the same problem? I do

The harder you try the less of a story you end up with? Yes, sometimes.

Is that indicitive of a lack of talent? Not at all.

What can I Do to get over that? Practice.

My advice? Keep writing, keep reading, join the story discussion circle, accept constructive criticism, ask questions, chose a good editor, etc.

Judging by "Rain", you have talent, so just practice.

I love to write, but my first 2 submissions were not great. I've learned a lot since then, but I have a long way to go.

 

[raynecrow2]

You already know my thoughts on the subject D4rk. There's a difference between doing it for a living and doing it for a hobby. If you need light, time, space, a certain mood, whatever, to get something down on paper, then stick with the hobby. The people who make their living at it do it because (like me) it's the only damn thing they can do, or they have enough grit and determination to try for 10 years before being published. For full time writers it's a job, like anything else. Hemingway wrote standing up at a typewriter every day for 8 hours, Bukowski for 10 or 12 hours a day. If you can't hammer at the keyboard untill your fingers bleed then it should at the least be a supplimental job, not a full time thing.

 

[d4rk4ngel]

Yeah yeah I know. What is it with you "for a living" writers, anyway? *Kicks something* I wanna be talented, damnit!!

 

[Nirvanadragones]

Now, here's my question:

Do other writers have the same problem? The harder you try the less of a story you end up with? Is that indicitive of a lack of talent? What can I Do to get over that?

HELP!!

I love to write and would do anything to fix the first problem I have. Can a person get past a hurdle like that? *plays dramatic music* Will I ever be able to truly write?!?! I am despairing over here. Someone, ANYONE, help me!!!

In many cases when something is sitting with me and I try to write it, but I can't, then it is not ready to be written yet. I have half -written poems and novels and stories everywhere - in drawers, on my pc, in diaries and journals and restaurant napkins and little scraps of paper. I even wrote an epic poem on a vomit bag in a plane once.

And I am ok with all of that, because I believe people do what they can with what they have and where they are. Sure you can push yourself to complete a work, and do it to the best of your ability in terms of structure and good language usage etc, but creativity cannot be hurried. Inspiration is not instant. Those things take time, and many times it is about putting an idea or a sentence away and taking it out again at a later moment to be looked at from a different perspective and with a fresh view.

I will never understand how people can write something, edit it and submit it within a few hours of having the original idea. I do understand that after a 3rd draft or a 6th or a seventh people get really sick of that specific work. But still. I see something new every time I read one of my stories - even those i wrote when I was a kid.

To be a successful writer you need dedication and discipline and determination. But you also need patience and gentle acceptance that things for the most part of it do not work out the way that we want them to.

 

[elfin_odalisque]

I can't believe how much my work has improved in two years. Yours will as well.

Nah, RG, it was pretty damn good when you started!