The Writing Tsunami |
| Posted: 09 Jun 2011 06:07 PM PDT Recently I was reading through a forum when a topic caught my attention. I clicked on it and read all the responses and let me tell you - there were a fair number of responses. It flashed me all the way back to the beginning of this journey which is to say, the main reason why I started this blog. Yes, writing is the ultimate reason but there is another.
The reason was (and still is) because I needed a life raft to get me over the tsunami of information out there. That is precisely what the discussion on the forum was about; the overwhelming amount of information regarding how to write. I agree, there is a mountain and then some to be found out there. Many share rules and guidelines while others refer to books written by authors on how to write. One author in the forum actually gets worried about her own writing after reading some of the how-to's and do-not's on the multiple sites. I'm not saying there isn't a place on the Internet for sites offering help because I am one of those sites; however, I am saying that there is a lot of information out there and most of it contradicts each other. How do you separate the helpful information from the restrictive information? It comes down to listening to your gut. The reason why I stay away from books written about writing is simply because their style and voice does not match mine for one and what works for them may not work for me. Now before you hammer me with comments I will say that these books will and do provide great information about the general aspects of writing and the elements needed for a powerful story. This is where we need to draw the line because after that we run the risk of impacting our own style and voice. Once we establish our style and voice we instinctively shift gears and focus on our weak points. We all have them and we need to work on them. To do this we need to research and discover options to sharpen those skills. We find this information on blogs, sites and books; however, if we discover information that doesn't match our style and voice it really doesn't matter if it came from your favorite blog or even author we need to leave it. This can be hard because we want to follow what best sellers say about writing but we need to ignore what doesn't work and find what does. I believe some of the best sites not only give information and advice but also encourage writers to explore their own style and voice. They should support new authors as they identify their strengths and weaknesses. It is more helpful, in my opinion, that a blog or site offer more then just advice. To sum this all up, don't get discouraged by all the information out there. Identify what you need to research and look into those items. Finally, if you find a handful of blogs that you enjoy and find helpful hold on to them. Also, remember writing comes from within and is unique to the author. You can't get it from a blog or a book. There are many fantastic sites and blogs out there that provide solid information but it is up to you, as the writer, to pick and chose which advice works best for you. As one comment said "there are no silver bullets when it comes to writing." If you find information that is helpful to you great but if not don't get discouraged just keep moving on to the next avenue of information. You are pretty much like the prince trying to find the girl who fits into the glass slipper. When I first started this blog I wanted to create a place where people can come and find information on all topics surrounding writing - the publishing side, life of, editing, and concept of writing. 
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