There is a lot of writing advice to be found online. From people sharing quick tips on Twitter, or writing full-blown blog posts like this one, writers from everywhere share their experiences and their knowledge about writing and how to be more effective, more creative, and more efficient in our writing lives. Much of this advice is great, and super helpful. I have learned so much about being a writer from reading blogs and talking to people online. But, at the same time, I’ve also come across a lot of advice that just hasn’t resonated with me, techniques that don’t work when I try them, and productivity hacks that have given me less, not more time. Sometimes this advice can even make you feel that the way you write isn’t valid at all.
But the thing you have to know about writing advice is that it’s very subjective. What works for one person isn’t necessarily going to work for others. There are certain rules about the actual writing of books that every writer should know and adhere to in general, unless you’re breaking them for a great effect in your book, but even then you have to know the rules in order to break them. But when it comes to much of the other advice, there is going to be a lot of it that simply doesn’t work for you. And for good reason too. We writers are similar in that we love to write. It’s just that we’re so different in the way that we actually do it. A lot of the advice you see bandied about online is only going to work for certain writers.
For example, one of the most popular piece of writing advice is that if you want to get more done in your day, get up an hour earlier and write before you do anything else. It sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? Getting up when the house is silent and writing wile everyone is sleeping, alone with just you and your book. I get all cosy thinking about it. But in reality, this is only going to work for some writers, and it doesn’t work for me. If you’re a morning person, or you don’t work night shift, or your day doesn’t already start super early then this advice may work for you. For the rest of us, if taken as absolute law, it can make us feel like we’re just weak because we can’t manage that extra hour first thing in our day.
But the truth is, we’re all so different. Some people find they’re super productive writing in ten minute bursts. Others need hours of uninterrupted time to get themselves into the head space. Some people bash out first drafts in a week and others need years to finish it. Some people write best in the morning. Others find their creative flow at night time. Some people need to be super organised before they can do anything, and need to be scheduled way ahead of time. Others turn up and write in chaos whenever they feel the inspiration rising. There’s no one set writing process. Which is why every piece of writing advice isn’t going to work for every person. How could it, when our processes are all so different?
That’s why it’s so great that there’s such a lot of writing advice out there in the first place. It give us the chance to find something that is helpful to us. But at the same time, it’s not really helpful to take every piece of writing advice as gospel. Some things just aren’t going to work for us. Take that earlier example of getting up and writing first thing in the morning. It sounds wonderful, but it really doesn’t work for me. I already get up really early, and am on the road around 6 am most mornings. I can’t afford to give up an extra hour of sleep and get up at 4:30 to give myself an hour of writing time before I go. and even if I did, my creativity doesn’t wake up that early. I’ve tried. It’s great advice for some people. But it doesn’t suit me, my writing process, or my lifestyle.
The best thing we can do with writing advice is to try it out without taking it as the gospel truth. We need to explore and experiment without being afraid to throw these pieces of advice away if they don’t fit what we need. We need to keep pushing ourselves to be better, more effective, more productive, more confident in our own writing processes without sacrificing important things like enough sleep, or time to relax. We need to not stress about fitting into one person’s idea of how a writer should function when there are as many different ways of being a writer as there are people writing. Writing advice is subjective. What works for one person won’t necessarily work for you. You just have to concentrate on finding what suits you and not be afraid to discard anything and everything that holds you back.
What is a popular piece of writing advice that simply doesn’t work for you? What time of day do you write best? Do you like to experiment with writing advice, or are you content with your writing process as it is? Let’s chat!
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