I started on this book 3 days ago and finished it just now. It is a sort of autobiographical and guide on how he became a writer and the things necessary to be a writer. He came from a lower middle class background and his road to being a published author is one of struggle.
His book has given me inspiration in that even he goes through the same pains ; the uncertainty and insecurities of writing. Also at the start of his career he was broke, married and had 2 children to care for. My "problems" pale in comparison to what he was going through. So I resolve in his steps to read and write as much as I possibly can as is his advice. What is important at the end of the day is producing that 1st draft and not get held up on grammar and prose. These can be mended later given a good story. Also I absolutely agree on many points he made on the process of writing where it is like unraveling fossils bit by bit. Sometimes the things I discover while writing surprise myself and indeed the characters take on a life of their own.
Lastly and most importantly, to stay true and honest to one's writing. Do not replicate the work of someone else (perhaps to sell more books or is more successful). There's no harm in following the style but the content of the story itself has to come from one's own heart and mind. So again, write a lot, read a lot.
2 comments:
Sometimes I think that the more you read, the more influenced you become.. you tend to subconsciously replicate what you read from other pieces of work.
Yeah, that's alright. Just read so much that you pick out the good bits that you love about each author and add it to your arsenal. If you never read, and just keep writing, that seems quite ignorant to me.
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