Writing

So taking a glance at my blog has offered me additional evidence of my long-windedness. But I think that's okay for a writer since having material to edit and cut is better than not having anything at all. From that point of view, I guess I could say that the last few years have featured several breakthroughs for me.

I honestly do think I've become a better writer in the last four years; although, of course, it has been a long process. I think I was overly-cocky four years ago. I thought that I was a cleverly eloquent wordsmith whose style could bewitch any reader with its colorful richness. Um…yeah, that got shot down by one or two of my more cynical professors that saw right through the bull. I've butted heads with such people because I refused to accept their realism in exchange for my romanticism and fantasies. But they had a point and I slowly learned that "talent" is not something you're just born with. Writing isn't so much about talent - it's not like I could just wave a magically talented finger and produce a novel. Nope. I tried.

I've started many pieces in my life, yet never got very far with any (probably because I though talent could carry me through). I thought that I could just write a perfect first draft and produce a masterpiece. But no. That's not what writing is about. Writing is about work. Writing is about sculpting, about laboriously playing with brushstrokes, about erasing and rewriting, it's about being willing to cut out everything and start over. Writing isn't something for the lighthearted or even the lazy, at least not good writing anyway. I've learned, in the past four years, that the people who end up with great works are those who work at it like sculptors working with stone. A writer might see the essence of a story, but they have to chisel away in the late hours until the story can find its form. A writer has to write, read, and edit. I've noticed that my writing only ever sounds good after I've questioned every word, every comma, every space. That's the secret to writing- hard work and dedication. It was a refreshing lesson.

And aside from the hard work that necessarily must replace the notion of "talent," I also learned that I could only get at truth or authenticity by making my voice truthful too. Writing with a thesaurus on hand isn't exactly the way to sincerity. Trying to "sound" intelligent or eloquent only leads to writing that reads as artificial. I've seen it in my early writing and in the writing of my younger peers. I think it would be hard for anyone to get away with superficially using more complex synonyms just for the sake of sounding well-learned. Take "The Great Gatsby" for example. Why is the book so beloved? Story aside, the book is written beautifully. But the language is not pretentious by any means, it's actually rather simple, and yet it is so well-chosen that it speaks to any audience. That's something that a writer should go for: choosing the best language for conveying whatever it is they need to convey rather than choosing language that will advance some image of the author.

I can honestly say that my writing has improved tenfold since I've learned to let go of the things I thought I knew. It allowed me to learn/try new things that have worked much better for me. I'm currently working on something right now that honestly has some potential. So, fingers crossed that I'll finish this one!