I know the advice. I understand the advice. I even give writing advice. And then I happily break things when I think I have a better idea.
That’s the great thing about advice. It’s not a set of rules you can’t break, but a collection of options, opinions, and suggestions you can choose to use.
The problem is that quite a lot of writing advice covers the same ground. It’s a bit like the Ten Commandments of writing, rinsed and repeated.
I agree with some of it, follow some of it, and write about some of it. But some of it? Well, I pretend to follow it.
Sage advice or a collection of clichés?
You don’t read about dentists needing to extract teeth every day to hone their skills, but you do read a lot about writers needing to write every day.
Give me a break! I enjoy writing, which means I write regularly because it’s a pleasurable activity for me.
I’ve got a life to live, though, and it’s very difficult to write while I’m canoeing the Amazon or climbing the Matterhorn.
But yes, I write most days.
Without a shadow of a doubt, the most classic writing advice for fiction writers is show, don’t tell.
That’s why when I’m tempted to write “she was angry”, I scrub it immediately and write a page and a half showing her anger.
When I finally get to the other character in the scene, I’m fed up and settle for “he was angry, too.”
Of course, the passive voice is to be eradicated at all costs.
That’s why my writing is carefully checked and corrected by me before it is published.
So yes, I follow, or at least go through the motions of following the advice.
You can break rules, but can you break advice?
I’m not a rule maker, but I’m a regular rule bender. Well, even a rule breaker, sometimes.
However, when it comes to advice, I do heed it; I take it in, consider it, and then tuck it away somewhere.
I know that using writing outlines is excellent advice, and I sometimes draft one before I start on a new writing project.
I’m pretty good at it, too. But I’m also pretty good at forgetting to use it.
However, it’s fun to look at it when I’ve finished to see what I forgot to include.
One other generality I actually and absolutely adore is to avoid using unnecessary adverbs.
It’s perfectly sound advice, and totally in keeping with your writing style if it’s horribly boring.
I always quickly check to make completely sure that my adverbs are perfectly placed.
While on the topic of adverbs, I know that for some it’s poor form to pop one into the middle of the infinitive, because you should never split the infinitive.
Well, I’m of the mind that this advice or rule is going to quietly disappear, and then we can all forget about it.
And don’t get me started on the need to avoid and, but, and so to start sentences.
So what?
I think I’m old enough and wise enough to be allowed to start my sentences with any word I like.
Oh, and if anyone says don’t use long sentences, I’m bound to disagree and keep writing without a pause for breath or even a comma to make the point that I’m in total charge of deciding when to stop writing any of my sentences, which may be short or long.
Genuine advice is useful, but generalities aren’t
The biggest problem with black-and-white generalized writing advice is that it can be really scary for new writers.
“What? I can’t be a writer if I don’t write 1,000 words every single day?”
Better advice would be to write regularly to help improve your writing skills.
But most writing advice online is a list of the things you must do or not do. I don’t think writing works like that. There is no 100% right or wrong.
If a new writer prefers using short sentences, well, why not?
As for advice about repetition, it’s definitely worth avoiding if it’s unintentional. Yet it’s rarely mentioned that many literary devices use repetition.
One of my favorite pieces of ill-defined advice is write for your reader.
Well, if I knew who it was, I could start every one of my writing projects with “Dear Fred.”
It might be better to say that a writer might have a certain type of reader in mind.
But even then, when I check the demographics data for my site, my reader is possibly a man or a woman, aged between 15 and 95, living in any country from Andorra to Zambia, but I’m unsure if my reader has a pet.
Well, that narrows things down nicely.
Author’s note
As you would have gathered, I wrote this piece with my tongue firmly in my cheek.
However, it’s worth saying that I follow much of the advice that you read online, and that I’ve also written here on my advice site.
It’s only that I believe a lot of it is too rigid and can be misunderstood by readers new to writing.
If you are a new writer reading this, yes, sure, read about the writing craft and always try to learn more.
But don’t believe for a minute that there is only one set of rules you must follow to be a writer.
Summary
I could have made a long list of points that generic writing advice articles usually include.
But I’m sure you’ve read enough of them to know that a lot of it is simply repetition of what other advice articles say.
That’s not to say the advice is bad. It’s just that it’s always the same stuff.
If you’re a writer, you’ve read it all before. So if anyone asks, tell them you mostly, often, and sometimes write every day.
That should satisfy their curiosity.
Above all, be a writer your way. It’s usually much more enjoyable and rewarding.
Related Reading: 10 Writing Rules You Can Break
English teacher, writer, and author. Passionate about grammar, creative writing, and self-publishing. Always exploring new tools and tech to help writers succeed.
