Writing advice on the interwebs
Beware ye who enter here
The internet is filled to bursting with writing advice. See? Here I go. Adding to the glut. But I feel compelled to share my mistakes because maybe it will help to save you some time.
When Cheat Code comes out in February, that will be my 10th traditionally published book. Add to that the trunked novels, the books that didn't find a home, and the books that lived a life outside of traditional publishing, and we're looking closer to 20 completed books. I've been at this for a while. And even now, when I start a new book project....I'm not totally sure what I'm doing. Much like kids, or dogs, each book is different from the last, with their own needs, challenges and personalities. What worked for one almost always doesn’t work for the other. And so I find myself turning to the internet for advice and glimpses into the writing process of other creatives that might help to light my way.
I've gone down many an advice well from advice-givers who speak with authority and confidence and make me feel like "yes, this is the one true way" just by the command of their writing. "Step one" they pronounce in a clinical bold font with crisp, organized bulleted lists that only a professional with a firm grasp of craft could provide. But then I come out the other end of the essay/blog/think piece/paperback and realize - oh wait, they weren't talking to me.
The writing advice-giver on the interwebs is RARELY talking to me….and probably not you either. Because "writer" is a big umbrella. There are a great many genres and types of writing, and within those categories there are a great many more subcategories. And across those categories and subcategories are audiences that are as varied and different as the individuals that comprise them. What worked for one writer's success is simply not going to work for you or me because there are just too many factors that are affecting our individual journeys that are different from the writing advice-giver's.
Does that mean writing advice is useless? No of course not. But it does mean it’s not a formula. Or a science. It's all just vibes (I have big thoughts on vibes, more on that another time). So go ahead and absorb the advice, but the real work comes when you have to take that advice and look at how and if it can be applied to what it is you are trying to do. Martha Writerstar might have a huge platform and 12 shiny novels, but she writes Self-help books and you are writing middle grade horror. Her assurance that you need a platform of at least 100, 000 followers from somewhere is not applicable to you. She's not talking to you. She's talking to the mirror - someone who's genre and audience are exactly and precisely the same.
And I think this tension between advice and audience can paralyze a writer. Martha Writerstar said this thing over here, only to be contradicted by Julien Literaryson over there. And then in comes Clarabelle MacGenrafic blowing up everything they both said. How do you know who's advice to follow? The answer, I would argue, is none of them! Because, again, they each have a specific audience that is not your audience. Sure, maybe there's some overlap, but for the most part, what works for them will be different from what works for you. Not because the advice is bad or wrong but simply because you aren’t them and they aren’t you.
(And speaking of wrong - anytime you see writing numbers bandied about, whether those are for advances or follower counts or even word count in a lot of cases - go in with a healthy skepticism. Cross-reference those numbers with other pros who have their own thoughts on numbers. If you find overlap, you can probably take it as a good number. If you can't? Throw it out.)
Don't get me wrong - I LOVE writing advice on the internet, I LOVE IT. I seek it out and I lap it up and often put off the work in favor of reading about how to do the work. But I always have to remind myself that unless the person giving the advice is a middle grade/YA SFF writer who also draws comic characters with a love of mermaids and is a mom from Canada with little free time and has been published before and and and and........the advice-giver is not specifically talk to me. Which means the advice can only fit for what I'm doing in so far as I make it fit.
And that’s the great part - you don’t have to follow writing advice to the letter because its just advice! No one knows what will work for you and your audience, they only know what works for them. And that means you are free to pick and choose what advice to follow and what advice to ignore!
Writing advice is a glass slipper! If the shoe is uncomfortable but looks real great, I get it, squeeze into that bad boy and deal with the blisters later. But if you're honest with yourself and the shoe just doesn't fit? Toss it. Plenty more where that came from.
DOODLE
I’m watching House of the Dragon and I so want to love it. And I do love lots of aspects of it. But oh man, do I wish we got to know more about the dragons.
WHAT I’M WORKING ON
My computer is busted - man, is that a pain. So my focus this week is on trying to get it repaired. Which is really getting in the way of my writing.
BUT my tablet still works so the drawing continues. Still chipping away at the graphic novel while I try to get my computer back on track.
I’m making my plans for Authorstrator’s….programming? publishing schedule? ….in the fall and I’m excited about the ideas I’ve come up with. BUT I definitely have questions/looking for opinions, so Paid Subscribers can expect a bit of a sneak peek of what I’m thinking of doing in the fall, and a couple polls for your input in the August paid newsletter!
Our WIP corner chat is still open! If you’re on the substack app, come by and check out Authorstrator’s chat where you can find our WIP Corner and share what you’re working on! But its also summer, so if you’re working on nothing at all - you are my hero. You can still come by and share what your reading and watching :)
There’s only one chapter to go in Lava Cat Cruise Ship! The final chapter drops this coming FRIDAY! If you missed the latest chapter, find it here. And if you haven’t had a chance to check out these fiery prehistoric felines, you can start at chapter 1, here. Note: After the final chapter is released, Lava Cat Cruise Ship will only be available for a limited time (until late September) before it goes into the archives. But! The downloadable ebook will always be available to paid subscribers, along with the ebook for Zombie Shark Highway. Find them here! What? 2 ebooks? Pretty great.
What I’m reading
from Caroline McPherson is a lovely drawing newsletter. I liked this post a lot - seeing the process of other creatives is always fascinating and this post was a great reminder that sometimes things don’t line up with your original vision and that’s ok.I recently submitted to the Sketchbook Gallery over on
. If you have a sketchbook spread you are proud of, definitely go check this out!What I’m watching
I caught Death Becomes Her on TV this weekend (maybe that’s why Martha Writerstar has that stinky diva flare). I’ve seen it plenty before but this time I kept thinking about how we don’t find this delightfully high level of camp much in movies any more. At least I don’t. What’s your favourite campy film?
And that’s it from me! Til next time!
Thank you for the mention Meaghan and I completely agree with you on the writing advice side of things. I love the abundance of info readily available these days, and like you, I will often find myself reading about the work rather than doing it (I actually have a half written post about this exact thing- lol) It is so true about different audiences. As a reader and a (kind of) writer, it helps me to remember that not every piece of advice is applicable to every person, which in turn frees me up to talk about things which feel natural and authentic to me, without worrying too much about how many people it will resonate with =)
Thank you for this!! I think my brain was trying to articulate a similar sentiment the other day, but it didn't come together nearly as well as what you've written here. Even as someone who doesn't have a book project and is just writing here on Substack, I believe the same logic applies - what works for one Substack writer may not work for another. SO many differences in style and audience and intention. And that's a beautiful thing!