When Should a Writer Not Write?
I have been asked, as many people probably have been too, for my opinion of some written material. In all honesty, one should deliver the truth to a person who has no potential.
The glamour hoof writing seems to beckon many people to start writing and think things will get better as time and experience develops. There are fine tuning events that make that sometimes happen. If the improvement does not occur, a gentle statement can be given. I once asked a writing buddy what she did when she read something that was poor quality writing material. The response was that she let nature take it’s course. Some artists paint and become accomplished with time and practice, so why not writers?
Writing is cleansing, helpful to others and serves many other purposes depending on who and what is shared. Do we each have the exact same thoughts; that if an article is not what we like to read, it can be labeled poor quality? No longer does the poor speller not write either, with the spell checker helping them. When something does not make sense, spell checker will not correct those errors. Do we just pretend they are not obvious, that we know what they meant to say or what?
It is not necessary to publicly state an error, but I sure would like if a person found something they could help me correct if they found it. I would like a private email telling of the help that person offered to me for constructive criticism. I could make the correction, learn and be thankful someone read my material that the faux pas was found. If I continually kept writing and making those mistakes, maybe I should not write, but choose some other avenue to express myself.
Life is a learning experience which sometimes leads us to different paths than we wished for ourselves. When my readership dwindles to a very few, my writing skills might need to be examined and perhaps I should not write anymore. I could change venues, topics and see if those helped my readership. If, in all honesty, nothing was different with followers who used to read and don’t anymore, it is time for introspection. It also might be time for me to have someone oversee my work before it gets seen by the world or where ever I am posting my material. There are writers and then there are people that write for others too. My mother was a stenographer for many years, helping people who did not have the ability to put letters together like she was able to. People who have the mind, interest and drive perhaps can have another either proof read or completely compile their material.
This is maybe only touching on the tip of the iceberg since much more can be said on this topic.
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Tags: Arts, author, writer, Writers Resources, Writing
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November 11th, 2009 at 2:36 am
A well written and documented article. Something that I believe in too…
Thank you for sharing this…
November 11th, 2009 at 2:46 am
really a gud article… well m too bad in writing articles… i guess a dictionary helps a lot in building up ur vocabulary power… and in knowing words…
November 11th, 2009 at 2:52 am
I agree with your points..
November 11th, 2009 at 3:46 am
good articles.
November 11th, 2009 at 4:32 am
Not leaving a lot to be added
I agree with you.
November 11th, 2009 at 7:17 am
Very well written. Thanks for this timely wake up call. There is really an issue if you have plenty of time and everything you could do with it is write, good or bad. On the other side there is an issue of good writers who were lacking time but needs a brief moment to express themselves. Which is which, I hope we have rendered writing to suit its purpose. As you wrote it, let nature take its course.
Cheers,
Will
November 11th, 2009 at 7:38 am
Perfectly said! Great one!
November 11th, 2009 at 7:40 am
Great post..and great points!
November 11th, 2009 at 8:41 am
great one…nice…keep sharing
November 11th, 2009 at 10:38 am
When the writer has no idea, then he or she doesn’t have to write lol…
November 11th, 2009 at 1:01 pm
Fantastic! Well done!
November 12th, 2009 at 4:02 pm
I do agree with the sentiments you express here, and we should all be prepared to take honest, constructive criticism, however unpatable it may be.
November 13th, 2009 at 11:35 am
Great, well thought out article. I really like the idea of constructive criticism a rude comment.
November 13th, 2009 at 11:37 am
does not help it only hurts the person commenting whereas an honest person trying to help and taking the time to offer an opinion can help quite a bit.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
you had pointed out such good points… and may i add “passion” as one of the factors to consider? when a writer loses his passion in writing, it is time to stop and rethink. happy writing.