Keep Writing

I want to share an experience I had the other day that fundamentally changed the way I think about my writing and the way I process feedback.

One night before I went to bed, I had a spark of inspiration, a new idea that would finally give me a satisfying way to tackle a project that had been bouncing around in my head for a long time.

I'm a fan of constructed languages-- stuff like Klingon from Star Trek and the Elvish languages from Tolkien. One language in particular I thought would be a wonderful experience to let people learn together as a group, if only there was a way to make it enjoyable for people who weren't particularly interested in linguistics. So, for several months, the idea stuck with me, never feeling complete. Then, that night, I realized an RPG might be the perfect medium to deliver the experience of learning a fictional language in a fun, engaging way.

So, the next day I had a lot of creative energy, and I started fleshing out my ideas-- writing out rules, roles, and mechanics, imagining scenarios of people playing. After a while, I had gotten the bones to a place I felt comfortable with, and decided it was time to settle on a setting, and went with something generic with the intention of developing it further later.

Finally, I had a draft/pitch to a point where I wanted to share it and get some feedback from the language's community. Much to my surprise, I saw the creator of the language themselves had even replied to it! Unfortunately, their comment wasn't one of interest-- instead, they found that my setting had some unfortunate implications, marginalizing certain groups of people, and expressed that that didn't reflect the spirit they intended for the language.

I immediately felt deep, deep embarrassment. I hadn't meant to make any stereotypical depictions... but that was what I had done. And instead of feeling energized and excited for developing my project further, I felt completely creatively drained and upset that I had made something that went against the spirit of the very work that I was trying to promote.

After a few days of ruminating, though, I tried to forgive myself and be honest about my intentions. Though I had made something that was not inclusive, I hadn't intended to do so. I was just trying to explore the themes I was interested in, and had failed to be aware of my own biases.

So, the reason I wanted to share this story with you all was to underscore that point. If you ever make a mistake or poor creative decision that causes you to be ashamed of something you create, try to be kind to yourself. Be honest with your own intentions, and rather than being hurt by negative feedback, try to listen to it, learn from it, and grow. And more than anything, always try to exercise empathy while writing, and try to think of your messages not just in terms of what you see in them, but also what others will see in them.

Thanks for reading, I'm a pretty long-winded storyteller. Has anyone else had an experience like this before?

Before summer holidays i decided to try to start writing a book, or at least, a long and engaging story. I wrote some months ago a short fanfic and the few people that read it like it very much.

However, writing something original sure is much harder. I was about to start writing before noticing i would need some world building beforehand. I started brainstorming what fantasy races, cultures, etc... i want. I took some notes in Obsidian of how i want the world & characters to be: Their flaws, their strengths.... Writing fanfic is much easier in my opinion, you have already all the fleshed out characters and detailed world.

Anyway, i didn't write a single line of the actual story and feel like i am wasting time planning everything about the world. It can be frustrating.

Did you guys get stuck world building too? What approach do you have with it?

You don't start out writing good stuff. You start out writing crap and thinking it's good stuff, and then gradually you get better at it. That's why I say one of the most valuable traits is persistence.

-- Octavia E. Butler

The easy-looking, and the simple things in all art matters are more difficult than the complex and intricate. It is a rule that easy reading is hard writing, and to construct anything that the mind takes in without effort, and without being puzzled by it, is a triumph of art.

-- Charles Allston Collins, 1860

In 1876, Leo Tolstoy lamented to a friend that the book he was writing had become “sickening to me,” “unbearably repulsive,” “terribly disgusting and nasty,” and “a bore, insipid as a bitter radish.”

After nearly two years without making any progress, a concert sparked an intense surge of inspiration. Tolstoy wept as the music surged. Reinvigorated, Tolstoy returned to writing, viewing his characters with newfound empathy.

After two uninterrupted weeks of writing, Tolstoy completed what would become his most influential -- "Anna Karenina".

article / mirror

Do you struggle to write every day? Come join an accountability team and compete for the prize of most consistent writers!

Last week's contestants: please reply with your score. Everyone else, keep reading!

Here's how it works:

1️⃣ Reply to this message seeking an accountability partner, or reply to another user's request. Each team must consist of exactly two members.

2️⃣ This coming week, keep track of the number of days you have spent at least fifteen minutes working on your book, blog, or other writing project. The number of successful days is your score.

3️⃣ Add your score together with your partner's. The maximum number of points a team can earn is 14.

4️⃣ Next week on Sunday, a new announcement will be posted. One member of your team must reply with the team's score. Be honest. If you lie, your pants will spontaneously burst into flames.

5️⃣ The team with the highest score will be declared the winner! In the event of a tie, the winning team will be chosen randomly.

Remember, the goal is not to write a million words. Rather, the goal is consistency—writing every day.

🎉 Prizes! 🎁🏆

• An all-expense paid trip to your own restroom (toilet paper not included)

• Bragging rights

• Becoming a better writer

• Two links of your choice (one from you and one from your partner) will be pinned in a comment at the top of the following week's announcement.

This week's competition will begin once we have at least two teams signed up.

Happy writing!

The soul—let us go further and say the substance, the bulk, the actual and valuable material of all human utterances—is plagiarism.

All ideas are secondhand, consciously and unconsciously drawn from a million outside sources, and daily used by the garnerer with a pride and satisfaction born of the superstition that he originated them; whereas there is not a rag of originality about them anywhere except the little discoloration they get from his mental and moral caliber and his temperament, and which is revealed in characteristics of phrasing.

When a great orator makes a great speech, you are listening to ten centuries and ten thousand men—but we call it his speech, and really some exceedingly small portion of it is his. But not enough to signify. It is merely a Waterloo. It is Wellington’s battle, in some degree, and we call it his; but there are others that contributed. It takes a thousand men to invent a telegraph, or a steam engine, or a phonograph, or a photograph, or a telephone, or any other important thing—and the last man gets the credit, and we forget the others. He added his little mite—that is all he did.

-- Mark Twain

If you're interested in the context behind this letter, I wrote an article (mirror) about it.

I watched an interview with J.K. Rowling, and the interviewer found it hard to believe that she didn't know Harry Potter would be such a huge success.

The interviewer kept on asking how Rowling envisioned what it would be like to get famous, but she kept denying any visions of grandeur. "You are wasting your time," she said at last when asked for advice to writers who are sure they're destined for the top, "Just get on and work."

When we start writing, it's easy to imagine our stories becoming bestsellers, adapted into blockbuster movies, and gaining widespread acclaim. But fantasies don't finish drafts. The path to becoming a successful writer is paved with hard work, determination, and the willingness to face the challenges head-on.

The reader doesnt need sympathy for the characters. just empathy. they don't need to like them, just believe in them as consistent entities.

If you're struggling to keep in the habit of writing but bounce off of even relatively light requirements, try writing a single sentence a day. You might be surprised by how well it works.