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| Photo credit: a.drian on Flickr |
“I think that is the gift that both reading and writing can give us; the gift of escaping the prison of ourselves.” –John Green
Although I couldn’t attend BEA (Book Expo America, for those
of you wondering what all the talk about BEA is about), I’ve been listening to
a lot of the live streamed and recorded events on the Book Expo America
website, and I couldn’t be more grateful for the BEA staff that’s made
those videos available online because the information they’ve recorded is pure
gold (so if you haven’t checked it out, I highly
recommend it. With italics).
I especially loved listening to the Author Breakfast that
featured a panel of Chris Colfer, John Green, Lois Lowry and Kadir Nelson,
because between the laughs and heart-wrenching stories, the authors shared some
really powerful advice. An example of this is the quote I started this post off
with. You see, after Green joked about the progression from his first novel, Looking for Alaska, in which he shared
quite a few traits with the main character to his most recent novel, The Fault in Our Stars, in which he
didn’t share any traits with his
protagonist, he said the quote that I included above, and I thought that he
pointed out something really special about writing.
Because yes, we often hear about writing what we know and
while I still think it’s useful to do so at times, what Green emphasizes is the
unique ability writing gives us—the ability to escape ourselves and step into
someone else’s life.
Writing gives us the chance to be and do whatever we
want—and there are no limitations.
This is why we need to take chances as writers to explore
new worlds and characters and ideas that are entirely different from our own
circumstances. This is why Mary Sueism is more than just the sign of an
undeveloped writer—it’s the sign of a writer who hasn’t yet discovered the true
gift that writing gives us. This is why, as writers, it is our job to set out
on uncharted territory and come out with a story that we might not have thought
ourselves capable of writing.
Because, as John Green points out, the gift is for more than
just writers—it’s a gift that we can share with our readers. A gift that can
really make our work special.
So I encourage you to take a risk and step outside the
prison of yourself. You might just return with your best writing experience
yet.
Now it’s your turn: What other gifts do writing and reading give us?
9 comments:
Nice post! I just did a school visit and talked about the ideas that led to my futuristic YA. I saw the kids' eyes light up, when I was telling them they had the power to create entire world's by asking over and over, "What if?"
That's a gift for sure; the gift of stretching the imagination.
Thank you, Catherine! I think it's fantastic that you were able to inspire some kids by sharing your writing process. Sounds like a wonderful experience. :)
Once again, a great post. :) Yes, writing truly is nearly the greatest thing ever! I don't know what I'd do without it. Unfortunately right now I am going through the phase where I am wondering weather or not my book idea(s) are good enough (I have three good ideas I thought but now I'm starting to doubt them). My only comfort is that I know it will eventually pass... I haven't actually started writing any of them but I've been plotting them out and outlining them for months and years for some of them but I just don't know if they're clicking. But they're all like crutches because of the dozens of ideas I've had they're the best ones so far but I still feel like if I let go of the three of them I will regret THAT because I won't come up with anything better even than my current three WIPS... Anyway, I really love your posts. Keep up the good work! :D
~Author Steven
Thank you, Steven! Take some comfort in knowing that most writers at some point or another find themselves doubting their ideas or wondering if they'll ever come up with another decent manuscript again--those are common worries for writers. You certainly aren't alone and I have faith that whatever you decide to do, you'll find that you didn't have anything to worry about. :)
Best of luck with your writing!
http://goo.gl/70I0D
Wonderful post. I love to write so I can sing, fly in spaceships, and fall in love a thousand times.
Thank you, Leslie! Writing truly allows us to do and experience all sorts of things that would be otherwise impossible. :)
Great post! I think even creative non-fiction can give us this gift as we learn about and explore other worlds and different people's lives for our essays, articles, etc.
Thank you, Javacia! I think that's a good point--we can learn from just about any type of writing. :)
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