I admire the courage of anyone who publishes fiction. As a sometime writer of the same, I know that, should anyone read my paltry offerings, I open myself to criticism and critique. It’s a bit of me on each page I scribble. Still, often I read material that makes me cringe. Tips from writers who succeeded tell us what to avoid, yet some fiction writers still seem unaware. Novels full of cliches, telling—not showing, and telling yet again, over-written and lacking subtlety make their way into my hands. I want to bury my eyes in a box of salt. But there are virtues in such reading. Perhaps the greatest is that poor writing reminds me that I don’t know how my work appears to others. I recently read a novel that tried me sorely. I realized as I read, however, that I was learning on each page. Many of us learn to write by reading good writers. If we read enough, we take on the successful habits of our idols. Their caden...
Blog of a struggling writer.