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Please Don’t Tell Me How to Write When You Clearly Can’t Write (Yet)
Hubris and the inherent problems of unsustainable claims
My hand is up here, when it comes to committing certain crimes of both youth and extreme inexperience. Happily, in some cases, those days are far, far behind me at least in some (but not many)regards. As I stare down 67 in a few months, I am neither young nor inexperienced. Again, only in some areas, but as it pertains to writing, I’ve got at least part of that nailed down.
Okay, one square inch, if that, but I digress.
One of the critical parts I’ve got nailed down is where I am as a writer. I’m decent at it, in fact at times very good, but I am no Pulitzer Prize-winner. In the face of true mastery, I am deeply humbled. Which is a good thing, because truly good writing inspires me and invigorates my commitment to improve.
That attitude is clearly not always shared.
Over the last few days I’ve been reading some very intelligent and insightful comments on a few pieces I’ve penned which have addressed the rather distressing trends concerning writers vs hacks on Medium. Medium peep Helen Bartley made a few more smart comments yesterday which, again, are worth sharing. Many of us hope to succeed in the broader writing world such as the…