Like creation myths, the fables that get passed around among creative writers come in all degrees of, well, wrongness.  That’s my opinion, of course, but an opinion backed by interviews with dozens of famous novelists and poets and also by psychological science.

See if you’ve ever fallen for these myths.  Each is followed by what I call an antidote that will help you be a more fluent and fluid writer.

1.  MYTH:  You must adhere to a writing schedule.

ANTIDOTE:  Find a process that works for you, one you can stick with over a long period of time.  A large number of novelists and poets are college professors who only get really productive during the summer.  Others are parents who are often thrown off schedule by kids’ illnesses and family needs.  The fact is that the more routine you can make your writing process — whether daily for a half hour or weekly for four hours — the more readily you will find yourself losing that rusty feeling and heading toward a flow state.  But look at the larger pattern, and don’t feel bad when your initial efforts at creating a system don’t pan out.

2. MYTH:  Write only what you know.

ANTIDOTE:  Write about whatever grabs your attention and won’t let go.  Liberate yourself to write from another point of view or gender or social group than the ones with which you’re most familiar.  Writing is about making up stuff.  It’s a good idea to do some research at some point, but some writers barely research and still write convincing, compelling fiction.

3.  MYTH:  Don’t read other authors’ books when you’re writing.

ANTIDOTE:  Do what feels right to you during each writing project.  Personally, I would never quit reading novels for as long as it takes me to write one.  With each book I read, I absorb something about the process, solve some writing problem of my own, and go back to my novel re-inspired (and yes, sometimes also disgruntled that some authors can be so good and yet still so young).

4.  MYTH:  Give the market what it wants.

ANTIDOTE:  If what you want to write is what the market loves, go for it.  But such limits can feel too constraining.  The market sometimes doesn’t know what it wants until it sees the manuscript.  This year’s Pulitzer Prize for fiction went to Tinkers by Paul Harding.  He reportedly worked on this first novel for five or six years without being able to get an agent or publisher.  Then an independent publisher took it and now it’s won this major award.

What writing myths and bad advice have you heard?

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    Last reviewed: 14 Apr 2010