Taking Advice

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it.
Advice is a form of nostalgia.
Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal,
wiping it off,
painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth.

Mary Schmich

Grab a chair.

Now sit in it, ya smart alec. Uncle Hats has a little bit to say on taking advice as a writer.

There’s a ton of it out there.

“Use this trope, not that one.”
“Be entirely original.”
“Don’t use tropes. They’re just stereotypes in disguise.”
“Writer’s Block doesn’t exist.”
“Follow these steps to create a best-seller.”

Half the advice out there is being sold.
I’m not really that different here,
except I’m charging you with time.
If you want to contribute monetarily, you can check out my Ko-Fi account linked below and drop a few dollars to fund my next bottle of brandy.

But that advice is sold by people who make a living on it.

Now, I’m not saying it’s all bad advice. In fact, a lot of it is good advice.
But there’s a lot of it.
And it gets overwhelming.

So instead of trying to follow all of it,
and instead of ignoring it,
do like me and collect it.

Learn all about the Hero’s Journey,
the Five-Man Band,
Character Arcs,
the difference between a villain and an antagonist,
all that,
but don’t use them all.

Collect them.
Like tools in a tool box.
Practice with them
(which is a topic for another day).

And when you know what they are
and what they do
and what they can’t do,
then you can use them in the right place in your writing.

Missing some character interplay?
Examine the Five-Man Band, and see if there is a role missing from your own group.

Not sure how to get your plot started?
Review the Hero’s Journey, see if there’s a step you haven’t taken yet.

And so on.

There’s a lot of advice out there.

You don’t need it all at once.

But when you need it,
it’s good to have it ready
and to know how to use it.

Write on, friends.

Now to refill my tumbler…

---

If you like what read, subscribe to my email list!

If you think someone else will like what you read, share on social media!

If you enjoy what you read or find it helpful, consider supporting me on Ko-Fi.

Ko-Fi

My first book is out on Audible! Click the link here!

Get “Mather’s Odds” on Audiobook!