Teen Author Challenge, Week 23 – Hey Joe, Whaddya Know?

Exclusive TAC Quote of the Week

“Finishing one imperfect piece of writing will teach you far more than starting and abandoning twenty others halfway through.”

~ Elizabeth Kay
Jinx on the Divide
(Scholastic, 8/07)

Teen Author Challenge

I love this week’s exclusive TAC quote because it’s so true in my experience. I had started and abandoned half a dozen manuscripts before I finally finished my first one. And I learned more from finishing that one manuscript than I did from the other six combined.

This week, I wanted to talk about another common thing that writers hear all the time. Write what you know.

There are pros and cons to this, and it’s good to know what they are if you’re a beginning writer.

On the pro side, writing what you know gives you an easier connection to the subject matter. That can make the character’s voice truer, the emotional grip of the story more authentic, and the details more realistic. And when you consider yourself a “subject matter expert”, whether it’s on being a teen or on dealing with a particular issue, you may write with more confidence knowing that you have something real and valuable to say on this subject because you’ve lived it. You know what it’s like to be in that situation or be the friend of someone going through a particular ordeal.

But writing what you know isn’t always the best approach. It can be. But not always.

“Don’t simply write what you know. Write what you love! Write the story only you can write, the one that is so unique, so much you that you’ve never told it to anyone. When that story reaches the page, it will be universal.”

~ Marion Dane Bauer

“Go with what grabs you.”

~ Tish Cohen

“Write the book that only you can write, something no one else has ever read before. It’s tempting to write a “better” version of something that already exists, but the reason that book was a success was because it was something no one else had ever read before.”

~ Brent Hartinger

(Do you recognize that last quote as one of the exclusive TAC quotes from earlier this year? Yep, it’s one of my favorites.)

The authors’ points are well taken. What if J.K. Rowling had only written what she knew? What if Stephenie Meyer or Scott Westerfeld or Neil Gaiman had only written what they knew?

As with all writing advice, write what you know is best taken with a grain of salt. Only you know the story that needs to be told from your fingertips. Don’t ever doubt that you can write the story in your heart because you are the only one who can. It wouldn’t be in there if you weren’t. For reals.

Buzz Tip of the Week

Have you ever heard the term literary scout and wondered what it meant? Literary scouts can be an author’s best friend, especially when it comes to selling foreign rights. Here’s a great post that gives you a sneak peek into the harried world of the hard-working literary scout.

http://publishingperspectives.com/?p=9028

Your Weekly Challenge

Only four weeks left in our productivity challenge! The productivity challenge part of the year-long TAC ends on January 19, 2010, so be sure to keep that date in your sights. After that, we’ll be shifting our TAC focus to editing… with tons of great tips from authors on making your first draft shine.

How did you do on your writing last week? Comment below with your weekly results from last Tuesday through today so we can cheer your progress! And happy holidays to you and yours!

The Teen Author Challenge Contest

Throughout the year-long Teen Author Challenge (TAC ends June 2010!), I’ll be giving away a book of the winner’s choice from my personal writing shelf. Why am I doing this? Because becoming a skilled writer has two important parts: learning about your craft and practicing your craft. That’s why active participation in each weekly challenge is so important!

So what can you win? Books to choose from include:

1. The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing by Evan Marshall
2. The Career Novelist by Donald Maass
3. Writing Dialogue by Tom Chiarella
4. Creating Characters Kids Will Love by Elaine Marie Alphin
5. Building Believable Characters by Marc McCutcheon

Everyone who participates via the comments on the Teen Author Challenge posts will be entered into this monthly contest.

Go forth and be creative!

Entry Filed under: Paying It Forward,Teen Author Challenge