Then and Now - Some Writerly Rambles

[kriadydragon]

Of course it's always interesting to go back, look at your earlier works and figure out if you've progressed - or better yet, realize you've progressed. My mom found some of my earlier novels written back in my early twenties. Just picking out paragraphs and reading them, I have to admit that - structure wise (sentences, spelling, grammar, etc) - my stories weren't as bad as I thought they would be. I'm sure that were I to clean them up they might make fairly decent young adult novels (and they would have to be YA novels or aimed at a younger audience. I have the characters walking on soft, fluffy clouds, literally, for crying out loud, because the world is that kind of ridiculously magical). But it's still the flowery language of a young writer who thought that by emulating Tolkein as much as possible it would make their stories the best thing since Lord of the Rings.

Which, obviously, in hindsight, is completely ridiculous, but it's also all part of the learning process, so it's not something I look back on and groan about in embarrassment. I might laugh, but never groan, even when I read over those early attempts. Especially since those early attempts are gold compared to my even earlier, teen-years attempts, when nothing got finished and if it did get finished it was only fifty pages long if that.

I think one of the ways that you know you are progressing (other than the gradual erosion of your ego until you feel balanced on the head of a pin between hope that your writing is at least descent, and despair that it probably isn't) is when you find yourself emerging from the desire to be "the next *insert famous author here*" and immersing yourself in being your own author. I'm not speaking for everyone, but speaking for myself I was one of those writers who really did want to be the next Tolkein - that is, Tolkein for the YA world. Now I'm just a writer with a lot of stories I want to tell, and no care about how well they're received or how popular they become. As long as someone is enjoying them, then I'm happy.

Although, yes, a little popularity would be awesome. One of my books made into a movie? That would be mind-boggling wonderful, but then so would some random artist doing a series of pictures based on one of my books.

Comments

[nefhiriel.livejournal.com]

I think one of the ways that you know you are progressing ... is when you find yourself emerging from the desire to be "the next *insert famous author here*" and immersing yourself in being your own author.

That is super insightful. Because I see how true it's been for me. I mean, I think there's always a part of an author that dreams of achieving celebrity status someday. But I think you're right. You do need to progress from wanting to be your favorite author, make-believe/mimic-like, into wanting to develop your own unique voice.

Ironically, I think I fell into almost an identical Tolkien-admirer's trap. It's only been in the last couple of years that I think I've realized it's okay to want to set your fantasy in ancient roman 'verse instead of a strictly medieval Europe setting. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis were the two authors that introduced me to fantasy, and although I do hope I've learned a lot from them, just seeing how different they were from each other has shown me the importance of being what you, individually, are gifted to be as a writer.

[black-raven135.livejournal.com]

Like nefhiriel I believe when you move past *insert famous author here*
you have arrived.
If the talent is there, it then will follow.

Your Castles in the Sky, Jabberwocky, Hound of Hell You Cry, Wayfarer, and Of Coloring Books and Lt. Colonels still remain in my mind. There are others of course, but those are firmly planted.