A Good Writer?

"Are they a good writer?"

I hear this question constantly, sometimes rearranged to indirectly ask about me when I tell people that I write. I never know how to respond, because really, how can you?

There are countless types of writing, and then so many flavors within each genre. There are research writers and novelists, poets and lyricists, and about a million styles in between.

No author writes well in them all, so where does the definitive 'good writer' land? I'm not writing this post because I have the answer, but more to encourage reflection on the question.

Are you a good writer if you can tell a great story? What if your conventions are off, and a reader must wrestle through distracting and confusing mistakes to even access your amazing tale?

Are you a good writer if you have a mediocre plot, but prose so masterful that you entirely captivate a reader, their emotions yours for the taking? Do you need plot and prose? Neither? More?

What about that poet who so many love, but I can't relate to? Or the bestselling memoirist with a story you found boring? Or the PhD who penned two hundred pages of concise, well-researched ideas that significantly advanced a field of study neither of us have ever heard of?

I keep two post-its permanently affixed to my computer. One is a poem (We'll save that for another post). The other is an Ernest Hemingway quote that I take care to read often.

It's none of their business that you have to learn how to write. Let them think you were born that way.

Good writers are made, not born.

Many people with a natural inclination for writing do nothing with it. The gift never develops. It stalls in adolescent styles for lack of all that could have come with patience, dedication, and determined growth.

Too many writers wonder if we are missing something as we struggle through our processes. Why isn't it flowing? Why doesn't it sound right? Why can't I fix it? Imposter syndrome is real, and it's a bitch.

Hence the post-it stuck with tape to my computer monitor. Nobody is born a perfect writer. Nobody is so deeply a natural that they don't need to learn through the struggle.

It's okay that you didn't emerge from the womb a brilliant writer, because nobody ever has. Like anything else, it takes hard work and practice to get there.

Reframe frustration. The pain of not getting it right means you're on the right track, because at least you can tell it's wrong. That's a skill in itself, and an important one that many haven't quite mastered yet.

So take your time to learn. Study those who you think are great writers, and don't obsess over exactly what that means. There's no standard 'good writer' box to cram yourself into, and that's a wonderful thing, because it means you can build your own.

It's important to find your own voice, but that doesn't mean you have to go it alone. There's little substitute for working with quality, experienced professionals in the field and letting them mentor you.

Don't be afraid of the time it takes to develop the skills that you want, literary or otherwise. There's so much to learn.

And, as Hemingway says, if you want to be a good writer, you'll have to learn how to write. And give yourself the space (and grace) to do so.

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