Stick with what you know

[Earniel]

When I first ventured into writing, this was the first advice I received. So would you consider this good advice? Something you'd follow yourself?

Your ideas, please.

[Butterbeer]

Absolutely not.


else why write?

best, BB xx

[Curubethion]

You know, it's nice and sentimental...but not always true for everybody. After all, Robert Jordan is one of the best writers I've read...and I doubt that he's had a lot of experience with Trollocs and Company.

You will write more realistically if you've grown up around your subject, true. But that's not all that writing's about. For a starting writer, that's great. But for a maturing writer, I say, expand your horizons! Learn new things! Let your imagination soar!

[katya]

I think it depends. If you're writing a realistic story, writing about something you're at least a little familiar with will make for a more believable story. But if you wanna write about like an alien invasion or a fairy tale or something like that, where it's up more to your imagination, why not? But I would say that it's important to research your subjects. I remember a writer lady once told me in elementary about how she was writing a historical fiction, and she wanted to say "bloomers" but researched and realized it was not used in that time period, and had to say "drawers". Depending on your audience, those things may or may not matter, but if it was me I'd like to have everything perfect.

Another thought that has occured to me when I read the beginning of "White Oleander" was to seduce men in order to get material for writing romance. *shrug*

[Elfmaster XK]

I definately don't think you should always stick to what you know.

I do believe there is certain merit in this advice though. After all, writing is a craft you have to develop, and your first ever attempt at writing is unlikely to be a publishable work. Especially if you go off writing about something that you know nothing about.

However, having said that. My friend's novel got published in 2001 (i think) and to people like me who like history and would be mortified if, for example, Queen Elizabeth I was portrayed in any way but the serious virgin queen history says she was or...well lets just say Marie's book is NOT for you. But as she was published this proves that getting all the facts perfectly right might be not be the key to publishing success. I can only say that the publishers must've found merit in her tale, and decided the 'inaccuracies,' if portrayed realistically would have detrimented the story. After all, she claimed this to be a romantic fantasy. Not a work of historical fiction.

That's one example of course. I am sure there are more though. And always keep in mind that there are good and bad publishers etc etc.

I think that the whole research and what you know thing is tricky. Firstly, some things cannot be researched, when they are invented. Secondly, only writing about what you know would be boring to write, and probably to read. And Thirdly, if you write about what you don't know without researching, you are likely to be ridiculed by those who do know about the subject. So it's a bit of a compromise in my opinion. Knowledge of a subject is important, but too in depth and it becomes more like reading a non-fiction work. A story is entertainment in the first part. If you learn something too, then great but you don't want to be overwhelmed.

That was really long and rambly and probably didn't make so much sense!

[brownjenkins]

Writing is work.

I think many people go into it not realizing that writing, like anything else, is work that takes practice and dedication. And the more you do, the better you get.

[IronParrot]

I think it would be healthy to think of the "write what you know" principle as something that is there to inform you, not restrict you.

Even the most otherworldly fantasy writers fall back on their rudimentary experience of human behaviour.

[Lady Marion Magdalena]

It's good enough advice, but when one hears it in class after class after class, and one is trying to write imagination based fiction, it gets rather tiresome.

However, an argument can be made that if one makes something up, one knows it, though no one else does.

And while research is all very well, you have to be careful not to get so caught up in researching that you never get around to writing. Especially since the thing you needed to research may end up being cut or unimportant later on. Better to write an inaccuracy and then to fix it afterwards.

Or work things out so that the setting makes the inaccuracy accurate.

As Katt once told me "Screw the laws of physics and make up some new ones about jam!"