You know when you find that perfect book, the one where the characters resonate with you, the plot is fascinating, the themes are just up your alley and you’re surprised by the twists? Writing is finding books like that, over and over.
Which is why I love writing.
The thing is, everyone has different tastes. One person’s purple prose, annoying characters and stale plot is another’s touching description, dearest friend and refreshing revelation. When you write your own novel, you get to skip the boring bits—those parts that are boring to you. Not only that, but I guarantee you’ll have a closer connection and deeper understanding of the characters than in any novel you’ve ever read. You’ll know the characters so well, in fact, that it’ll be as if you’ve known them for years. Which, if you’re anything like me in terms of writing speed, you will.
And that’s the downside to writing—it takes a heck of a lot more time and effort than reading. You’ll know your characters because you’ll be with them every day for months or years. There won’t be any boring bits, because you’ll painfully expunge them. The descriptions will be just right, because you’ll pore over them time and again.
And when you’re done with all this, someone else will still find boring parts, or they won’t like the characters, or the setting, or the plot. But that’s OK. Because to at least one person it’ll be the Custom-Made Novel, and that person is you.
And if you’re lucky, there are more people like you out there. 🙂
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