For my final edition of The Writers Block, I leave you with this: take all advice (even mine) with a grain of salt. It feels strange to advise you to not take advice, but I’m doing it anyway. I sometimes feel overwhelmed with the amount of writing advice, tips or tricks that I hear about. Between learning how to write a certain way in school, practicing emulating others’ styles, and trying to navigate finding our own voice, this overabundance of advice can become more hindrance than help. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t listen to anyone or experiment with different people’s advice. All I’m recommending is to not get so caught up in what other people do that you don’t give yourself the chance to discover what works for you.
Writing advice can come from authors, teachers, friends or even strangers on the internet. These are all great resources to have, but the amount of suggestions can start to bog you down. You’re allowed to be picky in regards to what you listen to and try. If someone tells you to do something you don’t agree with, or simply don’t feel called to, then you don’t have to do it. Granted, if it’s a professor giving you feedback for a class assignment, you might want to listen to them. But even then, if you don’t 100% agree, see if you can discuss this with them to find something that works for the both of you without sacrificing the integrity of your writing.
When it comes to creative writing, everyone’s process and style differs. Remember that just because something works for someone else doesn’t mean it’s going to work for you. You should never force yourself to fit into a mold of what someone else does simply because it has helped them. You will find what works for you, whether that’s through taking others’ advice or ignoring it. No matter what, trust that you know what works best for you.
If we’re being technical, this entire column could create a paradox in which you listen to my advice about ignoring advice, and thus dismiss everything I’ve said. And in that case, you would do the opposite of what I’ve said and take my advice, meaning you wouldn’t take advice so readily. You could go in circles all day, but I’d advise you not to. And that’s one tip you can follow without any qualms.