Into the Fire

All of us are taught how to read and write. If we continue to expand our education in the creative writing field and narrow it to novels, we will inevitably learn things that are critical to the actual craft of constructing stories in book form. If we specialize in a particular genre, we will need information about the specifics of telling a story within that framework, allowing for some variation.

We are taught grammar, but from what I’ve observed from several recent graduates of the public school system, it no longer is being taught effectively. Granted, grammar isn’t a strength for some writers, and, if it isn’t taught well, it’s difficult to learn. You have to want it. People who have talent in creative writing overcome their deficits in this area by reading well and persevering in their efforts to nail down the ins and outs of proper usage of the English language. Of course it can be stretched and stylized but not without understanding the mechanics of it in the first place.

A popular question seems to be, “Can writers be made or is it a gift, maybe innate ability?” The answers are varied, the conclusions subjective. An individual can learn all the mechanics of storytelling. He can have a great imagination and follow a formula to create a novel. Whether or not that novel will possess whatever it needs to gain recognition or praise is impossible to predict. Will it contain the passion of a writer who invests heart and soul into his work because of the inherent desire to write? I don’t know. A mechanical approach or a formulaic writer could hit upon a topic of interest and snag a faithful following.

Reading is tantamount to writing. The voices, styles, creations of other writers and their novels inspire and provoke the need to write for those who have “the call”. Some authors restrict their reading once they’ve entered into the creative market not willing to be influenced by their contemporaries, but, still, they read to keep the fires stoked. Some writers use film and other media to supplement the inspiration.

Writing comes down to desire and grit. It demands time, attention, focus, skills, and imagination. There are no substitutes for any of those. What might separate those who know they simply must write from those with the acquired skills is that commercial success is not the determining factor for continuing to write. The reasons for wanting that kind of success are probably different in the realm of Christian writers but not necessarily.

Anyway, a writer must experience the fullness of teaching, learning, and reading to be the best he can be. Then he simply has to write.

Father, teach us more about you, help us to learn your ways, inspire us to read more of your Word. Then direct us to write. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.