The Arrogant Writer: Five Ways To Nurture and Defend Your Muse
Arrogance has a bad rap. We think of arrogant people as unpleasant to be around, full of themselves, and incapable of taking an interest in anyone else. However, when applied to one's own writing, a certain measure of well-placed arrogance can be a useful tool.
Writing can be a scary enterprise. The writer puts herself out for public scrutiny in a way most other artists and professionals do not. When the writer publishes, she commits herself to the words she's written for the rest of her life. Even if she changes her mind about what she's said, others may still react to the piece decades after it first appears in print. This can make even the act of putting pen to paper (or more likely, fingers to keyboard) an anxiety-producing ordeal.
Then there is the schooling most of us received, which treated writing as a chore rewarded when well done or punished when poorly done, as opposed to a pleasurable activity for ourselves and our readers. Very few of us had any audience for any the writing we did in classrooms, other than the teachers who instructed, criticized and graded us. It's no wonder most writers suffer from self-doubt rather than overconfidence. We tend to underestimate ourselves and our words, even when they come from the most powerful places inside us, even when we get accolades from the outside world, and even long after we finally get published.
Practicing selective arrogance can help disarm these nasty doubts. And, not to worry: If you are not arrogant to begin with, practicing the type of arrogance I suggest will not transform you into an insufferable braggart. Rather, it will help uplift you from the gutters of self-doubt onto the clean, dry road to getting published. Even if you do not feel in the least arrogant about your writing, you can still follow my simple instructions to act as if you do, with the same results: to get published, or to get published again.
Selective arrogance does not mean thinking of yourself as any better than anyone else, or as having reached the pinnacle of your skills. Rather, it means treating every word you write as a precious baby worthy of the greatest care and nurturance. Here's how to do that:
Never, ever throw anything away, period.
Carry with you at all times a means to record your creative thoughts.
Record your creative bursts, even if other voices inside you are dismissing them with negative judgments.
Trust your impulses and passions: if you feel drawn to write about something, write about it!
Eschew impatience-give your babies the time they need to gestate.
If you've read between the lines, you see that these instructions have you do nothing more than treat yourself and your writing with respect. However, because many people have a hard time doing even that, I counsel my clients to behave arrogantly. It gets them giggling and releasing the feelings they have about their writing, and makes it easier to find that respect.
Although you may have read elsewhere to be prepared to throw away your first writing attempts, to release attachment to your early work and the like, nuggets of wisdom and creativity appear throughout a writer's life from childhood through seniority. I advocate collecting and these and treating them with care, perhaps polishing them now and again. There is no magical moment when one suddenly becomes "a good writer." Thus, your most novice scribblings become diamond mines.
The one time I disobeyed my own advice and discarded what was I believed was possibly the most poorly written sentence in history (or at least my own history), I rejoiced. Five minutes later, I needed the gem in a new sentence, and struggled to reconstruct the one I'd discarded. May you never make that mistake-do as I say, not as I've done.
These gems also shine through at unexpected times. This is why I advise my clients to carry at least some scrap paper and a pencil nub if not an electronic recording device. The times at night and in the mornings between wake and sleep often yield good raw material, so keep your recording device of choice bedside.
The idea behind saving every little scrap, writing everything down and cultivating the arrogance to believe these activities matter is that finished pieces often assert themselves over time, forming a coherent whole from little scraps, like a Rorschach, or getting that crucial letter right in the Wheel of Fortune. The key is to keep feeding the collage and trusting that something or things will emerge over time.
Not every sentence will necessarily lead to an essay, book or screenplay of its own. But some might add that missing piece to make a good piece great. Even tidbits that go nowhere for now still give your brain a chance to exercise itself and keep your creative pathways well-hacked.
When it comes to choosing which pathway you'll write your way down, trust your wild and wooly impulses. If you're drawn to something, chances are you will make the subject come alive. You'll seduce your readers by the very fact of your relationship to the material.
Finally, give your pieces the time they need to develop. Being an arrogant writer means honoring the gestation period your writings must pass through to be born into the world healthy and ready to engage readers. Honoring this gestation period may mean asking for help. Just as the dedicated gardener finds the right soil, fertilizer, seeds, watering schedule and equipment, so the arrogant writer finds her coach, buddy, copyeditor, ghostwriter, or colleague's expert eye. I have seen writers move from stagnation to publication with the right combination of assistance. I love being part of that process.
You are welcome to reprint this article any time, anywhere with no further permission, and no payment, provided the following is included at the end or beginning:
Author Jill Nagle is founder and principal of GetPublished,http://www.GetPublished.com, which provides coaching, consulting, ghostwriting, classes and do-it-yourself products to emerging and published authors. Her most recent book is How to Find An Agent Who Can Sell Your Book for Top Dollar http://www.FindTheRightAgent.com.
MORE RESOURCES:
 WBFS | Florida, not kids, flunked FCAT testing MiamiHerald.com WEB VOTE After FCAT writing scores went into a tailspin, the state Board of Education reduced the passing score so that more public school students will pass the test. Was that the right decision? By Fred Grimm Proficiency under pressure — that's what ... State of Florida Prefers to Ignore Reality Behind Poor FCAT Scores Florida lowers passing grade for state writing exam Lyons: Scoring for FCAT writing test misses the mark |
 PerezHilton.com | Aaron Sorkin hates the Internet. Why does he keep writing about tech geniuses? Entertainment Weekly But even though Sorkin snagged an Oscar for writing about the technorati, it's still deeply weird that he somehow became Hollywood's go-to tech biopic scribe. Sorkin has long had a love-hate relationship with computers — accent on the hate. Aaron Sorkin Is Writing ANOTHER Steve Jobs Biopic Aaron Sorkin writing a Steve Jobs movie Aaron Sorkin Writing Steve Jobs Biopic — Just Give It the Oscar Now |
Writing's on the wall for McNabb ESPN By Ashley Fox | ESPN.com There is one franchise that would seem to be a perfect fit for Donovan McNabb, a place where he knows the system, the personnel, the expectations and the playbook, and he wouldn't have to mentor anybody. |
Lisa Rinna on writing a book about sex CNN "The Big Fun Sexy Sex Book" is a fun and innovative guide to rejuvenating your sex life and libido, co-written with renowned sex therapist Ian Kerner (who writes about sex on CNN's medical news blog, The Chart). The vivacious 48-year-old actress is ... |
 U.S. News & World Report (blog) | No Joke: George W. Bush Writing a Book on Economic Growth U.S. News & World Report (blog) To wit: Former President George W. Bush is writing a book on—wait for it—strategies for economic growth. The Center for American Progress's Pat Garofalo caught this little tidbit and nicely summarized why the idea of Bush writing a book on economic ... |
Joan Aragone: Decade of writing senior column has been eye-opener San Jose Mercury News "Write a weekly column," the editor said. "Just call the senior centers and see what's happening." But I visited senior centers and discovered, to my surprise, articulate octogenarians, even centenarians, writers, artists, musicians, social activists, ... |
Writing Longform For A Multimedia Platform Huffington Post One day, the editor-in-chief at the Digest suggested I write a story about unemployed workers who reinvented themselves. She told me to call a former colleague to interview him about his new job. And guess what? He was working as a prison guard. |
11 Mistakes Writers Make When Approaching Literary Agents Huffington Post Let's face it: Writing a book requires different skills than writing a query letter. While there are no “rules” about writing queries, here are the top 11 questionable tactics that we at Writer's Relief commonly see in query letters" Cheesy Lead: ... |
 The Atlantic Wire | Bad Writing Turned Pacquiao into Gay Rights Enemy No. 1 The Atlantic Wire This story about Manny Pacquiao's position on gay marriage (he still says he's against it, but not that gay people should be killed -- we'll get to that) got twisted up and transformed by writers who didn't quite understand what other writers were ... Manny Pacquiao's Gay Marriage Stance Gets Twisted, Invokes Outrage, Receives ... |
Content Writing King Announces Link Building Website Overhaul Houston Chronicle A New Website Overhaul Has Been Announced By Content Writing King. They have Hired A Team Of Expert Designers To Redesign Their Article Marketing Website. Today, Content Writing King has made the grand announcement that they have decided to hire a team ... Content Writing King's Article Marketing Blog Page has been Updated. |
The Author Within
Just about every marketer on the Internet claims to be the best around and would have you believe that no one else knows as much or can teach you as quickly and thoroughly as they can. It would seem that they erroneously assume that by admiring someone else's teachings they will lessen their marketability as the "great persuader" in salesmanship.
Balance Your Life
Balance your life----------------------- Writing is a solitary task. Writing needs concentration and quiet.
The Iniquitous Slip
All the famous writers I heard of could paper the walls of their offices with rejection notices.Rejection slips are the bane of all writers, yet they are inevitable.
Should You Do a Writing Course?
First, let's tackle the question that is uppermost in many aspiring writers' minds: "Do I need to do a writing course to sell my writing?"No. Absolutely not.
Make Your Readers Cry
You know, I really hate it when someone catches me crying over a book.I surreptitiously dab at the corners of my eyes with a finger.
Untrue Father (A short Story)
Kallu was a tenant of Santosh Kumar Nayak. Santosh Kumar was a businessman in a small town of Utter Pradesh.
How to Create Stories that Sizzle
How to Start Your Story with a BangThe purpose of creating a story is to create a world that will draw the reader away from their own. In order to do this one must create suspense, drama and mystery.
Using Technology to Improve Your Final Draft
One Saturday afternoon, I sat in a packed conference room with about 150 other would be writers, listening to a conference instructor tell us the keys to self-editing our manuscripts. The number of people in the room spoke to how important it is to make sure your work is crisp, and as close to publishable as possible.
Platform Development Tip #1: Switch Writing Hats!
Around eighty percent of nonfiction books today are written by "experts," that is people who have a) earned credentials in the field they're writing about, b) germinated information via articles, live presentations or other media, or c) had extraordinary, unique or memorably told life experiences relevant to their topic.For an autobiographical work, such as a memoir, an author needn't have any special expertise-she is the foremost authority on her own life.
Money Trails for Writers
I'm willing to bet that quite a number of you once had to debate (or discuss) the saying: "The pen is mightier than the sword." If you were arguing 'for', you would have been able to come up with many examples of how words triumphed over muscles.
Be A Savvy Writer: Go Where The Business Is
If you're a writer, you're in business. It doesn't matter whether you're writing picture books, or a self-help book for underachievers, or promotional material and flyers for anyone who wants it.
Screenwriting, Screenplays, Screenwriters - Incremental Productivity
When attempting to understand Creativity and Innovation, it pays to import the vast range of research and knowledge that has been accumulated in these fields - most of it is to be found in the field of Business and Management.For example, Writer's Block is intimately related to Organizational Culture - the same principles that prevent people from generating ideas in the corporate workplace are also responsible for Writer's Block - evaluation apprehension in its many forms.
9 More Writing Tips for Successful Email Marketing
A few months ago, I wrote a guide entitled: 101 Writing Tips for Successful Email Marketing. In fact, many COPY TIPS subscribers have a copy.
Letter Writing Journaling
When you read a letter from someone, we are immediatelytransferred into their world, experience, and physicalreality. You can capture the same feeling by writingletters to yourself or about other people in your journal.
Pairs/Groups Of Words Often Confused - Part 2 of 6
BAITED, BATEDBaited usually refers to traps or snares. When the reference is to someone who is hardly daring to breathe, the correct word is always bated:"She watched with bated breath.
Dialogue Tags - A Study in Common Errors
Verb and SubjectIncorrect:"I bet you two had a fine time," said Ben.When using tags, it's unusual to have the verb before the subject.
Are You a Freelance Writer? - Then You Need a Website
As a freelance writer, it is important to present yourself to your clients in a highly effective way. One of the most effective methods that freelancers use is a website.
Rules for Getting the Story Down
1. Write it fast, fix it later.
Weaving Your Personal Statement Together
1. SECRETS TO SUCCESS2.
Arouse Your Short Story And See It Published
Are you ready to abandon your short stories? Before you toss your newest story in the trash, revisit it using many of the same guidelines editors keep in mind when they review your work. If you follow these guidelines, you will be many steps closer to placing your short story in a well-known literary journal.
