I completely get the writer's adage, "Write what you know." No doubt, an American veteran of the Gulf War would have a far clearer picture about the landscapes and climates in Afghanistan or Iraq than a writer who has seen only pictures of the region. A male septuagenarian would be better off interviewing young, single, working mothers if he wanted to write about a day in their life. An accomplished Japanese classical pianist would do well to research and listen to jazz great Thelonious Monk's music before comparing her music to his.
So what do we really know when we start out writing at a young age without the benefit of hindsight? Or, for that matter, does a retiree still know the music scene she experienced 45 years earlier as a college student? The answer is simple: Just write, and see what happens. Carson McCullers published her novel The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter at age 23, Alexander Pope published An Essay on Criticism at 22, and Nancy Yi Fan published Swordbird when she was 13. Precociousness? Yes, but they could not possibly know much about life at such young ages. What makes these writers tick is skill, for sure, but desire even more.
If you'd like to read what 31 successful writers have to say about writing what you know (or not), click here.
So what do we really know when we start out writing at a young age without the benefit of hindsight? Or, for that matter, does a retiree still know the music scene she experienced 45 years earlier as a college student? The answer is simple: Just write, and see what happens. Carson McCullers published her novel The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter at age 23, Alexander Pope published An Essay on Criticism at 22, and Nancy Yi Fan published Swordbird when she was 13. Precociousness? Yes, but they could not possibly know much about life at such young ages. What makes these writers tick is skill, for sure, but desire even more.
If you'd like to read what 31 successful writers have to say about writing what you know (or not), click here.
