Listening to a podcast recently, I heard the guest tell us that the world needed more writers. We needed folks who could put on paper their story and the story of humanity. This got me thinking - is that really true? Do we really need more writers?
The answer I inescapably came to was no.
We need more good writers, but simply getting more people to write doesn't do anything. I've often said that lots of people think they can write, while most actually can't write their name in the snow. Just telling people to write more so they can contribute to collective humanity is like saying we need more cooks so we can put food in landfills.
Now I know what you're saying - don't most people start off as poor writers before becoming good? Weren't you a pretty bad writer by your own admission at one time? Yes, that's all true, but I made an effort to get better. I still make that effort, for I know I can get better. Unfortunately, most folks won't make that commitment. If we had a bevy of folks who knew they sucked at writing and were making efforts to get better, I'd be all for it. But most people think they're already pretty awesome and don't need to get any better. There's little humility, and that makes for some absolutely awful writing. We have plenty of that; we don't need more.
Okay, I get it - I'm an elitist, I want to stifle creativity, yadda, yadda, yadda. If that makes me a bad person, then so be it. However, I don't like trying to wade through mounds of shit to find that one gleaming nugget I might enjoy. There are already tons of terrible writers who are published. There are lots of people who can write well in one genre but are bad in another(yet they try anyway). Do we really need to add to that pile of garbage?
Finally, if you're discouraged by what I've written, then writing isn't for you. Take the time and effort to get better. If that's you, then maybe you'll one day be a good writer and will be someone who should be adding to our collection of the written word. If you think you need no more help and are already the bees knees, then please stop. For the love of all that's holy, please please please stop. Writing in and of itself does not make you a great thinker or expresser of ideas, and we don't need you piling onto the (large) portion of crap we already have.
The answer I inescapably came to was no.
We need more good writers, but simply getting more people to write doesn't do anything. I've often said that lots of people think they can write, while most actually can't write their name in the snow. Just telling people to write more so they can contribute to collective humanity is like saying we need more cooks so we can put food in landfills.
Now I know what you're saying - don't most people start off as poor writers before becoming good? Weren't you a pretty bad writer by your own admission at one time? Yes, that's all true, but I made an effort to get better. I still make that effort, for I know I can get better. Unfortunately, most folks won't make that commitment. If we had a bevy of folks who knew they sucked at writing and were making efforts to get better, I'd be all for it. But most people think they're already pretty awesome and don't need to get any better. There's little humility, and that makes for some absolutely awful writing. We have plenty of that; we don't need more.
Okay, I get it - I'm an elitist, I want to stifle creativity, yadda, yadda, yadda. If that makes me a bad person, then so be it. However, I don't like trying to wade through mounds of shit to find that one gleaming nugget I might enjoy. There are already tons of terrible writers who are published. There are lots of people who can write well in one genre but are bad in another(yet they try anyway). Do we really need to add to that pile of garbage?
Finally, if you're discouraged by what I've written, then writing isn't for you. Take the time and effort to get better. If that's you, then maybe you'll one day be a good writer and will be someone who should be adding to our collection of the written word. If you think you need no more help and are already the bees knees, then please stop. For the love of all that's holy, please please please stop. Writing in and of itself does not make you a great thinker or expresser of ideas, and we don't need you piling onto the (large) portion of crap we already have.
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