Ramble: To speak or write at length and with many digressions.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Robert A. Heinlein's Rules for Writing Success
1) You must write. 2) Finish what you start. 3) You must refrain From rewriting, except to editorial order. 4) You must put your story on the market. 5) You must keep it on the market until it has sold.
For some reason, I always find Heinlein's rules to be more daunting than inspiring. It's like he's pointing at me and saying, "Hey, you, the lazy guy with the woman's phone voice. If you're not gonna write, then get the hell off my obstacle course!"
Heinlein is stating the obvious. His words have nothing to do with "tough love" or the attempt to inspire. He is simply noting what someone must do to succeed as a professional writer. If this seems "harsh" to you, do not try to be a writer.
As a professional writer, I have to disagree with Anonymous. While Heinlein's advice may be helpful to many, it is neither "obvious" nor universally true. Had I followed his rules, I would still be doing whatever I was doing before I went pro.
4 comments:
For some reason, I always find Heinlein's rules to be more daunting than inspiring. It's like he's pointing at me and saying, "Hey, you, the lazy guy with the woman's phone voice. If you're not gonna write, then get the hell off my obstacle course!"
Agreed. To me, his advice seems to come from the "tough love" mind set you get a lot from his generation. That kind of thing seems harsh these days.
Heinlein is stating the obvious. His words have nothing to do with "tough love" or the attempt to inspire. He is simply noting what someone must do to succeed as a professional writer. If this seems "harsh" to you, do not try to be a writer.
As a professional writer, I have to disagree with Anonymous. While Heinlein's advice may be helpful to many, it is neither "obvious" nor universally true. Had I followed his rules, I would still be doing whatever I was doing before I went pro.
Post a Comment