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Can Writing Be Taught? Return to the writers' page
Is it possible to learn to write or is it simply a talent one is born with? The answer to this is both, yes and no. If someone lacks the imagination to express themselves or their ideas in normal speech, it's unlikely that they're going to be motivated to write a novel. It is therefore probably close to impossible to teach such a person to produce a story that others would like to read. However, they could still be a brilliant non-fiction writer. Any book on computer programming or advanced physics is likely to be incomprehensible to a large percentage of the population but that doesn't mean it's bady written. It's simply been produced for a distinct audience or user and the author has tailored it to that market. Just as some writers lean towards crime novels, romantic fiction or sci-fi, so other authors choose to specialise in technical or specialist non-fiction. Writing can sometimes be likened to sport. People may be born with an athletic build or a natural talent for running or ball games, but this inborn gift would be nothing without daily practice. Gold medal winners don't simply fall out of bed and turn up at the track, they spend months if not years pounding over the same ground, repeating their training programme and working on their technique until they have it perfect. The same goes for writers. No matter how natural and effortless your "voice" you still need to write regularly to maintain and improve that talent. There's no substitute for sitting down at your desk and getting on with it. Top athletes still work hard to maintain their edge or look for new ways to improve their performance. Daily practice works in exactly the same way for writers. Improve your style, hone the way you express yourself and develop your narrative skills by making time every day to write something, even if it's only a description of the weather or the man who sat next to you on the train. The more you train yourself to be <em>Literary Fit </em>by flexing your creative muscles, the easier and more fluid will your narrative performance become. Write something today! This article first appeared on Books For Writers, the dedicated writing blog of Complete Text. To read or subscribe to this blog, click the picture at the top left of this page. |
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