A few years ago I watched a video where a writing professor spoke of how for a decade, with every class of new students, he could always tell right away who was a natural writer and who would never make it. There were always 1-3 students who seemed to have "it" and the rest would never get it. So he'd focus his attention on the ones who would benefit -- the few who were gifted. Then more recently, he realized that all he was perceiving was that a few of the students had always been praised as writers and had mastered some of the very basics - basics that the other students had not been exposed to. He changed his teaching to get everybody up to speed on these basics in the first few weeks - and by the end of the semester, there was no difference in the perceived "innate talent" of any of the students. He added that he felt so guilty about all the students he had failed for a decade, for whom he had compounded the issues they had no control over, instead of getting them over those first small speed bumps.
Wow, that's amazing. I've heard stories like this across things as different as sports and chess (like László Polgár turning all 3 of his daughters into chess "geniuses"), but I've never specifically seen it applied to writing on any kind of scale. I need to try to find this story, though I'll tell it third hand if I have to! Thanks!
@@JAlanRyker It was an interview on the Film Courage channel with an LA-based professor... but they have 5k! interviews online, so that doesn't really narrow it down!
Good stuff. Another reason why the world of published fiction writers is NOT a meritocracy: the mechanics of that world. With media attention and so on: fame begets fame. Now, of course, a lot of the famous authors DO write excellent stuff. But there must be others we don't know of. My conclusions are: (1) I must decide if writing is just a hobby or I want to get to the next level of being professionally published, come up with more books, etc.; (2) I must put my work out there - for constructive feedback, to keep improving - contests and proof reader forums are my go-to-places for this; (3) I must at some point become my own promotor - it's called 'author self-marketing' and that is not going to go away soon. It's just another skill to learn and improve.
Yeah, you pretty much nailed it, as far as I know. Even on a smaller scale (beyond the #1 bestsellers) people still want to read what other people are reading. If you get promotion figured out, let me know 😂
oh, so being born in january *did* have a point! nice! in all seriousness, your videos are always so hope inducing, its crazy. a reminder that, no, youre not broken, you didnt mess up, youre a writer, not a ballet dancer, just frigging write. thank you for that
Oh, I didn't know I was talking to one of the privileged few! I guess I've learned a lot about maintaining hope in my efforts to keep myself from giving up. Thanks for your consistently kind comments, by the way
Been using time at work to put in daily word counts. I don't get as many on the page in one sitting, but I can see the continual progress ramping up. Great video!
12:25 That is a really interesting take! All in all, I really do appreciate your abject stance on hardwork and careful persistance. We hear so many people drivel on about it even since the start of preschool or gradeschool and yet it seems to never stick. Perhaps the teachers, parents, friends, whomever, that prattle on do not know how and why it works. But the more you have mentoined it, especially with this sort of in-depth analysis, I feel that it only proves true! And thank you, as always, for making such great, inspiring, and informative videos!!
I 100% know what you mean. We really do constantly get instructed about hard work, but then we look out at the larger world and everyone is talking about talent and genius. I had a very limited mindset myself until I started reading things giving numbers and facts to make it seem like more than just platitudes. I think there might be a video in that... Thanks for the kind words!
I'm 39, I've been writing since 16, it's been real easy to get discouraged, but I never let that stop me ❤ It must been that damn Gemini sun placement with mercury and Mars in Gemini that makes me so damn stubborn to communicate 😅 Seriously though, thank you for this video. I'm in the query trenches for the billionth time and I needed the encouragement 😊❤
I can not TELL you how many times I've said it's the Gemini sun placement! Querying is so brutal. Good luck! Just stick with it--is something I don't need to say to someone who's been sticking it out since age 16
I belive there mustalways bea natural talent. I used to play competative videogames a lot, it didnt matter what i did, i got choached, tryed all practise routines i could find, still i never got better, and always stood as the worst player no matter what server i played on with at least 90% loss rate. Currently, i quit playing video games and wrte. Managing at least 3 books a year after only writing for 2 years. It doesnt matter how much hard worku put in,if u dont have the genetics to get u at the top, it wont happen. I can look at that myself through my genetics, where i can find authours and poets in my family dating back to the 1200's.
What you're talking about are physical attributes: speed of reflexes (unless you were playing some very specific strategy games). I can get better at Doom 2, but I can't be the best, because I don't have the reflexes. This is what people always talk about as an argument against the data, despite their being so much of it (just look up László Polgár). They say you can't be 5'3 and a basketball player. True. Physical attributes play no part in writing, and the brain, unlike the body, is fully malleable. I can give you case after case of people who didn't have the genetics but had the drive and made it to the top. I can give you hard data on percentages. I can give you even more cases of people who had the genetics and gave up.
I'm sure you do have a genetically-gained talent for writing that gave you a head start, but even more importantly, your belief in your lineage gives you that confidence to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Just be careful not to use it to poison other people's hopes on their success
I'm an amateur bodybuilder as a side hobby and the diet thing is soo real lmao like I don't naturally have a large appetite so i end up having to almost force it all down. All meals take like 30 minutes to eat because you still feel full from the last meal but you have to hit your macros even while your jaw is literally sore from all the chewing. I've genuinely considered just blending up full meals and drinking them 💀 it's definitely a struggle but perfection is seized not given. Funny to see my two passions intersect like this lol
A few years ago I watched a video where a writing professor spoke of how for a decade, with every class of new students, he could always tell right away who was a natural writer and who would never make it. There were always 1-3 students who seemed to have "it" and the rest would never get it. So he'd focus his attention on the ones who would benefit -- the few who were gifted.
Then more recently, he realized that all he was perceiving was that a few of the students had always been praised as writers and had mastered some of the very basics - basics that the other students had not been exposed to.
He changed his teaching to get everybody up to speed on these basics in the first few weeks - and by the end of the semester, there was no difference in the perceived "innate talent" of any of the students.
He added that he felt so guilty about all the students he had failed for a decade, for whom he had compounded the issues they had no control over, instead of getting them over those first small speed bumps.
Wow, that's amazing. I've heard stories like this across things as different as sports and chess (like László Polgár turning all 3 of his daughters into chess "geniuses"), but I've never specifically seen it applied to writing on any kind of scale. I need to try to find this story, though I'll tell it third hand if I have to! Thanks!
@@JAlanRyker It was an interview on the Film Courage channel with an LA-based professor... but they have 5k! interviews online, so that doesn't really narrow it down!
@@PaulRWorthington haha omg... that might just remain information I pass on third hand, then!
just filed for an official change of my birthdate - thx ryker!
That's how I know you'll make it. Few are willing to go that extra mile!
Good stuff. Another reason why the world of published fiction writers is NOT a meritocracy: the mechanics of that world. With media attention and so on: fame begets fame. Now, of course, a lot of the famous authors DO write excellent stuff. But there must be others we don't know of. My conclusions are: (1) I must decide if writing is just a hobby or I want to get to the next level of being professionally published, come up with more books, etc.; (2) I must put my work out there - for constructive feedback, to keep improving - contests and proof reader forums are my go-to-places for this; (3) I must at some point become my own promotor - it's called 'author self-marketing' and that is not going to go away soon. It's just another skill to learn and improve.
Yeah, you pretty much nailed it, as far as I know. Even on a smaller scale (beyond the #1 bestsellers) people still want to read what other people are reading.
If you get promotion figured out, let me know 😂
oh, so being born in january *did* have a point! nice!
in all seriousness, your videos are always so hope inducing, its crazy. a reminder that, no, youre not broken, you didnt mess up, youre a writer, not a ballet dancer, just frigging write. thank you for that
Oh, I didn't know I was talking to one of the privileged few!
I guess I've learned a lot about maintaining hope in my efforts to keep myself from giving up. Thanks for your consistently kind comments, by the way
Great story. Food for thought. Thanks for sharing.
Been using time at work to put in daily word counts. I don't get as many on the page in one sitting, but I can see the continual progress ramping up. Great video!
Getting paid to write? That's living the dream! Very nice
12:25
That is a really interesting take!
All in all, I really do appreciate your abject stance on hardwork and careful persistance. We hear so many people drivel on about it even since the start of preschool or gradeschool and yet it seems to never stick. Perhaps the teachers, parents, friends, whomever, that prattle on do not know how and why it works. But the more you have mentoined it, especially with this sort of in-depth analysis, I feel that it only proves true!
And thank you, as always, for making such great, inspiring, and informative videos!!
I 100% know what you mean. We really do constantly get instructed about hard work, but then we look out at the larger world and everyone is talking about talent and genius. I had a very limited mindset myself until I started reading things giving numbers and facts to make it seem like more than just platitudes. I think there might be a video in that... Thanks for the kind words!
Well said 👍
You would make an excellent motivational speaker
I'm 39, I've been writing since 16, it's been real easy to get discouraged, but I never let that stop me ❤ It must been that damn Gemini sun placement with mercury and Mars in Gemini that makes me so damn stubborn to communicate 😅 Seriously though, thank you for this video. I'm in the query trenches for the billionth time and I needed the encouragement 😊❤
Hey same here!
I can not TELL you how many times I've said it's the Gemini sun placement!
Querying is so brutal. Good luck! Just stick with it--is something I don't need to say to someone who's been sticking it out since age 16
I trust in you.😊
I belive there mustalways bea natural talent. I used to play competative videogames a lot, it didnt matter what i did, i got choached, tryed all practise routines i could find, still i never got better, and always stood as the worst player no matter what server i played on with at least 90% loss rate.
Currently, i quit playing video games and wrte. Managing at least 3 books a year after only writing for 2 years. It doesnt matter how much hard worku put in,if u dont have the genetics to get u at the top, it wont happen. I can look at that myself through my genetics, where i can find authours and poets in my family dating back to the 1200's.
What you're talking about are physical attributes: speed of reflexes (unless you were playing some very specific strategy games). I can get better at Doom 2, but I can't be the best, because I don't have the reflexes. This is what people always talk about as an argument against the data, despite their being so much of it (just look up László Polgár). They say you can't be 5'3 and a basketball player. True. Physical attributes play no part in writing, and the brain, unlike the body, is fully malleable.
I can give you case after case of people who didn't have the genetics but had the drive and made it to the top.
I can give you hard data on percentages.
I can give you even more cases of people who had the genetics and gave up.
I'm sure you do have a genetically-gained talent for writing that gave you a head start, but even more importantly, your belief in your lineage gives you that confidence to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Just be careful not to use it to poison other people's hopes on their success
I'm an amateur bodybuilder as a side hobby and the diet thing is soo real lmao like I don't naturally have a large appetite so i end up having to almost force it all down. All meals take like 30 minutes to eat because you still feel full from the last meal but you have to hit your macros even while your jaw is literally sore from all the chewing. I've genuinely considered just blending up full meals and drinking them 💀 it's definitely a struggle but perfection is seized not given. Funny to see my two passions intersect like this lol
haha that is definitely the far opposite of waiting to feel hungry! I'm guessing that drive has served you well as a writer, too