Is there such a thing as too much writing advice?
Absolutely!
Since I’m a writing coach, my answer may come as a surprise to some of you. On the other hand, it will likely not surprise my writing coach clients.
I’m convinced that writer’s block stems more from self-castigation than any kind of writing problem. I’m also convinced that a lot of that self-criticism stems from the sense that our writing is not measuring up to some theoretical standard, often set in our minds by all the writing advice we’ve received over our lives.
That’s just one of the problems with focusing on writing advice. Just as armchair traveling can interfere with actual traveling if you’re determined to create the perfect itinerary before you buy your tickets, focusing on how to write can prevent you from just doing it.
I never realized that until an early conversation with one of my writing coach clients, who is just about to finish his third novel. I got pretty insecure when I realized he had read more books about writing than I had. Then he admitted that over all those years when he was reading about how to write, he hadn’t actually written any of the novels bouncing around in his head.
In a 2023 post, Jane Friedman discusses how to set aside the cacophony of writing advice. While she has some excellent ideas, I default to a simple suggestion. Just bang out that sloppy copy draft. Or even sloppy copy notes for a pre-book, as I call it. Focus on your content. That’s the hardest part. Once you’ve got a draft, I don’t care how rough or raw, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to refine it.
And that’s where writing advice will come in handy.
