Thanks, Martin. I write fiction for myself, principally. Because I enjoy it. It's good to set a goal, but you're right about the definition of 'good'. The way I look at it, writing novela is a bit like running marathons. People often do it for personal achievement. Some only want to run one marathon. Others do it because they love running, and it's a nice goal to set yourself. I've been doing this mainly to enjoy the journey. I take great pleasure from the process of writing long form fiction. To understand how to fit everything together. It takes so much time to write, I think it needs to be this way. Like the marathon, for me it's not about the final product or ticking off an item on a list. I am learning so much through doing it - so much about the nuts and bolts of fiction and storytelling. That's where the real pleasure comes from. If, at the end of it, I have a book that people read, then that's a bonus.
Nice post. One of the problems of 'being good at something' is that there is rarely a suitable point of reference that helps to define good. It can be very subjective, and judgments of this kind often tell us more about the person making the assessment than the person being assessed.
Another thought: there are one or two savants who can, for example, play the piano flawlessly, can even listen to a complex piece once then play it straight back and even improvise on it. There would probably be general consensus that such people are 'good' at playing the piano even if they have never studied it at all formally.
All that said, good luck with your writing. I write a lot and have done most of my life. I don't, however, have any pretensions about my ability or delusions of grandeur - I write because I like writing, and it is the pleasure I derive from writing rather than the appreciation of others that keeps me at it.
Thanks, Martin. I write fiction for myself, principally. Because I enjoy it. It's good to set a goal, but you're right about the definition of 'good'. The way I look at it, writing novela is a bit like running marathons. People often do it for personal achievement. Some only want to run one marathon. Others do it because they love running, and it's a nice goal to set yourself. I've been doing this mainly to enjoy the journey. I take great pleasure from the process of writing long form fiction. To understand how to fit everything together. It takes so much time to write, I think it needs to be this way. Like the marathon, for me it's not about the final product or ticking off an item on a list. I am learning so much through doing it - so much about the nuts and bolts of fiction and storytelling. That's where the real pleasure comes from. If, at the end of it, I have a book that people read, then that's a bonus.
Nice post. One of the problems of 'being good at something' is that there is rarely a suitable point of reference that helps to define good. It can be very subjective, and judgments of this kind often tell us more about the person making the assessment than the person being assessed.
Another thought: there are one or two savants who can, for example, play the piano flawlessly, can even listen to a complex piece once then play it straight back and even improvise on it. There would probably be general consensus that such people are 'good' at playing the piano even if they have never studied it at all formally.
All that said, good luck with your writing. I write a lot and have done most of my life. I don't, however, have any pretensions about my ability or delusions of grandeur - I write because I like writing, and it is the pleasure I derive from writing rather than the appreciation of others that keeps me at it.