There are many ways to say “Don’t judge others” and we really shouldn’t without purpose. I do believe one reasonable purpose is to develop an objective sense of self. To do a better job identifying our own strengths and weaknesses. This can help avoid a state of mind where we become hurdles to our own progress.
To do that, sometimes we need to look over the competition. So I did.
Barnes and Noble bookshelves
My young daughter enjoys trips to Barnes and Noble. She loves the Thomas the Train table and looking at books. She enjoys BN enough to occasionally ask for trips after school or on the weekend and I’m happy to oblige. It’s a nice escape when the weather isn’t favorable for a trip to the park.
While she plays or checks things out, I typically spend my time wandering the children’s area or scrolling through my Twitter feed. On our last trip, I took the time to hit the YA Fantasy section just outside the children’s area, taking an opportunity to study how authors of newer novels are introducing readers to their world in the opening scene.
There was no plan for this. I just went from book to book, reading the blurb to check for ideas that might catch my interest. Between newly published material and older titles, I went through 10 or so novels.
My plan was to get a sense of how these authors were introducing the reader to their world and whether they tended towards first person or third person viewpoints. For some I read a few pages and for most I read the first chapter. It was to be an innocent study of craft, but turned into something else.
This is where I get judgmental.
Simply put, I wasn’t blown away. Not even close. I know I have many miles to slog to earn consideration for publishing, but for most of the work I didn’t feel it was beyond my capability at the moment. Aside from Brandon Sanderson’s Rithmatist, which I read last year, the quality of the other works were not that different. A range of scenery, some focused more on dialogue, some on introspection, but none of it felt like work I couldn’t achieve on my own and possibly surpass with access to a good editor.
And two of the titles, both appearing to be “first time in print” opportunities for the authors, certainly showed room for improvement. One even had a sticker announcing it is being made into a movie.
Now, before you judge me for judging them, let me defend myself by stating I truly believe writing is only part of telling a story. One of my favorite authors is not a great writer, but is one heck of a storyteller. Even then, his writing style is beyond my current ability. Maybe I can manage that level of work on a good day, but, like most authors, I struggle with day to day consistency.
The reason this is important is that most of my favorite authors are excellent writers. Tolkien, Stephen Brust, Martha Wells, Neil Stephenson, and, of course, William Gibson. All five are outstanding and, if I compare my work to theirs, good enough to give me heart palpitations and make me consider chewing through my keyboard if not smashing my fingers with a hammer. “Oh, I used to be a writer. Back before the ‘accident’, you know.”
It’s absurd for me to compare myself to such greats. Yet, I sort of do by starting most writing sessions by reading a few pages from one of their works. Reading something well written helps kickstart my brain by templating what I should look for in my own work.
Unfortunately, I’ve had days where things just weren’t clicking. Every paragraph is off. I miss opportunities to show rather than tell. That lingering template and the mental contrast that accompanies it leaves me sad and hollow. It’s easy to fall into the pit of “How in the world can I compete with that?”
The good news is I don’t have to. Not directly. Sure, authors compete for sales and such, but becoming a professional author is a decade-long event. I’m looking for someone to pick up my work and give me a chance to develop my craft. And the authors on those YA shelves, whose work is presented between shiny, metallic covers? Most of them are new authors as well. All of them are still developing.
There’s a good chance you have a shelf of favorite novels at home. Each with a special meaning and most written by authors who have styles developed through a lot of experience. The works in your collection are more likely to be roses than daffodils.
Each rose is a work of beauty and grace, valued highly for delicacy and detail. but there’s nothing wrong with daffodils. They’re still flowers. They’re still beautiful. Some people prefer them. Each has its own value. And, yes, people still buy them, leaving the prettier, sexier roses on the shelf.
The next time you’re in a bookstore, stop and smell the daisies. Pick up some books you’ll never read from authors you’ve never heard of. Look at their intro scene, read through some dialogue, pick through some random pages. Get a feel for that author’s writing style and the quality of their storytelling. Then give yourself an honest assessment. Truth be told, you’re probably farther along than you thought. You might be just as good, just as far along the path to growing roses.
And remember every great author started out more daffodil than rose. Hell, some probably started out as dandelions. What they all have in common is they did the best they could with the seed they had. So keep working, keep learning, keep experimenting. Be the best gardener you can be.
