Hello there peeps..im still quite a newbie here..and cannot remember my last thread..lol.. but I have been thinking about this one for a couple of days..and thought Id ask your advice?.. Firstly..Im not a big reader but my hubby is very much so!..can u still write if u dont read?.lol.. anyway..Im thinking about writing a book based on my situation..Iam a vey slow learner and have a learning difficulty which means I stress alot and struggle everyday in every aspect of everything..do people write sories based on the situation of their lives etc..and to make pple aware of how different pple cope in this kind of way?.. Just thought Id post this and hope to hear some advice soon. Cammy
Absolutely. People do that all the time. Some write about struggles with mental/physical disabilities, some write about struggles with stigmas society imposes on them, etc. It's a common enough theme. They write it and raise awareness, and also help others who are struggling with the same thing in learning how to cope with it.
People write on anything and everything. It's not about reading books but expressing yourself. That can be a challenge but that is mostly just doing it then adjusting as needed until you can get a handle on it. It does take a willingness to stick with it and enough self discipline to do it as much as you can even if you don't feel like it.
Of course they do! Well, most of the time. It's always interesting to read about a character people can relate to and what's better than a character who has aspects of a real person. I don't mean that you should make this character YOU! As a side note, you should avoid doing that. But for example, I am writing about a world of terrorism. My MC is facing something similar to many families I know have faced, so I am trying to portray the situation. The MC has problems in trust and socializing as well as some unresolved issues, he has many aspects of myself and my boyfriend. He's like us but he's not US! As for reading, I am not sure if it's possible but I am sure it helps more if you read. How can you enjoy writing if you don't know the joy of reading? So write what you feel is something you'd like to convey. Good luck!
Writing about what you know is always a good thing and it will help make your characters more believable. As for your second question, reading is crucial to improve your writing.
Hi I'm new and I'm writing about my life and coping with long term illness, I too thought no one else wrote on this subject. When I post part of my writing I hope people will read and give me some advice. Just keep writing and it helps to put it on paper that's what I've found. Good luck, hope to read some of it soon.
there are many books by people who suffer this or that illness or other life-affecting problems, cammy... so yes, you could do the same... but the problem is that due to both your learning difficulty and not being a reader, you may not be able to write it well enough that your book would be publishable... if your husband doesn't have either the time or the ability to do it for you, then you'd have to hire a ghostwriter to do it and that would be very costly, with no guarantee the book would ever be sold and make back what it cost... but you won't know till you try, so why not just see what you can do?... what i suggest is to go to your nearest book store or library, see how similar books are written, then sit down and start writing and find out one way or another, whether you can do it or not... love and hugs, maia
Everyone has to go through a steep learning curve first time they start writing, so don't worry about that. First book can take a long time to complete, so there's plenty of opportunity for perfecting your writing. I think, like others said, get a few good books with a similar theme, also a few good books on writing, read them and simply start writing. You can post small excerpts here and you'll get some useful suggestions and in time your manuscript will shape up. Good luck!
I think everyone writes about their own situation in one way or another. You'd never write a story totally alien to you, after all. Even when I write essays (like I should be doing now--making progress though, I promise!), I find that how I approach them and what topics I pick are very related to my own situation. I've never attempted to write directly about my own life because my existence would be dull as dirt for anyone else to read about. But there are some fantastic memoirs out there, and you should explore them and look at how they make their own stories appealing and interesting. Writing may be hailed as an art 24/7, but that's only part of the truth: writing is a skill. You can learn it. It just takes practice, dedication, and willingness to sound kind of cruddy for several years (I'm still in that stage).
The answer is yes - when someone is diagnosed with a condition one of the first thing many do is read anything and everything on the subject in order to gain understanding of what is happening to them - to reach out and share experiences can help those who feel scare and alone and like no one understands.
Thanks alot guys!!) alot of good advice there!.and I think you are right..I should start reading things on this type of subject to get an idea on how they are written and panned out etc..hubby has suggested to keep a diary of what you go through and yr.feelings each day for about a year or a long time and go from there..(Phoenix-what is MC??.lol)..Mamma..i agree about probably finding it difficult writing to make it publishable..thats another thing Im worried about..lol..was wondering if there is any other help out there or inspirations that might be able to help me..Im soo greatful for each n every reply!..they give me more of an idea of where to start..oh yeah..talkin about starting..writers block!!??..lol..I think ill just concentrate on one thing at a time..cheers again peeps!!.x
if your writing quality isn't up to publishable levels, then you've only three options, really... the first is to wait till you've improved your writing before you write the book, the second is to go ahead and write it as best you can, then hire a professional rewrite expert to upgrade it, and the third is to hire a ghostwriter from the start, to write it for you... unfortunately, the first may not be doable and even if it is, could delay your writing the book for years... and the other two will be very costly, since no editor/rewrite service provider or ghostwriter who's good enough to do a good enough job will do it for less than thousands of dollars that you'd have little to no chance of ever making back on the finished book, since even if done well, the odds against a paying publisher taking it on are slim to none... sad news, but inescapable facts of life in the writing/publishing world, sorry to say...
The advantage of writing about a condition or life living with your learning difficulty is that self-publishing is an option that can do quite well. I have fibromyalgia/dyspraxia. To be honest when I am looking for something about experiences on any of those conditions the passion, the description etc come before readable. It only needs to be readable enough (which your posts are) that I can understand you. A number of your readers will have the same problems so will understand the difficulties. If you want to traditionally publish then Mammamaia is correct it needs to be of a certain quality.
and, if you want a self-published book to be sold widely enough to help others, then that needs to be decent quality writing, also...
ok..here goes guys..im guna give it a try..where and how do u go about planning the beginning of yr.story-the character, situations.. where do u start?..lol cheers all!
Absolutely! Readers don't get an exclusive pass to writing. Everyone can and should write. You probably read more than you realize, you just don't read fictional works.
only you can decide that, since it's all about you, not some fictional character... so you have to do what i said earlier and go to a bookstore or libary, see how others who've written books similar to what you want to write have done it... you have two basic choices... either start where you are now and then go back and tell how you got to this stage in your life/disease/whatever, or start at the onset of your problem/s...
Writing is your inner voice, so I believe that you can defiantly write even if you don't read. Most importantly, share you story with the world! When you're writing something personal, the emotions tend to be more passionate and raw. That's beautiful. However, you have to be careful that you don't get too caught up in your emotions and the tiny details that don't serve a purpose in your writing. I say this because I notice that I do it all of the time. It's what makes my non-fiction writing both good and bad. Good luck!
