A Writer's Shortcomings

It's certainly not impossible to overcome a particular writing deficiency, but it takes work. And before work, it takes recognizing the flaw. To me, my writing seems fine, but others' views differ.

The (very) few reviews I've gotten on my books hint at a lack of depth, without blatantly coming out and saying it. (You gotta read between the lines with these things.) What I consistently fail to do is immerse a reader in a scene. I'm deficient in writing description, because I don't think in those terms. 

I know a writer needs to employ the five senses, although "taste" seems rather difficult to weave into a story. The other four, though, sure, I get it. Maybe my characters are too inner-focused; engrossed in their particular circumstances so much that they don't take notice of their surroundings. While I understand the need for description, when I deliberately set out to add some, it's awkward. How much is enough? How much is too much? 

There's a writer/editor whose videos I follow on YouTube. His videos are short, about 20 minutes each, but they're concise. I love concise! Yesterday he had a top ten list of writing failures, and one of them was writing for fellow authors, instead of for readers. I tend to look at flowery description as writing for fellow authors. Like, if a fellow author reads your book, they'll complete a checklist to make sure you've added all the "required" elements. In other words, adding that kind of content seems fake, or trying too hard.

My current novel contains (what to me is) a running joke. The main character moves into a furnished apartment and every time she comes home after time away, she notices that the previous tenant's smells have snuck back in. Great; I used one of the five senses. But when she first moved in, I didn't dedicate one word to the apartment itself. I didn't feel it was relevant to the story. She moved in; now get on with it. Technically, I suppose I should have described her new surroundings, but was I supposed to give a tour? It's an apartment. It's generic. Going back now and adding a paragraph of description seems fake. Therein lies my writing flaw. Adding description feels foreign to me. Of course there's a way to do it organically, but I don't possess that talent.

I was rather proud of myself for remembering to describe the old hotel's lobby, the hotel she lands at after a long night on the road. I got the lighting down, and the old-fashioned furnishings, and yes, the smells; but that amounted to one clause in one sentence. And that description, brief though it was, seemed necessary. The main character was fascinated by the place, and thus, so was I. But she's not fascinated by, or even notices, most of her surroundings. Should she be? That's the question I need to ponder when I consider my "lack of depth". Do readers need something that I as the writer don't? 

Even when I hear my manuscript read back to me, I don't stop and think, hey, that passage needs description! A writer needs to recognize her flaws in order to overcome them.

I think doing writing exercises is the best way to overcome a flaw, but see, I don't have tons of time to spend doing something that will take me away from my primary goal. Yes, that's a Catch-22; I get it. But I'm not twenty-three; I don't have a lot of time left. 

If you're a young writer, yes, work on your writing deficiencies. Find a writing coach who'll point them out; then work to overcome them. Every writer has at least one. Maybe it's dialogue, which happens to be the one thing I'm great at (!) Maybe my greatness comes from all those voices in my head. 👩 Maybe it's story flow; your scenes are disjointed. Maybe your description is too heavy, and it takes the reader out of the story.

In order to have a decent writing career, every writer needs to work at it. Contrary to what many young writers seem to think, it's not all about marketing. I have a suspicion that their mindset is, get a decent cover, spend $$ on advertising, and you can make tons of money off dreck. That's a strategy, I suppose. Not a strategy for self-respect, but maybe that's an old-fashioned notion.

For anyone who takes writing seriously, don't be like me. Spend the time, since you've got it, to learn your craft.