In Which I Listen Selectively

I'm reading a blog post on Figment. An author is giving writing advice. 


Tip #4 goes out on here to rock4ever95, since the subtitle of his blog is "A place for me to stroke my inflated ego."


"4. Be true to your vision and voice. I believe that being a successful artist in any medium requires a massive ego. If you don’t have one, I have to question the unique or lasting value of your art."


Tip #5, however, I choose to ignore. Clockwork would remain a non-sensical half-formed piece of crap if not for the very specific feedback of my writing group. I am not giving them up without a very big, very bloody fight, and probably not even then. They're incredibly helpful. Plus, I like them.






"I'm not dead yet!"


Then again, I do try to keep them away from first drafts. Even they still have yet to see what NaNoWriMo 2010 spawned.


I would also like to draw attention to #10: "10. Ignore all lists of rules or how to’s for writing fiction."


So there you have it. The rules will help, but you should definitely ignore them. What a worthwhile thing to read.