During the rest of February, we'll be taking a look at some well-known pieces of writing advice that really don't work. Here's the first:
"Write what you know". How many times have you heard
that?
On the face of it, it seems like pretty sensible advice. Focus on what you're already familiar with (whether that's a particular job, a stage of life, the place you live, an emotional experience...) and your writing will be true-to-life.
The problem is, "write what you know" (a) doesn't necessarily result in anything worth reading and (b) could well prevent you from writing what you want to
write.
What if you want to write about space travel? Or orcs and goblins? Or psychopathic serial murderers? Or everyday life in the 17th century?
Some topics aren't ones that you'll have personally experienced, though of course you may be able to research them (historical fiction / "hard" science fiction", police procedurals). Others will be flights of imagination (fantasy, supernatural
thrillers).
You might also want to write about characters who are very different from you. More daring. More outrageous. More likable. More villainous.
Of course, like all bad writing advice, there's a kernel of truth in "write what you know". Even if you're writing fantasy, you can still put in a lot of stuff that's true to what you know: the relationships between people, different emotions, prejudice against individuals who look
different ...
You can also use "what you know" as a starting point for something that's very much a feat of imagination (for instance, Phillip Pullman, who lived and taught in Oxford, creates a fantasy-universe version of Oxford in Northern Lights).
And, of course, you can use "what you know" quite literally, if that suits you. But if you're going to write a semi-autobiographical novel, make sure it's actually interesting to
readers (it may well be; keep in mind that what's likely ordinary for you could be unusual and exotic to a reader on the other side of the world).
So what would better advice look like? My version would be "write what you most want to write ... and fill it with as much truth as you can".
