There’s been a bit of drama on writing YouTube recently. A relatively new writing YouTuber had the audacity to talk about what they’ve learned about the gig, including what does and doesn’t work and what is and isn’t helpful to them, and it kicked off a minor flurry of responses and reactions. That’s not what this is about, although it is tangentially. This is about a growing pattern I’ve noticed of both creators and commentators that this drama has showcased. More established writers are creating a wildly hostile environment around entry-level content. And it should stop.
Typically, on YouTube and in podcasts, the refrain goes something like this:
Writing content creators are trite and their advice isn’t good. It’s not focused on craft, it’s all about motivation and aesthetic and basic trendy ideas about writing. It won’t really help writers write better, and it won’t help them get published. We should shun them and demand a better class of writing creator. Also, sign up for my Patreon.
On Reddit and other message boards, it goes like this:
Can we get a moratorium on these basic-ass questions? Look in the sidebar or search before you ask. This has been addressed a thousand times before. God, this community used to be good, but it’s all the same few entry-level questions these days, over and over and over.
These takes are bad.
Look, I get it. I get the frustration. A video listicle about the 10 best romantasy tropes, with cute lighting and jaunty music and silly presentation, regardless of whether I like the creator or not, is not going to help me with my upmarket historical fiction. BookTok is likely not going to help me find the next great novel that will inspire my to more greatness (although that’s probably because I’m simply not on TikTok at all). Writerly Instagram aesthetics and Pinterest boards of writer-chic desk layouts and planners and bookcase decorating tips are not going to get me more organized and get my novel edited, for once and for all.
But these things are being treated like they’re somehow bad for the people making the point – and they’re simply not.
Listen, let me address the people making these arguments. Okay, friend – You’ve just grown beyond those creators as an artist. Congratulations. No, seriously! I’m proud of you. Taking your craft seriously is a huge deal, and I’d love to talk to you about how you approach your work.
Lots of ink has already been spilled about “main character syndrome,” and I’m getting a strong whiff of it here. I’m sorry – because you don’t find a question on a message board helpful for you or timely for your writing career or unique in your experience means that it’s not a valid question or concern from the author? Sorry, you outgrew videos about basic plots and character archetypes and Joseph Campbell and reheated Save the Cat concepts and you already committed On Writing to memory, and so nobody is allowed to talk about them?
It’s not for you. If that’s so emotionally challenging that you need to write a callout post or YouTube video or podcast about how terrible it is, then you should really reflect on that.
Because – and here’s the hot take in this – I think a lot of that stuff is actually good for new writers. I don’t care for it anymore and clearly these people don’t, but new writers need a few things: encouragement, motivation, self-reflection, community, identity. New writers will arrive at craft the same way we all do: as a product of loving to write. But to get there, we need to write first, and to write first, we need to feel like we’re learning and like we’re safe to do so. These content creators who make aesthetic writing vlogs and listicles about tips and talk about “show, don’t tell” and basic story structure and following steps to write a better book – they’re doing a service. Again I’m addressing the people who make the argument against these things – the service is not to you. That doesn’t mean they’re not doing a service. These are all things that can make a novice writer pause and reflect about thier own practice, their own persepective, their own perferences.
Yes, some of these creators have never published a book before and yes, some of their advice is trite and yes, some of them have published and their books have been messes. But you don’t need to be an all-star player to be a good coach and you definitely don’t need to be an all-star player to coach the local Little League team. Please, grade them on the appropriate curve here.
People failing to understand what is and is not for them, and failing to respond appropriately, is an absolute plague. If this is you I’m describing, I implore you to figure it out. You’re going to alienate new writers from things that bring them joy and a sense of community, and that benefits nobody. If this is you I’m describing, bring them in, and lift them up. And if you’re looking for craft and technical discussion and higher-level insights, go find them elsewhere and stop bemoaning creators who never claimed to be giving them in the first place. If you’re looking for duck confit, don’t show up at the family-friendly fast casual place up the street and get upset when they serve nuggets.
And one more thing: instead of getting grumpy about people finding value in the easy things, treat it with enthusiasm and as an opportunity to share the next step with them. XKCD said it best:
If newer writers are reading this, then friend, I implore you to like what you like. Consume the advice and content that motivates you and brings you joy and helps you find your footing as a creator. And remember this feeling, because some day you too will grow beyond those creators, and when you do, I encourage you to be as open and inviting as those basic, listicle-spouting, trope-analyzing YouTubers were when you were first coming up. Because we all benefit when we add new voices to the conversation, and some people join the conversation through small talk.
As always, folks, paddle your own canoe.
– Trevor
