My writing’s comparable to the Iliad, the god—the goddessey? The goddessey!
Oh, I kinda like that, it's like Goddess. I’m feeling very goddessey today. I'm making that a thing.
Hellooo, everybody! Sometimes writers are fucking stupid. They think stupid thoughts,
they say stupid things, and they write stupid stories. At first, you might think the writing
community is filled with talent, genius, and artistry. And there are definitely some brilliant
creators out there. But the longer you're in this community, the more you'll come across these
repeat statements that make absolutely no fucking sense. That's what we're talking about today. I'm
talking about the ten stupid things writers say that reveal, they may not be so good at their job.
I guarantee you've heard some of these statements before, and if you have any sense you ran for the
hills. And if you said any of these things, I have one word for you. STOP! You're not making yourself
look good. People are giving you the side eye and avoiding your writing like the plague. I'm trying
to help you. Let me help you. Or just get angry in the comments. It's your funeral, not mine.
​​(The sound of a pen scratching. LOGO.)
Before we get started, a huge thank you to Millanote for sponsoring today's video.
Millanote is an easy to use tool that allows you to organize your thoughts and ideas into visual
boards. It's not the same as traditional software. Most software works as a linear document whereas
Millanote is more like a studio wall or a poster board. Which makes way more sense,
because creativity is anything but linear let me tell you. Millanote allows you to take your big
mess of ideas and move them around however you please. Which is perfect for mapping out ideas,
organizing, and of course planning your novel. It serves as a creative hub for whatever you're
working on. Like planning your author platform, creating characters, structuring your story,
world building, and every other asset of planning your book. On top of that you can share your work
with critique partners if you want comments or feedback. Personally, I'm a huge fan of Millanote.
I use this platform literally every day. I use it to plan out my YouTube content. I use it to
work out my newsletter. And of course I use it to map out my writing including my world, plot,
outline, and creating characters. And even better, you can use Millanote for free! $0! I'm serious.
If you're ready to start planning your book, sign up for FREE to Millanote using the link
below. And if you're super hyped about it, upgrade to the pro subscription, that's what I use. I'm
obsessed. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel. I post new videos on Wednesdays, and if you wanna
be alerted as SOON as I upload, you know what you gotta do. You gotta ring that bell. Do me a solid.
I'll love you forever. The Savior's Champion and The Savior’s Sister are available in ebook,
paperback, hardback and audiobooks. So if you like yourself some award winning dark fantasy romance,
definitely check out the first two books in the series, before the third book comes out.
You wanna get in on the action ahead of time. I got ‘em linked below. Now I am breaking down the
ten stupid things writers say that don't exactly leave a positive impression, to put it delicately.
Number One (1): My book fits every genre, it's got a little bit of everything. In other words,
I don't know how genres work. A genre is a category of fiction for the plot of your novel.
Not your subplots, not your character arcs, not every nook and cranny of the story.
The plot. Unless your plot is the most convoluted dumpster fire ever, there is no way it fits into
every single genre. Typically writers say this for one of two reasons. One, they're taking
every detail into consideration, including the elements that aren't particularly important to
the story at large. Or two, they're trying to upsell their novel to make it sound complex and
special. It's not working. You've achieved the opposite. Writers, I know your work is really
important to you, as it should be. But there is nothing wrong with giving your novel a concise,
plot specific label. In fact, that's exactly how the industry works. At least if you wanna sell
any books at all. Number Two (2): My book is for everyone. I mean, literally everybody will love
it. In other words, I'm an alien from outer space who is unfamiliar with the concept of freewill.
It's great to be confident in your writing, writers should feel immense pride in their work.
But claiming every single person will love your writing reveals two huge problems. First of all,
it shows you fail to grasp the reality of the industry. Art is subjective, even the best most
widely acclaimed pieces of fiction are hated by tons of people. It is literally impossible to
appeal to everyone, because we all have different tastes! Hell, plenty of people don't like books
period. Second, it shows you fail to hone in on your target audience which is not only bad
news for your writing, but terrible news for your marketing. How are you supposed to sell your book
if you have no idea who you're selling it to? I know you want to widen your readership and to give
people a great impression of your book, but this is not the way to do it. Instead, focus
on appealing to your actual target audience, and watch the dollars roll in. Number Three (3): My
book isn't a normal book, it's dark and edgy. In other words, I don't read. Look, there is
nothing wrong with writing dark fiction. Hell, I am a dark fantasy writer, clearly I am a fan. But
when you say that your work is edgy because it's dark, that's when you reveal your lack of reading
experience. I don't know if you're familiar but a lot of fiction features violence, murder, torture,
demons, self harm and tons of other very, very dark elements. It's not unique. In fact, it's
extremely common. And that's fine. There's nothing wrong with writing elements that have been done
before. Darkness is common in fiction because people enjoy it. You just can't use edginess
as some pretentious measure to separate yourself from other writers because it doesn't separate you
from other writers. It's not edgy to write dark fiction. We're all dismembering our characters
too. It ain't that deep. Number Four (4): The only reason I'm not selling copies is because
no one appreciates my artistic genius. In other words, I'm not willing to accept even a remote
shed of blame for my personal failings. There are a million rational reasons why books don't sell:
the cover is terrible, the blurb is a mess, the title isn't searchable for a variety of reasons.
You didn't market the book, you didn't utilize any promotional tactics, you didn't announce its
release whatsoever. And of course, maybe the book is bad. But there isn't a writer alive who isn't
selling because they're too much of a genius. That's not a thing that happens. Sure you may
be a creative genius, and maybe your book isn't selling, but that's not why it's not selling. Your
book might be a masterpiece, but if you slapped on a shitty cover and did dick-all marketing,
it's not gonna sell. You can rely on this excuse all you want, but at the end of the day,
it's not gonna improve your position. You can either learn from your mistakes and do better,
or you can drown in your denial. Up to you. Number Five (5): My writing’s comparable to the Iliad,
The Odyssey and Beowulf. In other words, my ego is as fragile as a pair of testicles.
Who says something like this with a straight face? I genuinely wanna know. How can you compare your
work to some of the most epic pieces throughout history and then think to yourself, ‘Yeah,
that checks out.’ I'm not saying your work is bad, though that usually tracks with people who
say shit like this. But it's like comparing your painting to the Mona Lisa. It just takes arrogance
to a new level. First of all, art is not deemed monumental by the artists themselves. This title
is given by the consumers, the audience, and in this case, the readers. If your readers think
you've written the next Odyssey, that's great, but that is not a judgment for you to make. Second,
the writing style of these epics do not hold up in modern literature. So if you're trying to emulate
them, your audience is gonna be a whole lot of zero. I've said it before, and I'll say it again,
confidence is key in this industry. But there is a big difference between self assurance and self
delusion. Number Six (6): I don't really read. I'm writing this book because I watch TV, movies,
and anime. In other words, my book probably sucks. This is not a dig at these forms of media,
or anyone who enjoys them. And it's fine if you are inspired by other artistic mediums
while writing. I'm personally heavily inspired by music. But if you don't read, this doesn't
bode well for your writing. You sorta gotta study the art form in order to create that kind of art.
This should be common sense. This doesn't mean you gotta read a hundred books a year. Not everyone
can do that. I sure as hell can't. But you gotta read something, especially your genre. Make an
effort. And at the very least, don't tell people you don't read. It's pretty embarrassing. Writers
who don't read usually don't write good books. So you're just telling people to avoid your work at
all costs. Number Seven (7): My writing doesn't cater to the PC police. In other words, I want to
write racial slurs and you can't stop me. Listen, regular people don't care about PC police, and
that's for one obvious reason, they're not bigots. “But Jennaaa, the woke crowd is trying to stifle
my artistic expression.” That's a load of bullshit and you know it. Some of the most popular books in
recent history are about child murder, societally enforced rape, and graphic dismemberment of
genitals. Nothing about fiction is PC, and most of the time that's the point. Literally no one
is repressing your art. What happened is, your art told on you. You release the garbage story,
people noticed, and now you're shittin’ your diaper. Number Eight (8): I believe in engaging
with my reviewers. In other words, I believe in harassing everyone who gives me less than five
stars. It's a well known industry expectation, writers stay out of reviewer spaces. If you
want to read your reviews, that's on you. And if you want to thank someone for a positive review,
that's fine. But you do not respond to, engage with, or defend yourself against negative reviews.
That's creepy. Writers like this claim they're not offended. They're just trying to learn and grow.
But we all know that horseshit. You can learn and grow without badgering strangers online. Plus,
we've seen your engagement. You're just throwing a tantrum, top notch maturity. Even if you want to
defend this engagement, the fact is, reviewers don't like it. It makes them uncomfortable and
they will not hesitate to blacklist you for being a creeper. Engage if you want to, but be
prepared to sacrifice your reputation as a result. Number Nine (9): What should I write about? In
other words, do my job for me. I wish this wasn't such a common question. But at least once a week
someone asks me, “What should I write about?” Bitch, I don't know. It's your book. Why the fuck
are you asking me? The thing about writing is it's a grueling, time consuming task, with no guarantee
of financial gain. That means if you decide to write a book you better damn well be passionate
about that plotline. So if this was your passion, why are you asking strangers to choose the plot
for you? Better yet, why are you unloading the entire creative process onto someone else? That's
the best part! It leads me to believe you're not actually excited about the writing process.
You just want to be a writer for other arbitrary reasons, like prestige. And if you can't come up
with your own plot, I don't know how you expect to write an entire book because this shit is fucking
hard. And Number Ten (10): I don't need an editor, I'm really good at proofreading. In other words,
I have no idea what an editor actually does. Proofreading means checking for small errors like
typos or missing words. Editors edit. They check for inconsistencies in your story. They assess the
character arcs. They highlight filler and fluff. They address your world, your plot, and subplots,
your pacing and tension. They fix your grammar and punctuation. They address your sentence structure
and tone. And that's not even half of it. Did you think about any of this shit while you were
proofreading? Didn't think so. I understand editors are expensive, but that's because
they are providing a service. It's almost like it's their job. And when you're doing your job,
typically you're supposed to get paid. Look, I don't care if you are the best proofreader in
the world. If your book isn't edited, it's not done. Congratulations you’ve released a draft
to the masses. That probably wasn't a smart move. So that's all I got for you today. A huge thank
you to Millanote for sponsoring today's video. If you want to get to planning your book and you want
a great space to organize all of your ideas, your characters, and your world. Definitely check them
out. Like I said, I use them every single day. Even better, you can try Millanote out for FREE
right now. I have ‘em link below. Get on this platform for free. And if you super-mega love
‘em like I do, upgrade to the pro subscription! You will love it. Don't forget to subscribe to my
channel. I post new videos on Wednesdays, and if you wanna be alerted as SOON as I upload,
ring that bell. The Savior's Champion and The Savior’s Sister are available in ebook,
paperback, hardback and audiobooks. So if you like yourself some award winning dark fantasy romance,
definitely check out the first two books in The Savior Series before the third book comes out.
They're linked below. And be sure to follow me on social media. I'm on Instagram, Tumblr,
Facebook and BookBub. And of course you can tweet me @JennaMoreci! Bye!
(Rumbling Male Voice) This is Brontes. Why, the FUCK, haven’t you subscribed to Jenna’s channel?
Do you REALLY want to face me? If you don’t do it, you know what will happen, I’ll rip
out your tongue, torture you, then leave your rotten corpse out for the birds to feast on it!
Now, press the goddamn button, and the bell, too…