6 ms·

I love reading, do it a lot of and per my Goodreads I’m “well read”. I’m less convinced how much I’ve learned from all the reading that would make me a better w

I love reading, do it a lot of and per my Goodreads I’m “well read”. I’m less convinced how much I’ve learned from all the reading that would make me a better writer though. I definitely fell into the trap of wanting to have written a book myself. I grew out of that but still felt/feel like I want to write. The issue that remains is that I’m just not sure I have anything to say!

pitched 24d ago
> not sure I have anything to say You wrote something here and I read it. If you really feel it had such low value, why put it here for me to waste time reading it? The best way I’ve found to start writing is to time box yourself. Set aside 15 minutes and just don’t let yourself do anything else. I feel very accomplished now that I’ve wasted just as much of your time back lol
PaulRobinson 24d ago
This requires a little effort. Finding your voice, finding your themes and all that. Also, the Taste Gap, as it's sometimes called, is a real thing - plenty written about it online, but Ira Glass is considered the first person to really nail it [0]. As this is HN, worth noting Paul Graham also had something to say about taste [1]. This means you're going to have to put some work in to figure out how to write and to get good at it, but it's normally worthwhile. I've been trying to get myself into this groove for a while, but just not getting there for all sorts of reasons, so I can relate to everyone who is struggling, but I also know this is not a problem specific to me, it's specific to the art, in fact all art. [0] https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/309485-nobody-tells-this-to-people-who-are-beginners-i-wish https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/309485-nobody-tells-this-to... [1] https://paulgraham.com/taste.html https://paulgraham.com/taste.html

6 ms·

I love reading, do it a lot of and per my Goodreads I’m “well read”. I’m less convinced how much I’ve learned from all the reading that would make me a better w

by jebarker 25d ago

pitched 24d ago
> not sure I have anything to say You wrote something here and I read it. If you really feel it had such low value, why put it here for me to waste time reading it? The best way I’ve found to start writing is to time box yourself. Set aside 15 minutes and just don’t let yourself do anything else. I feel very accomplished now that I’ve wasted just as much of your time back lol
PaulRobinson 24d ago
This requires a little effort. Finding your voice, finding your themes and all that. Also, the Taste Gap, as it's sometimes called, is a real thing - plenty written about it online, but Ira Glass is considered the first person to really nail it [0]. As this is HN, worth noting Paul Graham also had something to say about taste [1]. This means you're going to have to put some work in to figure out how to write and to get good at it, but it's normally worthwhile. I've been trying to get myself into this groove for a while, but just not getting there for all sorts of reasons, so I can relate to everyone who is struggling, but I also know this is not a problem specific to me, it's specific to the art, in fact all art. [0] https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/309485-nobody-tells-this-to-people-who-are-beginners-i-wish https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/309485-nobody-tells-this-to... [1] https://paulgraham.com/taste.html https://paulgraham.com/taste.html