This Is a telltale Sign That You've Arrived As A Writer
Photo by: Marcus Spiske
The lovely people at Writing Workshops published an interview with me today. In it, they call me a “Teaching Artist” and ask questions about my inspiration. I have never been called a teaching artist, and I must admit it’s growing on me.
If you could all refer to me now as Sir Jonathan Small, Teaching Artist, that would be much appreciated.
You can find the full interview here.
It’s strange—I often ask my Write About Now Podcast guests about the best advice they have ever received about writing, but nobody has ever asked me that question. I had to step way back in a time machine to answer.
Here’s how it went down.
Q: What is the best piece of writing wisdom you've received that you can pass along to our readers? How did it impact your work? Why has this advice stuck with you?
You know you're a good writer when your editors and peers stop praising you. To me, this means you have arrived at a level where your excellence is expected and doesn't have to be acknowledged. An editor said that to me very early in my career, and it made me less anxious about seeking external reinforcement and praise. My work speaks for itself.
I’m still unsure why this 10-second conversation stuck with me for so long.
It happened while I was picking up a story I’d written off an editor’s desk—we still read hard copies back then. She was an early mentor and the first to give me a writing assignment: a phone interview with George Carlin.
As I surveyed the copy for her usual notes of encouragement—“This is great!” “You really nailed it!”- I was surprised to find nothing but a few comma corrections and an “awk transition.”
She could see my obvious disappointment and dropped that little gem of wisdom.
Writing is a very solitary and lonely endeavor. It’s natural to want reinforcement and accolades. It’s even more natural to get depressed when you don’t receive it. Just know that you don’t need that all the time.
Do the nurses stand and applaud every time a surgeon finishes an operation? Do the passengers on an airline personally congratulate the pilot after she lands the plane safely? Maybe during this trip, but not that often.
My point is—the mark of a professional is making excellence look routine.