Post History

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/7928
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

This question reminds me of [Dan Heller's advice](http://www.danheller.com/blog/posts/why-being-photographers-assistant-is.html) about getting started in the photography business. He's talking about a different situation (photography apprenticeship), but he makes a point that applies equally well to the writing business:

> [They] start by being photographers **of things ... that they know really, really well.** Usually the kinds of things they did before they took up photography. This may include a previous career, hobby, interest, or degree they got in college (outside of photography). The better you know something else, the better your chance for leveraging that knowledge to build a photo career. Anything that separates you from everyone else.

In short: Your best art comes from stuff that you know, that you're passionate about. Writers know this idea well: **Write what you know.** Heller also cautions about the dangers of working with subjects that you aren't passionate about:

> So, here's the caveat: those who have no substantive background before photography are not likely to do well in this business. Yes, this applies to the wide-eyed and ambitious 18-year olds who email me saying, **"I don't care what I shoot, I just want to learn the business and have a career in photography."** Such people who intern for other photographers almost always end up either assisting their entire careers, or they lose interest in photography and go elsewhere.

So if you don't have any writing ideas that you're passionate about, think about what you _do_ care about and look for ideas there. Is there some social problem you care deeply about? Frame it as speculative fiction. Love puzzles? Write a whodunit. Is there a fiction genre you especially like? Think about what's missing from it and fill the gap. Figure out what you know and care about and write about that, so that you don't burn out.

Original score: 7