A little honest advice about your writing...
or, the Truth just is.
I do okay as a published writer. I have a few awards and a lot of sales. Which is a nice mix, though I prefer the sales.
They don’t accept awards at the coffee shop.
Occasionally some of my readers are people who want to write a book of their own. They ask me for advice. I give freely. Freely I have been given.
Here’s this week’s question found in my DMs, and then my response…
New Writer Writing: So this question comes about because I've spent some time lately around other writers who talk alot about social commentary and being sensitive, which I abhor even as a liberal. I mean, you know me: I'm a liberal but I'm not a dumbass. Writing is truth and while I understand what they're trying to do, I think they take it too far and it's preachy. I don't like preachy whether I agree with the message or not. My question is this: The most meaningful depiction of an Autistic character that I have ever read is your depiction of Cory. I have a hard time believing that you would use "sensitivity readers" or the like, yet that struck me right to the core of my soul. This may be a complex question, but how did you make him such a powerful character without being a bitch about it (pardon my french)?
French Pardoned.
My Answer: You are too kind. Â And that makes my day. Thank you.
It’s simple.
I just write the truth. Â The modern writer tries to do two things: please everyone, and not offend anyone. Both at the same time.
Those two things are impossible to accomplish individually. Â Much less both at once.
I saw guys like Cory and the hero parents who raise them and I wrote the truth. Warts and all without trying to solve for Utopia.
Whether people like it, or get offended by it, isn’t my concern.  That’s their baggage.  I’m just here to do the truth.
There! Question answered, back to work or whatever the Hell it is I do.
But he wanted to delve.
New Writer Writing: Makes sense. I mean, you have soooooo many voices these days saying "You must do all of this or you are a piece of shit" and it just doesn't ring true. Keep in mind, I agree with these people about a lot of things, but it seems to me that pushing these things is not only counter intuitive, but counter productive. Like nobody is telling me I can't have a homosexual dog with tourettes syndrome leading a rebellion. I understand why people want inclusion, but REQUIRING people to do this stuff is ridiculous. Might as well start book burning IMHO.
I respond thusly: Is t inclusion if some things are excluded?
The truth is... they’re full of manure.  Write whatever you want, and have fun doing it.
Some people are gonna like it.
Some gonna hate on it.
That’s the Truth and it just is.
I just started writing my own book last night, I am a new writer writing, and for me, right now, I am writing for me. If people like it, cool, if they don't, kick rocks. What I write won't be for everyone, and I surely won't sensor myself. I decided to write as a way to decompress from work, and hope people similar minded like it. I'm glad when I (finally got around) to hopping on your substack (about time I know) that this is the first thing I see. You're awesome Nick!
I think a lot of promising writers hamstring themselves by taking the political garbage shoved at them in college seriously. That they must use their voice for change, they must be societally conscious, they must be inclusive, they must do X and Y from the SJW handbook. Apparently, a lot of writing professors leave off the part about being entertaining (Perhaps the syllabus is overfilled with political indoctrination. I dunno) . Some of them will learn-eventually- and some will doom themselves to continue as tortured "sandwich artists". Truth is, as you say, no matter what you write, you're gonna piss somebody off, especially in this day and age. Gotta grow a thick skin and ignore the Twitterati.