Thinking about writing a book

[williammac]

I've been thinking about writing a book. Essentially, I have had a number of ideas for both fiction and non-fiction books. Most of my fiction ideas have been turned into scripts because they're easier for me to write and I see things in images moreover than words. However, there are a few books I've convinced myself I've wanted to write that are non-fiction and more opinion based. The two that I've told myself I would write when I'm much older (maybe in my 40s) are the following: "The Savvy Vice: How to Drink and Smoke" and "The Laws of The Universe".

My original idea for the two aforementioned non-fiction opinion books would be a philosophical outlook on what the titles imply. They would be topical, humorous, and written in an essay narrative like fashion.

However, today I thought to myself "Why not write something now, and write a series of essays on a range of topics and give my opinions and philosophies on them." I thought of the title, "My Thoughts on Stuff: From Cigarettes to The Universe -- an Incredibly Reasonable Read"

My only problem is that, even though I'm sure I could write this now, and I could write it quickly and easily, and it would also be very marketable, I keep thinking that it is not my place to write these things now because of my age. I'm 21-years-old. I keep thinking that people will not take it seriously, even though I would be incredibly subjective, humorous, and topical.

I wonder, does the age and established reputation of a person play a big role in whether or not you will respect a person's opinion? I think it does. That is why I write scripts and figure I'll get into film first and use fiction to get out any ideas instead of writing as if I am any kind of authority on a subject.

As a high-school drop-out who has only one semester of college under his belt, I am still self-conscience about myself and how others will respect me. Event though I have become a successful journalist and write on a myriad of subjects from Music and lifestyle to politics and travel, the difference is that my age and rank is not announced in the places I am published in. Likewise, I have met very few of my editors or my readers, which is the way I try to keep because I think that when people do meet me and see how young I am, that they will no longer respect me. Most of the people I write for think I'm older than I am, and I never give out my age.

I really want to write this book. I think it would not only be fun to write, but it would be a fun and enlightening and thought provoking read. Yet, once again, I figure people won't respect what I write because of my age unless it's fiction. It's hard for me to write fiction in the novel or short-story sense, only in a script writing format. It's easier for me to write opinions and non-fiction in novel or essay formats.

Let me know your thoughts, and I would like some advice. Wait until much later? Or do it now. I'm a little scared, will this have the same "punch" later on in life? What if life has changed drastically during that time? It's rather confusing for me. All writers are inherently overly self-critical and always feel as if they are lesser or no one will respect their art. The stereotypes about writers and illustrators is absolutely true! So keep that in mind, hah hah. I don't like stereotypes, but since most of them have been created by writers, then I can vouch for them, hah hah. It takes a certain personality.



-William
www.William-Mac.com

[chris]

I have thought exactly the same thing...Will other people take me seriously?

Well I've wrote quite a lot of stuff on all different subjects and I just take it as a way to solidify my thoughts.

I've written from ethics to some weird sci-fi...I think my problem is that I write too much for an article and far too little for a book...

I don't know about creditability as a fictional writer because I am a bit in the same boat as you. I'm writing this one short story where people started messing with time travel and it got so out of control that time ceased to exist and was constantly being updated through the time machine which was itself constantly evolving and it had a theme of the garden of Eden and was kind of a sci-fi style analogy of the fall (but in reverse). Haven't finished it yet but I've set it up for so many twists about the history of time and the time machine, it's extremely metaphorical and I think has a lot of truth to it.

I think my biggest problem though is that my grammar is terrible...In England we were never taught grammar, it has changed now but seriously, we were so dumbed down in my school...I need to get a book on grammar...

I say write to your hearts content, maybe just write short stories and then bundle them together into a book...

I would say that to write a real piece of factual information then you've got to either be very highly credentialed or be absolutely immaculate and hard hitting on research, preferably both. If you are anti-nwo, prepare to have your work rubbished and discredited no matter what.

[shodan]

"My Thoughts on Stuff: From Cigarettes to The Universe -- an Incredibly Reasonable Read"

Thats an awesome title - my advice would be start writing it right now, get the thoughts down, if you get waylaid along the way and end up leaving it for years then you can re-write it with an acumulation of your current wisdom and your future wisdom.

[neutron flux]

My only problem is that, even though I'm sure I could write this now, and I could write it quickly and easily, and it would also be very marketable, I keep thinking that it is not my place to write these things now because of my age. I'm 21-years-old. I keep thinking that people will not take it seriously, even though I would be incredibly subjective, humorous, and topical.

I wonder, does the age and established reputation of a person play a big role in whether or not you will respect a person's opinion? I think it does. That is why I write scripts and figure I'll get into film first and use fiction to get out any ideas instead of writing as if I am any kind of authority on a subject.

As a high-school drop-out who has only one semester of college under his belt, I am still self-conscience about myself and how others will respect me. Event though I have become a successful journalist and write on a myriad of subjects from Music and lifestyle to politics and travel, the difference is that my age and rank is not announced in the places I am published in. Likewise, I have met very few of my editors or my readers, which is the way I try to keep because I think that when people do meet me and see how young I am, that they will no longer respect me. Most of the people I write for think I'm older than I am, and I never give out my age.


Cameron Crowe was writing for Rolling Stone magazine at 15, so I wouldn't let these things act as an obsruction to you. Just do it. What have you got to lose? This fear of loss of respect only exists in your head and doesn't necessarily reflect reality.

[williammac]

I have thought exactly the same thing...Will other people take me seriously?

Well I've wrote quite a lot of stuff on all different subjects and I just take it as a way to solidify my thoughts.

I've written from ethics to some weird sci-fi...I think my problem is that I write too much for an article and far too little for a book...

I don't know about creditability as a fictional writer because I am a bit in the same boat as you. I'm writing this one short story where people started messing with time travel and it got so out of control that time ceased to exist and was constantly being updated through the time machine which was itself constantly evolving and it had a theme of the garden of Eden and was kind of a sci-fi style analogy of the fall (but in reverse). Haven't finished it yet but I've set it up for so many twists about the history of time and the time machine, it's extremely metaphorical and I think has a lot of truth to it.

I think my biggest problem though is that my grammar is terrible...In England we were never taught grammar, it has changed now but seriously, we were so dumbed down in my school...I need to get a book on grammar...

I say write to your hearts content, maybe just write short stories and then bundle them together into a book...

I would say that to write a real piece of factual information then you've got to either be very highly credentialed or be absolutely immaculate and hard hitting on research, preferably both. If you are anti-nwo, prepare to have your work rubbished and discredited no matter what.

I don't think you need to worry too much about grammar. I'm not very good at grammar. I'll tell you what my first editor told me "We hired you because you have raw talent, we knew you weren't experienced and we knew you weren't grammatically correct. However, we have a guy on staff here that is absolutely flawless with grammar, but tell him to go to a bar and write about it and it'll be the most mundane thing you've ever read. A real writer is someone who can walk into any situation and paint it with words to where the reader can taste the air. Let the editors take care of the grammar."

As long as you have a basic idea of how to make a sentence sound good, then you're fine. Punctuation is just the stop signs and street signals for writing. They tell the reader when to pause, when to go, when to read slowly, and so on. They're only there to better get your "tone" across.

Three books I will recommend that will help you (I've not even read all of either one, but I do consistently look through them for what I need, and they are always incredibly helpful, when I have the time I will one day read them in their entirety and try to absorb the content):

Strunk & White's "Elements of Style" -- This is the most extensive, most well-known, most to-the-point, and most revered book on writing. It is small, it will fit in your pocket, yet the knowledge you will gain from it is infinite.

"Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Puncuation" by Lynne Truss. -- This book is very witty and cunning, as well as informative. But as an American I quickly get annoyed with the British running-off-at-the-mouth approach of writing while trying to be overly witty all of the time. It's still an excellent read, and shows the power of punctuation. For example, the title itself demonstrates this. She says that you could either think someone "Eats, shoots & leaves" meaning they eat dinner, shoot something (like a gun) and then leaves or if you remove the comma it would be "Eats shoots & leaves" like a Panda bear's diet. See? Kind of cool, huh. WARNING: You will grow incredibly mean for a while. You'll see a sing like "TV's, VCR's, and DVD's for sale" and get incredibly angry, if you don't already know why, read the book, hah hah.

"On Writing" by Steven King -- despite what you think about Steven King, this book is an ode to "Elements of Style" but a much longer version. It has an incredibly interesting biography about Steven and how he came to be successful, which is helpful for any aspiring writer, and it goes on to also talk about all of the ways to write that are appropriate and inappropriate.

Also, keep in mind that you are the writer. The creativity comes from you, not the grammar. Editors are there because...well, for the most part they aren't creative. So, they edit other people's work, hah hah. And any book publisher or magazine that accepts short stories or novels will understand less than perfect grammar if the story is good and solid.

CONCERNING MY BOOK, I was wanting to do a series of essay narratives. For example, let's say one was called "The Art of Smoking". I would very casually talk about how I became to be a smoker, how people perceive smokers today, and I would joke about how we're outcast. I would then talk about how people, for the most part, have lost the whole philosophy of smoking, and it has become an addiction instead of an enjoyment, a disgusting habit instead of a classy vice that meant intellectualism and so on.

I would write this same way on a variety of subjects. I would write about media concerning the news, and another essay concerning... maybe... modern cartoons.

I would write about the laws of the universe, I would write about religion. Just a broad number of subjects that I have though extensively about and have come to my own personal conclusions. They are not conclusions based on pure fact, they are conclusions based on philosophy and individual thought and experience.

So it wouldn't be an opinion as "you have to take my opinion," it would basically be a number of alternate ways of thinking about everyday things; things that everyone thinks about, and things that most people don't think about. I think it would help people gain a different perspective. Like "That's funny, I never thought about that."



You know? Also, I would love to see some things you have written.





-William
www.William-Mac.com

[williammac]

Cameron Crowe was writing for Rolling Stone magazine at 15, so I wouldn't let these things act as an obsruction to you. Just do it. What have you got to lose? This fear of loss of respect only exists in your head and doesn't necessarily reflect reality.

I can understand writing for a magazine at an early age. Writing a piece for a magazine that you researched, got quotes on, and so on is primarily factual documentation paired with your own personal writing style. It's the writing style and tone of the writing that make it interesting, and the person's ability to think up good topical stories and get the quotes and information that make a successful magazine journalist or columnist.

I freelance and contribute to a lot of publications, and I'm on staff with a quarterly music publication.

Writing a book filled with a series of essay narratives is a lot different. It isn't journalism, it's opinion brought about by personal thought and consideration. Usually, once a person is older and more established as a writer (let's say like Mark Twain for example) then that person's opinions on any kind of subject are respected to a certain degree because of the person's seniority and experience and age.

Yet, I'm young, I'm not established. So, writing my opinions on a variety of subjects, even though they'll be humorous and topical, may not garner any respect. Perhaps it would even create a backlash and ruin my feasibility as a fledgling writer and artist. People might say "who is this young punk running around with no established reputational background giving out these opinions on the entire world... he didn't even finish high school, what the fuck does he know?"



-William
www.William-Mac.com

[chris]

lol, 'The art of smoking' that could go down as a cult classic in England. Things are going the exact opposite way at the moment.

I have started a lot of things but I have not finished them:D I'm a bit blowy when it comes to this...I guess it's because I don't actually want to be a writer but I do take pleasure in writing or maybe it's because wrapping things up is the hardest part.
Here is something short I wrote on meditation the other day (kind of tongue in cheek but wisdom inside)…

http://davidicke.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11193

[aitch]

Dude, I don't mean to be negative ..... but Publishers are inundated with writers (young and old) who have a book about their own "rebellious personal opinions/philosophy" or "what they have learned about life" etc etc ..... in the big scheme of things there is no real market for books of this nature ..... unless you are a celebrity of course !! ;)

Best of luck though and I hope you beat the odds against you !! :)

[williammac]

Dude, I don't mean to be negative ..... but Publishers are inundated with writers (young and old) who have a book about their own "rebellious personal opinions/philosophy" or "what they have learned about life" etc etc ..... in the big scheme of things there is no real market for books of this nature ..... unless you are a celebrity of course !! ;)

Best of luck though and I hope you beat the odds against you !! :)

I know the market. That isn't what the book would be about at all. It's not about learning anything about life.

It would be a collection of narrative essays geared towards ironic humor and alternate and over-thought views on subjects that most people wouldn't...well, think that much about.

Concerning the smoking thing, even though I haven't actually written anything on it, I'll roll off a line or two:

"Growing up in the south, smoking was everywhere. Even towards the tail end of the 90s I would see people openly smoking in super markets, at the airport, in the malls, or inside pancake houses. I had always considered smoking to be a classy art form. To me, smoking is what you did if you were a well dressed savvy businessman or delightfully dischevled intellectual stooping over an old Smith Corona. Granted, I took these impressions from the myriad of old black and white movies I watched, but still, Carey Grant and Humphrey Bogart were the shit.

At a young age I set out to be a smoker, and I couldn't wait. Even now, as I write this, I'm smoking a cigarette. Yet, I may not have embarked on the habit had I foreseen the overwhelming scrutiny and disgusted looks that all of those non-smokers would be shooting my way. Having long hair and being a young man doesn't help.

Gone are the days of the savvy smoker and well respected vice ridden geniuses. And although I still see savvy businessmen smoking in Airports along with the day-dreaming intellectuals, they're now housed in glass cases labeled "smoking". Little children walk by with their stressed out mothers and point asking "Mommy, what's that?" Well son, the mothers respond, those are smokers. "Can we feed them Mommy?" the children may ask. "No" the mothers will shoot back in that motherly tone, and then a slender shaking finger tipped with perfectly polished cuticles will point to the sign reading "Please do Not Feed The Smokers."



That was just off the top of my head. But...just a bunch of essays along those lines and in that tone, of course much longer and more drawn out with more thought.



-William
www.William-Mac.com

[adimon]

Williammac - if your aim is publication and a wider audience it can definitely happen, since there are lots of publishers happy to do all kinds of stuff these days. Also, ebooks and internet etc..

I can't recommend a writing project more. I wrote my novel over 10 years and put a lot of my life and thoughts into it, and it's a very special feeling to look at the finished thing.

Very few will achieve fame or fortune with writing...that goes to the formulaic, machine-like writers like Grisham and Cooper, pumping out book after book.

Go for it, and fuck everyone else. I can understand your concerns about reputation, image, being taken seriously.....but Joyce had quite a good reputation when he delivered Finnegan's Wake to the world, and they still don't understand it.

Good luck. :)

[williammac]

Williammac - if your aim is publication and a wider audience it can definitely happen, since there are lots of publishers happy to do all kinds of stuff these days. Also, ebooks and internet etc..

I can't recommend a writing project more. I wrote my novel over 10 years and put a lot of my life and thoughts into it, and it's a very special feeling to look at the finished thing.

Very few will achieve fame or fortune with writing...that goes to the formulaic, machine-like writers like Grisham and Cooper, pumping out book after book.

Go for it, and fuck everyone else. I can understand your concerns about reputation, image, being taken seriously.....but Joyce had quite a good reputation when he delivered Finnegan's Wake to the world, and they still don't understand it.

Good luck. :)

Yeah this book, as a series of short essay narratives, will be incredibly fun to write. I also think it could transform into yearly volumes over time. I don't think it would take long to write, I think it will be one of the easier things I have set out to write, and I believe it will flow fairly consistently without any hang-ups because there is no plot involved. It's like a series of short stories, but instead of fiction it would be entertaining and enlightening thoughts on different subjects both important and trivial.

Still, my only concern is that people will just shun it off as the rantings of a young kid. That's why I've always thought it would be better to write stuff like this when I'm much older. But I just want to get it down and start shopping it as soon as possible. I'm impatient.



-William
www.William-Mac.com

[adimon]

Yeah this book, as a series of short essay narratives, will be incredibly fun to write. I also think it could transform into yearly volumes over time. I don't think it would take long to write, I think it will be one of the easier things I have set out to write, and I believe it will flow fairly consistently without any hang-ups because there is no plot involved. It's like a series of short stories, but instead of fiction it would be entertaining and enlightening thoughts on different subjects both important and trivial.

Still, my only concern is that people will just shun it off as the rantings of a young kid. That's why I've always thought it would be better to write stuff like this when I'm much older. But I just want to get it down and start shopping it as soon as possible. I'm impatient.



-William
www.William-Mac.com

Not only is there a publisher to suit every writer, but for every writer, there is an audience that would love to read it.

[dondaz]

Hi williammac, I have read some of your stuff. Good work.

Steven King once said, 'A writer writes!'

Get writing;)

And finish that documentary, bloody good that is!

[gold]

I've been thinking about writing a book. Essentially, I have had a number of ideas for both fiction and non-fiction books. Most of my fiction ideas have been turned into scripts because they're easier for me to write and I see things in images moreover than words. However, there are a few books I've convinced myself I've wanted to write that are non-fiction and more opinion based. The two that I've told myself I would write when I'm much older (maybe in my 40s) are the following: "The Savvy Vice: How to Drink and Smoke" and "The Laws of The Universe".

My original idea for the two aforementioned non-fiction opinion books would be a philosophical outlook on what the titles imply. They would be topical, humorous, and written in an essay narrative like fashion.

However, today I thought to myself "Why not write something now, and write a series of essays on a range of topics and give my opinions and philosophies on them." I thought of the title, "My Thoughts on Stuff: From Cigarettes to The Universe -- an Incredibly Reasonable Read"

My only problem is that, even though I'm sure I could write this now, and I could write it quickly and easily, and it would also be very marketable, I keep thinking that it is not my place to write these things now because of my age. I'm 21-years-old. I keep thinking that people will not take it seriously, even though I would be incredibly subjective, humorous, and topical.

I wonder, does the age and established reputation of a person play a big role in whether or not you will respect a person's opinion? I think it does. That is why I write scripts and figure I'll get into film first and use fiction to get out any ideas instead of writing as if I am any kind of authority on a subject.

As a high-school drop-out who has only one semester of college under his belt, I am still self-conscience about myself and how others will respect me. Event though I have become a successful journalist and write on a myriad of subjects from Music and lifestyle to politics and travel, the difference is that my age and rank is not announced in the places I am published in. Likewise, I have met very few of my editors or my readers, which is the way I try to keep because I think that when people do meet me and see how young I am, that they will no longer respect me. Most of the people I write for think I'm older than I am, and I never give out my age.

I really want to write this book. I think it would not only be fun to write, but it would be a fun and enlightening and thought provoking read. Yet, once again, I figure people won't respect what I write because of my age unless it's fiction. It's hard for me to write fiction in the novel or short-story sense, only in a script writing format. It's easier for me to write opinions and non-fiction in novel or essay formats.

Let me know your thoughts, and I would like some advice. Wait until much later? Or do it now. I'm a little scared, will this have the same "punch" later on in life? What if life has changed drastically during that time? It's rather confusing for me. All writers are inherently overly self-critical and always feel as if they are lesser or no one will respect their art. The stereotypes about writers and illustrators is absolutely true! So keep that in mind, hah hah. I don't like stereotypes, but since most of them have been created by writers, then I can vouch for them, hah hah. It takes a certain personality.



-William
www.William-Mac.com

If you can write go for it! when you submit any kind of article, who delves into your age, as long as it is good!

[Mo0n5tar]

A friend introduced me to some work by a young hip hop producer called Yoshi, turns out he's an author and general jack of all trades, www.nefisa.co.uk check out his site and his books they are brilliant and had me thinking "why have i not written one yet"..

peace

[joss classey]

I say do it. Certainly has got a thirst within me. Write your book. I can shake your hand and say yes. I will read it.

[gold]

I would love to write a book! but the only trouble is, David Icke has said all I want to say for now;

[megafish33]

To those that want to write: Tell that little negative voice in your head to shut the fuck up. I'll read just about anything once, so you have already have one reader. :cool:

[gold]

To those that want to write: Tell that little negative voice in your head to shut the fuck up. I'll read just about anything once, so you have already have one reader. :cool:

We only have your word for that:D do you promise??

[megafish33]

We only have your word for that:D do you promise??

Sure, why not? I have tons of half read books... ;):p :D

[williammac]

I appreciate everyone's comments. However, my main question was whether or not you would respect a person more if they had age and/or credentials on their side, despite a similar outlook from a young man.

Either way, I'm beginning to churn out the essays in a random way as of tonight. I'll put them together later. As I go along, and as I figure something is appropriate for the forum, I'll post them up to see what all of you cunning folks think. So, perhaps you'll be willing to take a gander in a couple of days as I test out some content on you gloriously glistening guinea piglets. Tee hee :p

Thanks,



-William
www.William-Mac.com