If you want advice about writing, go to the pros for the prose (or verse, as it may be). They have helpful advice to offer.

“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart,”  said noted poet William Wordsworth.

“The scariest moment is always just before you start,”
the best-selling Stephen King advised.

“Start writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on,” offered Western writer Louise L’Amour.

“Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way,”
said sci-fi great Ray Bradbury.

“My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way,” advised Ernest Hemingway. Words to live (or write) by.

Hemingway clearly followed his own advice. He was noted for writing short, punchy sentences. (He himself wasn’t short, though he sure was punchy. He was six feet tall and had a boxing ring in his backyard. But I digress.)

James Thurber, a legendary cartoonist and comic writer (writer of humorous stories, not superhero genre fiction), imitated Hemingway’s style in a version of “A Visit From St. Nicholas” (better known as “Twas the Night Before Christmas.” But I add more digression.)

This is how Thurber imagined Hemingway’s version would go:

“It was the night before Christmas. The house was very quiet. No creatures were stirring in the house. There weren’t even any mice stirring….The children were in their beds. Their beds were in the room next to ours. Mamma and I were in our beds. Mamma wore a kerchief. I had my cap on. I could hear the children moving. We didn’t move. We wanted the children to think we were asleep.”

But Hemingway (the real one) gave what I consider the greatest piece of advice: “Write drunk. Edit sober.”

People have debated what he meant by that (a thing that English mavens do). However, as an English maven myself, I think that, like his writing, his advice was straightforward and clear. (I got a t-shirt with his famous saying on it. But I digress yet again.)

What are the advantages of writing drunk? you may ask. Think about what Stephen King said. (“The scariest moment is always just before you start.”) I can vouch for this, having committed to writing posts for two blogs every week. (Not that I actually get drunk every time I start a post. I have some other work I have to do that would not improve with a blast of bourbon. But I digress even more.) But words do tend to flow more easily when something intoxicating is flowing, too.

Then there’s editing sober. I advise that, too. You’ve most likely missed a few commas (at the least) when you were WUI (writing under the influence). Not to mention question marks, quotation marks, and apostrophes. When you’re sober, you are capable of noticing these flaws, as well as sentences that need to be shorter and punchier.

So, which is more difficult, writing or editing? Of course, editing is. You have to do it with a clear head. You can’t just go splashing words around. You have to be precise. You have to pay attention to style, narrative flow, repetition, characterization, and fixing everything you did while you were drunk. But for me, writing is the fun part, and not just because of the booze. You’re creating something, and that’s exhilarating!

For the last word on the subject, however, I’ll turn to playwright Lillian Hellman: “If I had to give young writers advice, I would say don’t listen to writers talking about writing or themselves.”

Except Hemingway, of course.