Feature

Talent vs. Skill in the Modern Writer

by John Nihmey

Skill, not talent, is the distinguishing factor between the writer whose work others appreciate and the writer whose work only he enjoys. "Ideas are a dime a dozen" is a helpful aphorism when separating writers into those who think of creating art and those who actually do.

Every writer starts out with an idea, possibly his own, possibly that of someone else. Such ideas are the beginning of what may be a long and arduous process, and what can result in anything from a short story to an instruction manual. Throughout the process, talent moves you forward. But while you're moving ahead, skill forces you to know where you're going and to make sure that is where you want to go. Crafted by a commitment to learning and honed by experience, skill is what distinguishes writers among themselves.

Everyone with the urge to write conceives of ideas easily; what may be inspired by little can conjure visions of great scope. The exclamation, "I have a good idea," spoken aloud or otherwise, makes wheels start to turn in the writer's mind, causing other ideas, along the same track, to start popping up.

Unfortunately, this glorious, best-ever idea often remains just that. Sometimes it is replaced by another thought that grabs hold of your imagination. In many instances, the mere thought of turning the idea into something beyond its innocent and perfect state seems unwieldy — perhaps not such a good idea.

For a Seed to Grow, It Must Be Planted

One way to see if your idea has potential to become something more is to start crafting it with a view toward the work you had in mind in the first place. Sometimes your brainstorm is such that the I have a good idea feeling is followed by wouldn't that make a great movie script, or, wouldn't that be a useful reference book for gardeners. The only way to find out if the idea has potential for something more than an idea is to start fleshing it out as a content outline for the written work into which it might evolve. All art has form; your written work must also have it.

Once you start to develop your content outline, whether it is for a script or an instruction guide, you will begin to encounter problems. Remember, an idea is little more than a brain impulse. Good writing is the consequence of talent, skill, and hard work, all given a kick-start by your idea. If you want an idea to work with words that will entertain, inform, or instruct others, you will have to make decisions and compromises along the way. The germ of your idea may get lost, but the structure of a work of art might start to evolve. After all, everyone has ideas, but it is the writer who taps into something greater.

Someone Has to Read This

Before getting on with any actual writing, the content outline stage is a good time to get some feedback on what you're planning to do. An editor can be a writers window on the world. No writer who wants to see his work in other peoples offices or homes should pass up such an opportunity to be scrutinized. Remember, all writing is meant to be read. As a minimum, you don't want your readers to have problems with your work. The ideal is that they really enjoy it.

Once someone has read your work, even at this early stage where your ideas have just been put into some order, don't be too defensive about comments on your work. Just listen, lest our reviewer become frustrated with your attitude and stop giving you input. If your ideas have merit, they will stand the test. All good work holds up under fire.

All writers like to think that they take criticism well. Those with the least experience often add the qualifier that they take criticism well if its constructive. But how do you know if the criticism is constructive until you have received and considered it? And even then, how do you know at the beginning whether the criticism will serve some constructive purpose in the end? So, receive the comments willingly, question those you don't understand, and address all of them carefully. Remember, it is your work, so put advice in the context of what you want to achieve.

If the comments received point to some major structural problems, address the deficiencies and get some additional feedback from the same person who has been guiding you along. If the ideas seem to be the problem, go back to your original thought or inspiration and see if you've actually carried through with your vision. If you seem to be at a point where you're convinced that some actual writing will make it work, then begin that tough but pleasurable journey.

In this vacuum of not knowing how you're going to pull the whole thing off, the skills you've developed can be your best friend. Your talent will be alongside you as well, but talent often coaxes you back to the comfortable ideas stage when you're already well past it.

Journeymen All of Us

All writers start out as journeymen embarking on a great writing adventure. You came equipped with that all essential ingredient — the talent that sets your course and that naively promises to see you through. And at the point that any actual writing began, you've already encountered some feedback that may have caused you to either drop the project, make some key decisions, or disregard the input and forge ahead. Now comes the moment of truth, for good writing — making the idea work and applying your talent — requires much more skill and discipline than anything else.

One of the most interesting experiences the writer faces is encountering some of the early thoughts that inspired his work and trying to work words around them. In some cases, what seemed to work at the idea stage can lose impact once turned into words. In such cases, some of the ideas that inspired you can suddenly become expendable and may even have to be eliminated in order to allow the rest of the piece to work. Skill teaches the writer time and time again that such tradeoffs are okay. The quality of well crafted writing is never dependent on mere ideas, words, or cute phrasing that doesn't fit. The principles of good writing are ancient; they date back before that all important idea popped into your head.

At this important juncture in the writing process, you should take some time to reflect on what skills you possess, as well as those you feel you lack. Each writing task is an opportunity to learn. Read your own work. Don't be afraid to change things, and to then change them back. Ask others for input. What do they think? Is it as good for your editor as it is for you? As bad? The more you seize the opportunity to become a skilled, not just a talented, writer, the more you will be pleased, and surprised, with the end result.

How Do You Measure Up?

A writer can be surprised with the result of his work, particularly when he takes a break after finishing it to go back and read it again. The work can seem foreign, like the work of a much better writer than you thought you were. There appears to be more precision in the language, a more flowing style than you thought yourself capable of. And where are all those neat things you thought of at the beginning? How did they get lost in the process?

It is important to measure your growth as a writer after each assignment. Such self-evaluation allows you to recognize that you have learned something as a writer — not just proven that you have the talent to write. You knew that in the first place.

It is also useful to look at your past writing work before tackling new assignments, in part to remind yourself that you still have a lot to learn. This most worthwhile of tests will tell you a great deal about what skills you must still acquire or develop, as well as what skills you may never possess and that you should expect your editor to always have to cope with. As it is with all writers, your experience will cause you to develop certain strengths, but it will also highlight your weaknesses. Acknowledging strengths and weaknesses in oneself is the mark of a skilled writer.

When you get to the end of one writing project, be ready to start another, bringing with you all the talent you possess and all the skills you've acquired.

Now, what about that good idea?