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I often hear people say, “Write the book you want to read. If no one has written it yet, it’s up to you!”
There is one true thing about this advice: you should NEVER write a book you do not want to read.
But there is a BIG difference between a book you want to
READ and a book you want to WRITE.
I face this conundrum every time I start a new story (whether it’s a novel, screenplay, stage play, TV pilot, short story…) Is this something I want to READ/SEE… or is this actually something I want to WRITE?
It’s the difference between:
I want to READ this book…
And I want to BE this book
Am I interested in the subject matter…
Or obsessed
Do I want to spend a few hours with the story…
Or YEARS
Is the story exciting…
Or haunting
Do I want to rest in a bath with this book…
Or sprint a marathon with it
Does the story feel EXTERNAL…
Or internal
Does it get into my MIND…
Or in my GUTS
Do I want to eat it…
Or create the recipe, prepare it, cook it and serve it
Do I daydream about it during a boring meeting…
Or skip a long-awaited day at the beach to work on it
Do I want to TALK about the story…
Or keep it silently stewing in my brain
Do I love it…
Or stalk it
Want it…
Or need it
Do I think about that story AND others…
Or when I think about another story does the first story SLAP me and drag me back down the rabbit hole?
These are just a few of the differences between a book I want to READ and a book I want WRITE.
So the next time someone tells you to write what you want to read, say YES…
But don’t forget the all-important follow-up question: do I also want to WRITE it?
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