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Looking for a Mentor

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DanielSTJ

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Hi, I'm Daniel. I am a 28 year-old who is seeking to improve his writing. However, I am aware of the implications of simply writing in the dark and then sending off material. I don't believe that I can/will learn the best in this fashion. Therefore, I am looking for someone to take me under their wing in the general sense. Someone to show me the ropes of everything to strengthen the foundations of my skills and development as a, hopefully, future writer.

What I would imagine, though I have not done this before, is that I keep writing pieces and show them to said mentor and improve along the way. I would think that it would work as a sense as they point out all the things I've done wrong and then I rewrite it. Then, when said piece is done, we move on to the next piece. The key, I imagine, is to master all the elements of writing (grammar, syntax, characterization, plot, etc) in order to make me more qualified to pursue my dream.

I've never had a mentor before, but I'd be willing to put in much effort for the task. This could also be the start of something great methinks-- reminds me of a movie plot. Nevertheless, I understand that the road ahead will be rife with challenges and complications, yet I am willing to give it my best shot. I am a dedicated, persevering and hard-working individual. I take writing seriously-- there is no doubt about that.

I am hoping that an experienced writer would be willing to help guide me so that I don't become lost along the way.

Fingers crossed! :e2BIC:
 

Erinell

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Oh, wow, wouldn't that be nice? Sort of a one-on-one MFA program or an Obi-Wan Kenobe or maybe a Forrester? I feel so lucky that I hang out with a couple of people who are excellent line editors and am professionally connected with a couple of people who are very demanding (it pushes me to up my game). But alas, it tends to be piecemeal and scattered. So most of the time it's just me versus me. I can think of a bunch of successful authors I'd like to have dinner with on a regular basis, but I'm sure they're not about to hold the hand of a beginner like me! If you're into literary fiction, have you investigated the crowd that hangs around Poets & Writers? Anyway, good luck in your quest :)
 

L.C. Blackwell

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Daniel, why not tell us a little about the kinds of things you like to write? A lot of matching up with a writing buddy, or mentor, or beta reader has to do with finding someone who "gets" your style and is interested in the genre and kind of work you do. You may not find somebody who can invest the heavy duty time it takes to really mentor and train an inexperienced writer, but you could match up with a beta reader/buddy who can give feedback about what worked for them as a reader and what didn't. And you in return could comment on their pieces.

Beta reading can be an excellent way to get experience, because you'll spot things as a reader (that aren't working, or maybe are working) that you don't spot so easily in your own writing. You can make notes about where you lost interest; when or how a character "grabbed" you or alienated you, when a passage felt clunky or awkward, or became hard to follow, etc. This is all valuable feedback, and any reader can provide it. You may not know why something isn't working, but your readerly spidey-sense can identify that it isn't, and you can tell the writer how you felt, or what reaction something produced in you. By the same token, you can also tell someone when a passage excited you, made you feel enthusiastic, made you cry, etc., which is equally valuable feedback, and just as necessary as the other part.
 

DanielSTJ

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I like to write fiction with a purpose. The point, for me, is not merely to entertain (though I do believe that should work as well) but I like to dive into the depths of self-perception and offer up what I have learned to the world at large. That is a large part of why I like writing, it can teach so subtlety that it comes across almost effortlessly. To dive into the wells of possibility and storytelling that are in my soul, I can offer up a small glimpse of what lies at the bottom of it: a heart-- in the romanticist sense. We all have that basic childhood virtue still within us, no matter how much it has been polluted by the grey world that surrounds us and tries to choke us into complacency and mediocrity. I believe that, once you open your heart and experience the world the most you can, you offer a chance for the clouds to part and for the rainbow to sparkle its radiance upon not only yourself, in your creation, but to the entire planet.

I have no specific pick of genre. The story is a yarn, first and foremost. The conventions of genre and type are more meant for marketability and economic purposes. I do not write to become rich, nor do I ever think I will be. The point is to make a connection, make that little click so that the reader understands where your coming from. If a reader can feel the very thing that I am trying to accomplish, then the piece is a success.

Yet, the story must always entertain. I am to entertain at the same time. I know it seems like I have a lot of theory and basis behind this, but I truly do. Storytelling is as complex to me as the universe. I don't break it down into segments and believe that "all stories have already been told." I do not believe this at all. Because of all the different possibilities of style, characters and so forth-- all stories will never be told. That is the beauty behind it.

I hope this helps and makes my intent clearer! Thanks for the input L.C.! :)
 
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