tartts:

I also want to say this. I don’t think I’m the greatest writer of all time. I have so many doubts about my writing. I have my struggles. I’m astounded that there are a few of you that look up to me and ask for my advice because I do not see myself as being above anyone else in terms of writing-prowess, or that I should be someone to look up to. We’re all wading through our struggles together.

But writing… is complex. Our individuality is what keeps things fresh. Just as I’ve said before when people ask questions about outlining, or motivation, or “how do you do this?”, there is no one way to write. Everyone is different, has different preferences, and writes in a different way. Some meticulously outline. Some write freely. Some people favor following grammatical rules 100% of the time, and some do not. You and only you can decide what works best for you. No matter what you do, there will be people out there that don’t like it. If you follow the rules, people will think your writing is plain and dry. If you don’t, they will claim it doesn’t work because it’s not correct. For the same reason someone may hate your work, another may love it. What matters most is you.

Writing is complex because language is complex. Language is constantly evolving and the rules many people cling to will be cast aside as time goes on. There is no such thing as correct, because 20 years ago this correct thing was incorrect, and it will eventually be incorrect again. Sometimes, what’s considered correct and incorrect differs simply because of your location, despite a common language. So don’t sweat it!

So if you don’t want to capitalize in your work? Go for it. Want to use sentence fragments? Do it. Love commas as much as I do? Use them to your heart’s content!

I write, first and foremost, for myself. I write because I love writing. I write because I love stories. I write because I love to create. Creation is messy and personal and unbelievably flawed but it’s what I do. It’s all we can do.