Comments on: Who is Your Writing Mentor and Why?

By: John Banusiewicz

John Banusiewicz — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 13:12:15 +0000

Great topic. In my case, hubris prevented me from taking advantage of some opportunities to hitch my wagon to people who would have been excellent mentors for me. I certainly stored and used nuggets of knowledge I gleaned from various folks I respected, but by and large, when it came to writing, I was pretty sure I knew it all by the time I was halfway through with high school. I misinterpreted my good vocabulary and my grasp of punctuation, grammar and sentence structure — beaten into me by the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph — as evidence that I was an excellent writer. My grades on writing projects throughout my education only served to reinforce my inflated sense of my abilities. Looking back, this caused me to blow off legitimate criticism that would have helped me become more than a hack. You, on the other hand, have the rare combination of God-given talent, an expansive imagination and an openness to other people’s ideas. It’s great to see anyone credit their development to mentors, but in my opinion, people who welcome mentorship are going to succeed with or without it. The desire to improve is the whole magilla.

By: Abby

Abby — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:23:35 +0000

I don’t have one yet… the closest is my piano teacher.

By: plaidearthworm

plaidearthworm — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 23:26:54 +0000

Great topic, and something I’ve been thinking about lately. I don’t really have a hands-on mentor, but when I worked for the newspaper, my editor definitely helped me grow as a writer. She taught me how to write fast & ingrained AP style into my brain. Lately, I have peer mentors: Stacey has helped me soooo much with the book proposal, and Amy, Angie & Carole keep my wits sharp. A few years ago, I remember reading that every writer should have one author friend/influence above him or her on the success ladder, and one below. That way, you pass on what you learned, and you don’t get cocky, LOL.

By: Tweets that mention Who is Your Writing Mentor? | Jason Tudor -- Topsy.com

Tweets that mention Who is Your Writing Mentor? | Jason Tudor -- Topsy.com — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 20:44:48 +0000

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Stacey Graham. Stacey Graham said: RT @JasonTudor: My new column: Who is Your Writing Mentor and Why? http://www.jasontudor.com/2010/07/06/who-is-your-writing-mentor-and-why/ #writing #fb [...]

By: Khouin

Khouin — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 20:43:54 +0000

Nice one Jason