Tuesday Therapy: Writing with Heart (and Fingers)

It’s that time of year again: when the table of contents for many Year’s Best anthologies are being announced; recommended reading lists are being printed; awards nominations are being bandied around the internetz; shortlists are being compiled and broadcast all over the world in acknowledgement of writing published in 2011.

Yes, it’s awards season.

Bearing that in mind, Trent Jamieson‘s advice this week is perfectly timed. Trent is the author of a slew of incredible short stories (some of which are collected in Reserved for Travelling Shows), the Death Works trilogy (Death Most Definite,  Managing Death, The Business of Death) and the Nightbound Land duology (Roil and Night’s Engines) — and he is one of the loveliest people you’ll ever have the pleasure of meeting. (I say “one of” because, seriously, he and Sean Williams would need to duke it out for the title of ‘Nicest Guy in Australian Speculative Fiction’. But since they’re both so nice, neither could possibly lose. Or win. Hence, “one of”.)

To top it all off, he’s provided an illustration to accompany his Tuesday Therapy session (see below), which pretty much rocks. In other words, this week’s advice is full of awesome.

So without further ado:

Jealousy is poison. Career paths are up and down things so don’t compare your career to anyone else’s. And it’s easier to write when you’re not filled with a bleak despair that everyone seems to be doing better than you. Art isn’t a competition. Enjoy the process, enjoy the challenges, and enjoy the success of others. After all, your colleagues’ successes mean plenty of good stories to read, and you are a reader as well as a writer aren’t you?

Jealousy will poison your heart, and you kinda need that to write*.

*though writing with your heart would be messy. Fingers are better for typing and holding pens.

Trent lives with his wife Diana in Brisbane. His fifth novel, Night’s Engines, is due out through Angry Robot books in June. You can visit his website here. (Make sure to check out his Book Corner segments on Youtube. I dare you not to laugh.)