A writer should get as much education as possible, but just going to school is not enough; if it were, all owners of doctorates would be inspired writers.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
If I had taken a doctoral degree, it would have stifled any writing capacity.
Perhaps it would be better not to be a writer, but if you must, then write.
You need a certain amount of nerve to be a writer.
Even if I couldn't get my early novels published, I could still write. I went into newspapers, where I got paid to write every day. If there's a better school for would-be novelists, I don't know what it is.
There is a whole industry in America of people who want to write, and those who teach it. Even if the students don't end up writing, what's good about them taking the courses is, they become great readers, learning to appreciate the writing.
You'd think it would be easier for writers to make a living, but it's not. Fortunately, I love to teach.
I think young writers should get other degrees first, social sciences, arts degrees or even business degrees. What you learn is research skills, a necessity because a lot of writing is about trying to find information.
I don't think that writing talent has much to do with where one went to school, or the number of degrees on one's business card, but I do get a bit bristly at the implication that romance authors couldn't possibly be smart enough to get into an Ivy League school.
For almost anyone who chooses to be a writer, since so very few writers are able to learn a living from their work that is equivalent to the living earned by the average dentist or accountant.
If you want to become a writer, you do need to be willing to make sacrifices.
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