Writer's Envy

I started reading a book that my friend, Meghan, gave me for Christmas. Not only was I completely envious that this author's book is 560 pages long (remember my struggle to make 200 pages?), but she is a tremendous wordsmith.  This author has a way of drawing you in from the first page and creating images with her words that are just fantastic.  Her use of similes and metaphors are phenomenal.  I was definitely envious of her ability to write.

But then I started thinking a little further about it.  First of all, I don't know how long she's been writing, but I do know that I am a novice.  I have already learned a lot, and I know that I have tons more to learn.  Some things I may learn in time, but even if I don't, the world is full of different types of authors and genres and that's a beautiful thing!

Another thing is that we write two very different genres.  I'm not quite sure how to describe this book's genre, but it's dark, mysterious, as Meghan put it, "other-worldly".  Her settings are as much a character as the actual characters in the book.  Description is extremely important for conveying mood and tone and you need to be able to see the old, crumbling castle to be able to get the proper mood of the story.  Mine are much different. Mine are light-hearted romances.  My stories are more about the situations and the interactions of characters than about any particular setting.

As far as length goes, I'm pretty sure most readers would be frustrated if I tried to keep writing for 560 pages.  I think there would be an "all right already" feeling to the book.  On the flip side, if the book I'm reading was only 200 pages, I think most readers would feel like all the build-up and suspense were a let down.  I'm still going to try to keep lengthening my books, but I don't ever want to get them so long that my readers end up frustrated, bored, or, worse yet, giving up on the story all together.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with where I am.  I know I'm still learning, but honestly, I hope that I'll still be learning for the rest of my life.  I write a genre that I love and I feel like I'm pretty good at telling a story.  Reading has always been one of my favorite hobbies.  I know that by reading other authors, I can learn a lot.  Not necessarily to imitate them, because everyone has their own style and personality, but I can still pick up ideas for how to use my words better or craft a better story.