Writing What I Know

I used to have a problem with the phrase, "Write what you know," because many of the individuals who taught this ideology placed heavy emphasis on experiential learning. Only, not all of us "learn" that way, or go about life that way. I have to get my mind wrapped around a concept or some level of understanding before I can actually "know it." The result is, sometimes, that my "knowledge" isn't easily quantifiable, not even by myself.

Sure, when I plunge into something I start to see, through application of knowledge what "I know," --and what I don't--but all in all, there is very little in my life that I have learned by doing.

Cooking and Dress-up, are kinda the stuff I learned by doing.

Fantasy writing *could* fall in that category, mainly because I've wrestled with the proper story elements for so long and acquired increased understanding through analysis, that it has finally planted me on the right track. That said, those experiential-valuing instructors often indicated that writing fantasy was pure imagination. So perhaps by not *exactly* placing my fiction in the category of "what i know" I am validating them...

Whatever.

I am trying to write on topics I "know" to diversify what I *do* write. I want to be able to make a living as a writer (eventually) and that means writing topics (and exploring topics) which I know somewhat about and wish to explore more deeply. So I am!

I am trying to write recipes, and put all my knowledge of economical cooking into words. I am going to chart my progress learning to sew...

Just... on other blogs. But keeping prolific, while I can, and keeping focused--these are important. And so...I am :)