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What Makes a Good Writer Good?
It is all about creating a connection.
What makes a good writer good?
You could ask this question to 50 different writers and get 50 different answers.
Yet, we all know bad writing when we see it. Bad writing evokes zero emotion. It fails to connect ideas.
Lousy writing may tell a story or make an eloquent statement, but it fails to make that narrative or point something a reader can relate to.
That foreshadows my answer to what makes a good writer good.
A good writer uses their skill to connect a reader to the story (or point of the essay, or meaning of a poem, etc.).
Good writers build their writing in a manner that others can understand. They write in their unique voice — not mimicking someone else or saying things that seem stylistically acceptable to stodgy intellectuals.
And good writers don’t always play it safe — they take risks to make that connection with their target audience, even if it means saying or doing something not politically correct or trendy.
So, what makes a good writer good to you?
Adrian S. Potter — the Antisocial Extrovert — is an author, engineer, consultant, and public speaker. When he is not busy silently judging your beer selection or record collection, he writes poetry, short fiction, and articles on various subjects, including creativity, leadership, optimism, and personal growth. Adrian is the winner of the 2022 Lumiere Review Prose Award and the author of Field Guide to the Human Condition. His latest book, And the Monster Swallows You Whole, was released in 2023 through Stillhouse Press. Visit Adrian at http://adrianspotter.com/. Say hi. He won’t bite.