by R.L. Lake

Created on: August 28, 2009

Fiction writing can most certainly be taught-just ask anyone with a Creative Writing degree. Anyone with enough time and patience can learn the basics of creating plot, writing realistic dialogue, and developing memorable characters. Certainly, the mechanics of writing fiction is something that can be learned. However, the ability to actually tell a story in a way that will captivate an audience and communicate the writer's message to the world requires something more.

Talent is an inherent quality that cannot be taught; a writer either has it or they don't. Talent, however, is subjective. If one measures talent based on book sales alone, then writers like Stephen King and Dan Brown are sure to be at the top of the list. When one thinks of great writers, they think of Faulkner, Hemingway, Shakespeare. While their works are still widely read and studied in academic settings, they are not at the top of the bestseller list. By what measure are these writers considered talented?

True talent is the ability to divine an insight into humanity and translate it to the page. It is defined not only by what the author writes but by how it is written and the impact it leaves on civilization as a whole. The truly talented writers are the ones who force us to question our very selves, the ones whose work continues to speak to us after the author is long dead. These are often the writers who make it seem the most effortless and set the highest standard.

Talent requires that the writer possess a particular sense of style as well. While one can learn to write a story, they cannot learn how to weave a tapestry of emotion with words. They cannot be taught how to write with beauty, with heart, with soul. These abilities are inherent to the true writer, no matter what stage they're at in their writing career.

Writing is a skill; it can be taught just the same as anything else. Writing well, however, is not something one can learn. One can improve their craft over time and with enough practice, they can become quite successful. There is, however, a fine line between popular writing and good writing, and while they do sometimes intersect, the division remains. The best writers cannot be measured by how many books they've sold but by how their words have shaped the world and the other writers in it.

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