The following series is a look at the books that have shaped my current understanding of being a novelist. Those of you who know me well know I'm a humble guy, but I still feel obligated to say right off the bat that I DO NOT CONSIDER MYSELF AN EXPERT. I still have a lot to learn, but that doesn't mean I can't share what I have learned in the spirit of professional camaraderie.
Before we get started, there's a preliminary concept I want to look at.
When I was learning to drive, by dad introduced me to the four stages of competence. And since then, I've used this understanding to develop any skill I needed to acquire. I think it's an important process to be aware of if you want to self-educate.
In any skill or trade, a person begins in a state of Unconscious Incompetence. This is where you are unaware of your lack of knowledge, and you do not perceive a deficit in your skill level. If you're a writer, and you have never read a book about writing, this is you. It's not an insult (people get hot about the word 'incompetence'), it's simply the default state for all people in all trades. The length of time you spend in this state is wholly dependent on the strength of your impetus to learn. If you don't feel you need to self-educate, then this stage could go on forever. One of the hallmarks of this state is feeling the skill itself to be of little or no value. So if you think learning grammar is a waste of time, this is you. If you don't know which stage of competence you are in, there's a 99.9% chance this is you. Stages 1 and 4 are the only ones where a lack of awareness is possible, and chances are you weren't born in stage 4. Not even Ernest Hemingway was born in stage 4.
When one becomes aware that one has much to learn, one enters a state of Conscious Incompetence. This is a great place to be, because this is where you get to learn from your mistakes. It's also the place where you encounter the most new ideas, and you get to experience the pleasure of refining your understanding. I for one love to learn; I feel like I'm gaining superpowers every time I learn something new. This is probably the funnest part of the four stages.
Once you've built up a solid body of coursework and gotten some practice, you reach a state of Conscious Competence. This means that you can perform the task or skill correctly, but doing so requires concentration. This is the stage where practice makes perfect, and the 10,000-hour rule comes into play. For those of you unfamiliar with the 10,000-hour rule, it's basically the idea that if you do something for 10,000 hours, you will be an expert. Now, obviously the number of hours is debatable, but that's hardly the point. The point is that you have to practice for a crazy long-ass time to get truly good at something (good enough to call yourself an expert, anyway).
The final state is one of Unconscious Competence, where you are basically Ricky Bobby. You wake up in the morning and piss excellence. You are the Beatles. You walk past a guitar and it's a hit song. If this is you, I'd like to sleep at the foot of your bed so I can steal the amazing things you come up with while you're sleeping.
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This process is what the next six posts are about. I'm sharing what I went through because I feel like it might help others, and I'm the kind of guy who wants everyone to feel awesome. Some people I've worked with think I get off on pointing out other people's shortcomings, but that couldn't be further from the truth. I just acknowledge that no person ever got better by being told they were good enough. There is no "good enough". Successful people never stop striving, and they never stop learning. If you're a writer, or you want to be, then this is what I've been through, and it helped me. I still have a lot to learn, but I know where I'm going and I've got my work cut out for me. It's a feeling I hope you all have at some point.
If you think I'm an arrogant ass, leave me a comment below!
First up: On Writing by Stephen King
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