In all of the chapters that I've written so far, I've hinted at this concept quite often. I think it's about time I dedicated a small chapter to discussing it. I'm talking about the concept of what you "can" do and what you "should" do.

The story goes like this. You learn something in high school. Your teacher says never use present tense. Never start a sentence with a conjugation. Don't use adverbs. You learn all of these "rules", then notice that all of your favorite authors don't follow them. You get into college and then you have teachers telling you the exact opposite. You learn that everything you learned was a lie.

We (at least in primary English speaking countries) were taught as children that only the finest, best written stuff is published. Your work needs to be edited, reedited, and then professionally edited all before being sent to a publisher, who will then edit it even more. Nothing but the most refined, grammatically proper work will cut it. However, that's not true. The most successful stuff is often the stuff that doesn't follow the rules. The stuff that is abstract and unique.

The point I'm trying to make, is that art is exactly that... art. Picasso drew abstract boxy images that looked nothing like the item he was drawing. He broke the convention of art. He was ridiculed for it. But because he didn't follow the "rules", he is now a famous artist. He is considered a visionary who broke the mold.

You all want to think of yourselves as Picasso. You see a writer who does something unique, and you say to yourself "hmmm... I could do that" and then you do. Suddenly, you have writing that you won't edit because the author of 'After' didn't edit hers. You refuse to use capital letters because you saw someone do that once. Your write in intelligible english because your in the point of view of a four year old and don't realize that's as obnoxious as heck to read. You excessively use the dastardly em dash.

Here is the thing you don't realize... Picasso was an extraordinary artist. He could draw stuff other than abstract work. He could draw beautiful art. The picture to the right is one of his drawings. He chose to draw in the cubism, but don't think for a second he didn't know other styles. If you know any artists (college level), ask them and they'll tell you cubism isn't easy. They will say cubism is a very difficult art style. It requires years of study. It requires knowing what you are doing. You'd think all you need to do is make everything a cube, why you barely have to do any work! It is NOT this way. It is a difficult form to master and real artists know this.

So if you don't get where I am going with this, I'll just spell it out for you. You're not Picasso. You might be Picasso, one day, but you are not now (especially if your reading my guide here). Which means... you should know what you "can" do and what you "should" do. Just because you "can" use an em dash instead of a comma, does not mean you should.

These rules exist for a reason. People complain about the use of present tense for a reason. People complain about improper dialogue tagging, em dash, and interrobangs for reasons. They complain about these things because when they get to them in your writing, they become frustrated having to read them. These taboos don't make writing better, they make it frustrating to read. No, your readers are not just being "haters" or "not your target audience". The fact they are reading your work makes them your target audience, whether you like it or not.

So don't use them. Don't use adverbs... or starting sentences with conjugations... or any of the other dozens of "rules" out there. When you come to a point where you know in your heart that this is the best way to express what you want to say, that is the point you can use them. However, every time you use one of these pitfalls, whether it be choosing to write in present tense or use an ellipsis, there should be a reason you make that choice. You should understand why it sounds bad and frustrates people, and why your case is the exception to the rule.

Don't just write and call yourself an artist and think you're above reproach. Don't choose techniques you know commonly frustrate your readers and then state "Just deal with it". Don't give me this whiny statement about "stifling your creativity". Creativity doesn't spawn from having free reign to do whatever you want; creativity derives from working within your limitations and coming up with new ways to express yourself. Falling back on adverbs, starting sentences on conjugations, or an em dash doesn't make your writing more creative. It's a crutch you're using to overcome your holes in writing skill. It's the opposite of creativity. It's boring, and it almost always hurts writing.

So I'm not asking you to NEVER do anything outside of the rules. I'm asking you to think about it, and have a reason why you do what you do. If you don't know why you're breaking the rules... you don't have a right to break them. So when your writing isn't doing very well, and you have it loaded with adverbs, and em dashes, and starting sentences with conjugations, don't come crying to the forums that you don't understand why your writing isn't more popular, after all, you are technically grammatically correct, so in your eyes it's not an issue.

Learn the rules. Understand what you can do, and what people expect you to do. When you have mastered the rules and you know what works and when, then you can start throwing in the flair.