Ten Commandments of writing
1. You shall have no other higher calling than writing.
2. You shall not settle for anything less than the task of writing every day; not email, not Facebook, not reading about writing, not anything.
3. You shall not call yourself a writer unless and until you act like one. (See commandments one and two.)
4. You shall feed your soul and stock your storehouse by reading.
5. Honor your roots, your education, your experience, and your life. Write what you know. Remember that your life and your experiences are exotic and interesting to those who know them not – your readers. They are familiar only to yourself.
6. You shall not murder the words of another. You shall not attempt to make yourself appear better by demeaning the writing of other authors.
7. You shall not adulterate your writing by adding improper, extraneous, inferior paragraphs. You shall not use ten words when five will do very well. Do not lust after flowery language and unnatural expressions.
8. You shall not envy the work and style of another. You shall write with your own voice and cultivate your own style.
9. You shall not plagiarize. Love your own words and creativity more than life itself.
10. You shall not settle for anything less than the absolute best. Each and every manuscript that you present shall exemplify your most skillful craftsmanship.