The saying “no two persons are alike” is well-known. But it is true that everyone has different experiences and reactions. Sure, some people resemble us! They might even be your doppelganger! But every one of us leads a unique life. So, even if it isn’t physically visible, we are different on a psychological level. Kathleen Blake Yancy agrees in her article “Writers’ Histories, Processes, And Identities Vary.” “Although human beings often appear to share history, engage in similar composing processes, and have identities that are fundamentally human,” she writes, “each writer is unique.”
This also implies that every one of us has a unique writing style. When writing, some of us may describe more, use more quotes than others, or include our own obscure knowledge and twits, and so on. Calligraphy and cursive are two examples. Although not everyone can write in them, everyone is aware of their existence. Kathleen Blake Yancey also says that our writing is not only unique to ourselves but also comparable to composing a piece of music. “Millennia ago, before formal schooling provided training in composing, writers adopted their own creative methods…”
Ludwig Beethoven
If music is your sort of writing, you could be a modern Wolfgang Mozart, Ludwig Beethoven, or Johann Bach in the making.
Jane Austen
Or you could be a modern Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Emily Dickinson, George R.R. Martin, or J.R.R. Tolkien and have no idea. Our understanding of writing is constantly evolving. And with that our past methods of writing. From cave walls to parchment, to paper, and finally to computers.
Andrea A. Lunsford wrote, “Writing Is Informed by Prior Experience.” In the article, she claims that writing is nothing more than a conversation. She talked about how writing is like having conversations with someone, albeit a written one rather than a verbal one. That our written history, our past, is what shapes us. Lunsford, like Kathleen Blake Yancy, explains how our experiences shape us as writers. Our history and past make us, while our present and future break us. Andrea Lunsford went on to remark that while writing new pieces, writers draw on their memories and personal knowledge, not just their experiences. J.K. Rowling, for example, had the inspiration for Harry Potter while sitting on a delayed train, daydreaming. She is currently wealthier than the Queen of England. Another example is Dr. Seuss, the author, and illustrator who was rejected 27 times. He didn’t give up, though.
