Hey Writer Person,

So first things first: writing advice is just that, advice. What works for me might not work for you. I hope it helps, but don't take it as truth because there is no right way to craft a story.

So anyway, here I go. I've told this story a few times when people ask me about writing and it's always my favourite lesson because it's one that has staid with me the longest.

In fourth grade, I was at my desk writing a short story, carefully erasing a word I didn't like. My teacher came over with a pencil in her hand and said, "Real writers don't have time to erase." And then she crossed out the word with a quick shhhhhwick!

That was a MOMENT, Writer Person. I can just...do that? But my teachers, my parents - they always told us to erase! The page will be a mess!

GOOD. It's supposed to be, Writer Person.

That day I learned writing is a messy process. It's ALLOWED to be messy. And the older I get, the more I realize, it HAS to be messy if I'm ever gonna make a story reach its full potential.

If I'm not sure about deleting a paragraph, or chucking out a whole first draft to start a new one from the beginning, I think of that teacher and the sound her pencil made when she scratched out the word.

Yes, I could be making a mess by starting all over again. Yes, I'm hacking this story into a Frankenstein monster of what I set out to do. But that's what writers have to do.

So don't be scared, Writer Person - get messy. The story gods give you permission!