How good are you at writing?

Just as a rough estimate, I wanted to create a scale of writing, so you can check yourselves on it to see where you fit in. Bear in mind that these are only accurate to a certain degree?

Ant: You don’t really know what a sentence is, or where to put a capital letter – and what the hell is a question mark? For you, billboards and pamphlets count as books. You’re just beginning your journey.

Caterpillar: Alright, so you know what a sentence is. You know some basic grammar and how to construct a paragraph. But you haven’t entered the writing world. You’re still stuck in the theoretical stage. Grab some imagination and take it for a walk!

Bird: You’re creating short stories and liking it. But your characters are flat, your dialogue sucks and your sentences might go something like this: “She sat on the hard plastic chair and twirled her long blonde hair on her tanned finger and blew a bubble with her bright pink bubble-gum.” Read more books, write more stories.

Possum: You know the basics of writing. You know that you’re supposed to show and not tell, but you’re not quite sure how to do that…and what on earth is a voice? You’re starting to develop your characters and have natural dialogue, but you’re not quite a writing guru yet.

Tiger: You’ve got a lot of it under control. You know how to sustain a plot, develop character and create intensity. You might have a writing partner or critique group, but they commonly say things like “what’s supposed to happen in this scene?” “Is this really necessary?” or “Info-dump.” You’re getting there. Have patience, young grasshopper…I mean, tiger.

Lion, the Lord of the Freaking Jungle: You are a writer, my fine furry friend! You can create metaphors, you can create complex characters, you can sustain an interest plot and you have a great voice (and we’re not talking about singing in the shower). Your writing is polished and precise, and you’re not forcing information down your readers’ throats. But you still have room to improve…we all do.

Wherever you are on this scale, even if it’s at the Ant stage (I’m sorry, Ant! I’m sure you’re very mighty and all, but this was going on size) you can get to Lion. Writing doesn’t take talent…it takes a backbone, a funny bone and a wish bone. And a few drops of inspiration.

Have fun writing!