Lion Award Thingy

OK, I've been awarded this thing by Shiva. So, I need to list 3 things that are needed for good, powerful writing. I'm hesitant to list these things, because I strongly suspect I'll list some which are only necessary for some people and not others. So, I'll pick some which are true for me and probably for others.

Firstly, you need to think about it. Echoing what someone else said isn't that good - it may be powerful writing, but not your powerful writing. Better yet, quote or link to them so others can read their thing in it's entirety. You also need to have thought about it so you really understand what you're talking about. Or even better, recognize you don't know and ask a great question.

Secondly, be willing to listen. You don't have a monopoly on the truth. Although you shouldn't take every criticism as a sign your writing is no good, neither should you immediately search for a way to prove the criticizer wrong. They may be wrong, but then again, they may be right. They may be wrong in some things and right in others. Everyone has a perspective which is important - no one's perspective is the 'only word' on things.

Thirdly, admit mistakes. This ties in with the second, but you should also admit mistakes even if others don't call you on them. I once tried to force an autistic girl into the pool when she was refusing to go in. If I see that girl again, I will apologize to her, because what I did was wrong. Even though I meant well. Even though I changed my mind when she resisted. It was still wrong. Although that example isn't about writing, this is important for writing as well (I readily admit I'm not very good at this). If you can't admit the mistake to other people, at the very least admit it to yourself.

And now I'm supposed to give this award to 5 people. My first choice would be Amanda Baggs, but she's already been tagged with this. Joel Smith has also been chosen already. As far as I know, David Hingsburger hasn't been tagged with this yet. Tag!

I'm not much of a blog-reader, so I'm really struggling at this. Amanda Baggs's blog is the only one I check regularly.

Kathleen Seidel hasn't been tagged, as far as I know. I don't read her blog much, as most of it seems to be about the mercury-autism people and I'm not really interested, but I love her website. Oh, and I'll see if I can write something about this.

Lisa Jean Collins has a blog here and a newer one here. Not sure if she's still around, but I hope so, because she's a great writer.

Elmindreda is another great blogger. I love her thing 'I'm me. I'm actually the only one who's me. I tend to like that fact, except when I don't.' Wonderful autistic wordplay, like Godel, Escher and Bach.

Victoria Biggs is an excellent writer. I got her book Caged in Chaos awhile back and really enjoyed it, and was glad to discover she has a blog too. I don't think she's been tagged with this either.

And lastly, here's another lion - De Flamse Leo (Flemish Lion). My Dad's ancestry is Flemish.