Be You
F. Scott Fitzgerald 
and me
From The Great Gatsby: “The windows were ajar and gleaming white against the fresh grass outside that seemed to grow a little way into the house. A breeze blew through the room, blew curtains in at one end and out the other like pale flags, twisting them toward the frosted wedding-cake of the ceiling and then rippled over the wine-colored rug, making a shadow on it as wind does on the sea.”
I love the imagery. I love Fitzgerald’s writing style.
I tried to imitate it—no, not imitate, but take inspiration from its lyrical beauty.
Turns out I can’t write like Fitzgerald.
Oh, maybe I could if I studied, but that’s not my natural writing style. My forte is dialogue and characterization. I often forget about setting or descriptions—at least in my first drafts.
And you know what I discovered when I wasn’t trying to be Fitzgerald? How much more fun and freeing it was to write like, well, me.
So I took inventory of my strengths and weaknesses; I know I have areas of improvement (ahem, plot) and I keep learning, and now when I write, I focus on how to hone my writing style.
Since there’s only ever been one F. Scott Fitzgerald, there might as well only be one of me.
Just like there is only one of you.
So figure out what you’re good at, what could use some work, and lean into your style.
Because that’s what we want to read.