Best writing advice I ever got

Okay, first define a bad novel. Per Marcykennedy dot com marcykennedy.com/2016/01/6-qualities-of-bad-writing/

1] Flawed writing on a sentence level

2] A slow plot

3] Low stakes

4] A predictable plot

5] Flat characters

6] No emotional resonance

Then add in perspective.

Some books become bestsellers with one or more items on the list, but I can't recall one bestseller with all the items that didn't have someone with a large bankroll doing some variant of bulk-buying.

Writing a bad novel is fairly easy -- taking a bad novel and redeeming it is another matter entirely.

My take is if there is no pressure, then there is nothing to write about. Think of it like bringing a life into the world.

Will the child [novel] make it to term? Lots of novels don't get beyond the initial premise.

Will the child [novel] have defects, either genetic or those developed en utero? Some novels are so flawed your best use for them is starting a campfire.

Will the child [novel] make it to term but suffer from SIDS [unforeseen defect that terminates life in early stages]? Some novels keep you going until some point near midway and then leave you going, what happened?

If the child [novel] survives, will it be healthy [or suffer from so many defects it will never have a functional life]? Consider this the Ted Bundy [or insert psychopath of choice here] of novels, at first it appears normal but by the end it has unraveled enough to be considered psychotic.

Ultimately my advice would be write a good novel, then work to make it better.

How do I come up with my ideas? Would you believe I'm cursed? Or is it more plausible I have an overdeveloped prefrontal / visual cortex due to childhood injury and adaptation to same?

All I know is I start telling myself a story as I go to sleep, and as I tell it to myself I start to 'see' it, then the characters take over and control the narrative. I can let a story sit for years then get back into it by reading what's done [even if only notes].

Think of old Greek / Roman myths, consider First Nations' myths, consider differing stories from different cultures [including The Time of Legend if you know them], then start to tell yourself a story as you go to sleep and see what the characters come up with. That, at least, is how stories take on a life of their own with me.

What works for me may or may not work for others.

Sometimes a word is all it takes.

A Mandarin orange is a small fruit that is among the most toughest of sweet oranges, very cold-hardy and drought-tolerant.

A Mandarin in Imperial China was a bureaucratic scholar in government service.

As a language you could say Mandarin Chinese started out as the language of Imperial China's academia and bureaucracy.

I've butchered animals for cooking, so I can pass on 'Beloved'.

The Mandarin system of bureaucracy was replaced by the civil service after the Chinese Communist Party took over mainland China. The rich people in the PRC are a more recent development.

As for the Chinese readers, the PRC tends to restrict access to Western books on 'subversive' subjects.

Change is inevitable, all you have to do is be patient and wait for it, at least when it comes to countries on the other side of the world.

When it comes to conversations I tend to try to adjust to those I'm talking with, no point using terms people don't understand. Tends to unnerve people in the medical profession, but that's on them.

At any rate I'd make a boring person to write a book about, and most people wouldn't find me believable so best not to waste your time on that project.