Quote:
Originally Posted by gmw
I do have a prejudice with regard to books about writing: books by successful writers offer a level of credibility that is less apparent in books by people that have not achieved success in writing fiction.
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I admittedly agree with that view and I'm more likely to take advice from someone who accomplished professional success in the field they teach, but I'm not sure it's necessarily a flawless take. For example, there are renowned football and soccer coaches of world class teams who never successfully played in a professional league, which implies that it is possible to teach a skill without having first hand experience in mastering it on the practical level. Teaching seems to be largely (or at least in part) about motivating the student and pointing them in the right direction. We still have to learn the skill by ourselves.