WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW?

Okay, I know you've all heard that one before.

I guess how you react to it will depend on who you are. If you're one of those people who sailed single-handedly around the world at age fourteen, volunteered to go abroad and build orphanages for the under-privileged in Borneo at fifteen, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro when you were sixteen - and blogged about it all - you're making a smug face right now.

But if you're like me, a fairly normal person who's had a few interesting experiences but has gene...