Goodreads asked James Van Pelt:

What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

James Van Pelt This is an interesting question. I'm doing a 45-minute presentation at a local comicon that's entitled, "Becoming a Writer." It's an intimidating topic for only 45 minutes! I think that I have to start with a rock-solid basic to answer the question, which is to read, read, read and write, write, write. I know, it sounds unhelpful and stupid, but that's actually the formula. You read to get story and language running in the back of your head, and you write because most of us have a lot of crummy writing to get through before we start getting to the better stuff. Writing is like any other art: you progress. Almost no one starts as a genius from the get go. They start crummier than they're going to end up, and the only way to get from the beginning to the better is to wade through the crummy.

You read a lot to find your influences, and you write a lot to find your voice. It's that simple. Being simple doesn't make it easy, by the way. If you want easy, inherit a lot of money.

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