I gave a presentation on writing
on Saturday
and I asked attendees
“Who here reads within their genre?”
A shockingly small number of writers
raised their hands.
However, EVERY published writer
raised her hand.
I heard a lot of excuses from the unpublished.
My favorite excuse was
that they were creating something
completely original.
How did they know
their product was completely original?
They hadn’t read their competition’s product.
For all they know,
the product they’re creating has already been done
As product developers,
we need to know our industry.
In order to position our product,
we should know our competition’s products.
Yes, this research is work
and not always fun work
or immediately lucrative work,
BUT it has to be done.
Know your industry.
No excuses.