I am no Juliet.
I am no Romeo.
You are no Shakespeare.
Please let me elaborate, if you have not decided to navigate away from this page because of a wounded ego. Yes, I have been in love (passionate, screaming, painful, beautiful, cursed… the adjectives go on and on). But in no way can I relate to Romeo and Juliet or their story. For one thing, I did not get married in secret, and I did not decide to commit suicide over my ex. And another thing… Juliet’s fourteen. And how old is Romeo? And he was deeply in love with this Rosaline person just the day before he met Juliet, so how reliable is he in the first place? Hmmm… let’s keep going shall we? They met on Sunday, then (woah!) they kill themselves on Thursday morning. Ok, I get it, it’s true love. But you know what? Shakespeare took all of these little flaws and made it beautiful. It’s only good the first time around, just like the whole vampire plot line (which is being beaten to death as we speak).
So, do you understand what I am trying to get at? LET ROMEO AND JULIET REST IN PEACE. You are no Shakespeare, and it’s no use updating the piece to your own little life. Because let me tell you… it’s not original, and you are just looking for a way to relate how miserable you are about breaking up with your boy/girlfriend or how much in love you are with them. Pick up your pen, pencil, crayon, writing utensil and write your story. Your own jewel – use your experience, pour out your soul, and make it your own. Don’t relate it to any literary masterpiece. You are the master of your work. If each life is unique, if each character is new, if each experience has a fresh twist, then it will be a master piece. Don’t fall back into the perfected Mary Sue and Larry Stew stereotypes (or what I call them: Bella and Edward. Sorry Stephenie Meyer).
Open your eyes to your personal world of writing – not what others have already written, but what you have seen, felt, dreamt, heard, smelled. This power is your own. USE IT.
After all, I am no Shakespeare, and neither are you. I am myself. Who are you?