Chef vs. Cook Mindset

One Right Way to Write?

What if there is no single 'right' way to write a novel?

Writer Brandon Sanderson answers with a kitchen analogy. Some people in a kitchen are cooks. Others are chefs.

A cook follows a recipe step by step. A chef understands why the ingredients work together.

Notice that the cook's eyes stay on the recipe card while the chef studies and tastes the ingredients themselves.

Sanderson says writers should aim to be chefs.

Cook vs. Chef

Both can make a good meal. The difference lies in how they use the recipe.

A cook follows instructions blindly. If an ingredient is missing, the cook is stuck.

A chef knows what each ingredient does, so a chef can swap, adjust, and invent.

In writing, a cook copies a technique because a book said so. A chef asks what that technique does for the story.

Why the 'Why' Matters

Writing advice is full of rules. Each one became popular because it helped someone tell a story.

When you understand the principle behind a technique, you can use it well.

You can also adapt it to your own project, or break it on purpose when it does not serve the story.

That is how writers innovate and develop a unique voice.

Advice Is a Toolkit

Sanderson treats writing advice as a toolkit, not a rulebook.

A rulebook says every writer must work one way. A toolkit offers options, and you pick the tool that fits the job.

Different approaches suit different projects. No single method is universally correct.

A hammer is great for nails and useless for screws. Writing techniques work the same way.

Find Your Method by Testing

If no single right method exists, how do you find yours?

Sanderson's answer is experimentation. Try a technique on a real project and watch what happens.

Ask why it worked or failed. That question turns a cook's habit into a chef's understanding.

Then adjust and try again. Over time, your personal approach takes shape.

Thinking Like a Chef

Here is how to use the chef mindset in your own work.

When you meet a writing rule, ask what problem it solves. Then decide if your story has that problem.

If it does, use the tool. If not, set it aside or bend it.

To explain it to a colleague: cooks follow recipes, chefs know why recipes work. Write like a chef.

In Sanderson's analogy, a writer who follows advice step by step without knowing why it works is acting like a _____.

• cook
• chef

Answer: cook

Cooks follow recipes as written. Chefs understand why ingredients work together, so they can adapt. A writer who follows advice blindly is acting like a cook.

In the kitchen analogy, a _____ follows a recipe exactly, while a _____ understands why ingredients work together.

Answer: In the kitchen analogy, a cook follows a recipe exactly, while a chef understands why ingredients work together.

The cook depends on the recipe. The chef understands the principles behind it. Writers should aim to be chefs.

Why should writers try to think like chefs instead of cooks?

• Knowing why techniques work lets them adapt techniques to new projects
• Memorizing more rules helps them avoid every possible mistake
• Ignoring all writing advice helps them protect their originality
• Following one proven method helps them finish books faster

Answer: Knowing why techniques work lets them adapt techniques to new projects

Understanding why storytelling techniques work lets writers innovate and adapt them to their own unique projects. The chef mindset is not about memorizing more rules, avoiding advice, or writing faster.