I hear from members of the first group all the time: "Come on, you don't need to go to school to become a good writer. You don't need to read books. What do those guys really know, anyway? Writing isn't some formula or technical process. What fun is that? When you sit down to write a story, you just feel it, man. The muse just hits you. You've either got the jam or you don't."
Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of jam. I agree wholeheartedly that all of the bottom-line raw materials for success - talent, passion, ability and drive - reside within. Unless you want to succeed, and are prepared to put your whole self into it, you won't. And sheer determination, combined with a natural flair for writing and a ton of practice, can take a person a long way. My guess is you already know that because you've experienced it. You've written stuff that that has surprised you and that others have said is anything from half decent to bloody brilliant. And when we get that kind of affirmation and experience the rush of excitement that comes from putting pen to page (especially when we're young), there's a natural temptation to want to bask in the glow of how we did it all by ourselves.
But to stay there, to believe that we don't need a little help along the way to becoming the best writer we could be, is, to put it mildly, a mistake. Because contrary to what some of us artist types think, good writing is a science. It doesn't just come out of the ether, out of our heads, or any other body part for that matter. We can read Dostoevsky or Larrson or Picoult and conclude that they "just got it", then spend the rest of our lives trying to "get it". Trying to catch and bottle their magic by simply reading enough of their books, memoirs and interviews. But if we're really paying attention, it's only a matter of time before we realize that their genius was no accident, no product of an extraterrestrial talent they possessed but which we do not.
The simple truth is that they took the time to learn how to write. They stuck their egos on shelves long enough to realize that talent and passion only go so far. They read books. They spent time with other successful writers. They latched onto a mentor. They studied how stories work, how they're constructed, how they assemble and utilize a cast of compelling characters, and build to a satisfying end. In other words, for a time they silenced their inner artistes and became scientists and business people. They found out what works, what truly satisfies readers, and what sells. This should be good news because it means that becoming a great writer is much closer and easier than we thought.
Concluding that a person doesn't need to take the time to learn how to write is simply a classic of case of "you don't know what you don't know". Until you actually sit down and see how things like theme, plot structure, character arcs, inciting incidents, escalating conflict, and "all-is-lost" moments contribute to effective storytelling, it might seem logical to assume that good writing boils down to simply having a way with words. In the same way that Mozart just had a "way" with the piano, Tiger Woods just has a "way" with a club, or President Obama just has a "way" with people. I think you get the point.
Writing may be an art, and you may have picked up the idea along the way that art is all about guts, intuition, and mystical influences, but good art (and certainly successful, marketable art) is also an applied science. If you don't like the way that tastes, get a glass of juice to wash it down, then go buy a good book on the subject and watch your writing start to improve within days if not immediately. Then consider taking a few classes. That's what I did and I've never regretted it.
Speaking of books, here are a few that have been a massive help to me. None of them are perfect. Some of them disagree on small points. But if you pick two or three and draw a circle around the big stuff they have in common (trust me, it won't take long), I promise they'll take you places in your writing that you didn't even know existed.
1. The Anatomy of Story (John Truby)
2. The Writer's Journey (Christopher Vogler)
3. Save the Cat and Save The Cat Goes To The Movies (Blake Snyder)
4. Story (Robert McKee)
5. Inside Story (Dara Marks)
6. Making a Good Script Great (Linda Seger)
7. Writing Screenplays That Sell (Michael Hauge)
8. How to Become A Famous Writer Before You're Dead (Ariel Gore)
Best of luck!
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