Tips for Writing Improve Your Writing

10 Tips for Writing 10 Tips for Writing Writing is a strange beast. There are rules about how to do it right, but there is also an element of inherent creativity that compels writers to do what works or what feels right. Here are 10 tips for writing that will help you write more often and create engaging content that can hook your readers. 1. Make Writing a Habit The only real difference between a good writer and a great writer is the time they spend writing. One of the reasons writers struggle at the beginning of their careers is because they realize that writing isn’t easy. Writer’s block and self-doubt sets in and can send them into a quandary, and those emotions resurface every time they sit down to write. Experienced writers understand that the more often you write, the easier it becomes to write what you want to write. It’s the secret that isn’t a secret when it comes to tips for writing. Keep writing, put your butt in the chair, and write every day. 2. Establish a Routine If making writing a habit gives you fits, try to establish a regular writing routine. A writing routine works like when you have a morning routine or a bedtime routine. Putting a writing routine in place is a way to signal your brain that it’s time to write. Your writing routine can include just about anything that works for you. Perhaps you start off early in the morning with a cup of coffee and the daily news, then you put on some music and review your writing from the previous day. Maybe you start off with a blank page, or perhaps you get a daily writing prompt via email that you use to warm up with before diving into your work. Some writers find that retyping the pages written the previous day is a great way to warm up and refresh their memory. Establishing a writing routine is one of the best tips for writing that I’ve come across, and it works! 3. Use life as your inspiration: Human beings are spontaneous and unpredictable. Life is hard. Things don’t always go as planned. Another one of the tips for writing is that the more examples you can draw upon from life events, the more real and engaging your writing will be. This works for both fiction and non-fiction. Carry a notebook and pen with you to take note of what’s happening around you. Write what you feel: draw upon your fear, your passion, your excitement, your sorrow. Use specific, descriptive words but keep it simple. Show don’t tell. Avoid stereotypes and one-dimensional characters 4. Step Out of your Comfort Zone Don’t just read your favorite author, or in the genre that you love, and don’t just write in your chosen genre either. Read an occasional horror story even if you don’t like horror. Use that as an inspiration the next time you write about fear. Dabble in poetry or write a children’s story if you normally write novels. If you typically only write fiction, make it a point to read and even write some non-fiction. Find a way to use that experience and what you learn from it in your next fiction novel. 5. Get to the Root of the Problem If writer’s block shows up regularly, reflect on exactly what it is about writing that is bothering you. I used to write regularly for a company that was in the business of targeting college students who needed writing services. Writer’s block reared its head every time I had to write new copy for their website. Finally, I came across one of the tips for writing that dealt with getting to the root of your writer’s block. I finally realized that I was morally opposed to the fact that college students could pay this company to write their essay, term paper or research paper for them and then turn it in as if it was their work. The best thing I ever did as a writer was to decide that no matter how badly I needed money, I would never write those kinds of articles again. 6. Learn to Embrace Constructive Criticism One more of my tips for writing to learn is how to not only accept constructive criticism but how to embrace it. Sharing your work with others early on is a great way for you to learn where you might be making mistakes so that you can work to improve your writing. There are so many things, especially in the mechanics of writing, that can jar the reader out of your story and back to reality. When that happens, you risk losing the reader to other distractions. Learn to embrace constructive criticism and your writing will improve. Be Objective Life is about different strokes for different folks, and this is true of your readers as well. You can write the best possible scene that you feel you’ve ever written. But if your readers don’t have the same perspective, if they don’t feel the same way when they read that scene, then all is for naught. Getting constructive criticism from others is what allows you as the writer a window into your readers’ perspective. You can’t write for every single person out there, but if you can be objective, you can work to be the best at writing for those readers who love your genre. 8. Change Things Up a Little Another one of my favorite tips for writing, especially for those who experience writer’s block frequently, is to change things up a little bit. It could be a change as simple as writing with pen and paper instead of using your word processor and computer. It could involve changing the genre of music to match the mood you’re trying to evoke in the scene. If you need more of a physical change, perhaps you run up to the local coffee shop to write instead of writing at your desk that day. Believe it or not, sometimes change, no matter how small, can propel you out of procrastination or writer’s block and into that sweet spot. 9. Avoid Distractions Another recommended tip for writing is to avoid distractions whenever possible. For some people, this means simply writing when it’s quiet. If social media is a huge distraction for you when you write, find an app that locks you out of all your social media sites for a specific amount of time. There are also writing apps that clear your screen of any unnecessary buttons so that you can write without all the visual clutter of menu buttons. Whatever it takes, get rid of the distractions. 10. Nix the Negativity Friends, family, co-workers and others in your life can sometimes bring unnecessary negativity to your writing life. Negativity is much different than someone just giving you constructive criticism. Surround yourself instead with those people in your life who support you as a writer and share your enthusiasm for it. So the tips for writers above are just some of the many recommendations from experienced authors. There are much more. Some will work well for you and others may not. We’ll cover some additional tips for writing in a future article. Until then, get writing!