Top 10 Writing Tips

Once upon a time, you would plonk yourself down at an ageing, wooden desk, hot cup of steaming coffee to the side while you tapped furiously on an old brother typewriter. Fast forward a few years and writers and creatives alike are now voicing their thoughts through iPads, fancy desktop computers, dictation, and even through the medium of podcast. There have been so many changes in the format and style of how writing is supplied to the world that it's almost impossible to keep up.

Despite the ever-changing way in which we write, market or sell our stories, we all need to follow a simple structure to help us achieve the best quality result. Here are 10 top tips to keep you on track:

                                            Young Book Writer Writing in Library

Note. Sourced depositphotos.com Elnur_ (2021)

1. Make sure your voice is unique and entirely your own - as in - don't be afraid to be original in your thinking. If you feel the urge to compete with and/or copy another artist, then where is the true joy and inspiration that you're hoping to impart?
2. Organise your thought process. Good stories have well thought out structure. Evolve your characters, build conflict, resolve conflict, and finally find a way to bring the story to conclusion or add a little hook for evolving sagas.
3. Create consistent characters. Make notes about each of your characters to ensure you have consistency regarding their behaviour, speech style, and aesthetic.
4. Make sure you've done your research on the topic you intend to write, blog or podcast about.
5. Keep your writing as simple as possible. Avoid convoluted sentences and too much fluff in your descriptions. Instead of saying 'she walked as fast as her legs could carry her', you could say, 'she walked hurriedly'.
6. Edit. Edit Edit. And once you've done that, proofread some more.
7. Read other novels to gain insight on styles, structure, characters, and creative thinking.
8. Be open to receiving constructive criticism.
9. Write consistently and as often as possible.
10. And most importantly ... write about the things that you would like to read!

Hopefully that helped, but feel free to reach out if you want any more ideas to help keep you going or set the pace.

Kristy 😀