Writing Tips Part Two

I am sharing my final 25 writing tips. If you missed the first part, you can view it HERE.

Writing Tips Part Two

26.    Write a good beginning to hook your readers and an ever better ending to satisfy them.

27.    Never be afraid to rewrite. Your book will most likely turn out better!

28.    Aim for realistic goals when you’re writing, but don’t beat yourself up if you can’t reach it. We all have our off-days and some days may produce more or less writing than others. A goal is meant to encourage you, not to torture you.

29.    Write outside of your comfort zone whenever possible. This will strengthen your writing and may even reveal skills that you never thought you had.

30.    Write every day! Or at least try to write every day. A paragraph written is a paragraph closer to THE END.

31.    After you spend months or years (in most cases) writing a book, it is always a good idea to put it down for awhile. Give yourself some space from the characters you’ve been writing about. Give your brain a vacation!

32.    If you are tempted to add more than three commas to a sentence then that sentence may be too long. Read it aloud to see if it flows, rewrite it, or split it in half.

33.    To prevent a reader's confusion with multiple perspectives, create a sequence that a reader can follow to know which character’s point-of-view will be next.

34.     Always make it clear whose perspective you’re in right away. State the character’s name within the first few sentences.

35. Show the entertaining parts that engage readers, and tell the less entertaining parts your readers just need to know. The key to showing AND telling is not to be excessive with either option, but to find a balance.

36.  Be more specific by cutting out these phrases at the beginning of sentences: There was/were, There is/are, and It was.

37.  Don’t repeat the same word(s) in a single paragraph or in the same scene, because a reader will most likely notice, and then the scene you wrote won’t flow as well. Search a thesaurus or use Google to find alternative words.

38.  If you ever get stuck while writing, read the last chapter or two to get back into the groove.

39. Skip the part you are struggling with and write a different event you are in the mood to  writing, but don’t forget to go back to write what you skipped! 

40. Use a Sans Disk Flash Drive every time you update a document.

41. Create two separate accounts on your computer, just as you would if you shared your computer. In this case, you’ll have one account for Internet use and one solely for writing. I do this, so if I need to delete the infected account, my writing will be safe.

42.  Create a professional email address for when you send out e-queries.

43. If you’re writing a series, each book has to grow. What occurs in each story, and the stakes that threaten the protagonist, have to be bigger and better every time. And the last book in a series has to tie all of them together while also giving an epic grand finale. 

44.  Memoir Writing Tip: What you don’t ever want to do when you’re writing a memoir is to add in something because you think it makes your story more interesting. Remember to always tell the truth!

45.  Children’s Book Writing Tip: Try to include a positive message, if you can.

46. Be open to criticism. If an editor or agent scribbles a note on your query letter or in the margins of your story, pay attention to what it says because the fact that they took the time to actually jot it down for you is a big deal.

47. Don’t ever let anyone discourage you, especially yourself! You have to remember that you won’t sound like other authors because you are unique, and what you write is amazing in its own right.

48. Be brave! No one can tell you what you can or cannot write in your book.

49.  Keep learning about the craft of writing. There are many books written by authors about writing and the writer’s life. Joining a writer's group or association/organization can also teach you a lot.

50.  Don’t listen to all the writing rules you hear. They are not law.

SHARE: Your #1 writing tip.