Ernest Hemingway said:
There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.
It's that easy... all you need to do is sit down and write.
But it really isn't that easy is it? It can't be... otherwise, everyone would be doing it!
I can't tell you how to tell your story. All I can do is tell you how I tell mine.
I can give you writing tips and you could search for advice from famous writers on the internet.
There's a name for that... Procrastination and that means you're looking for something - anything - to do rather than writing.
So, all you have to do is sit down and write. Make time for yourself during the day. Make sure you'll not be disturbed and set yourself an allocated chunk of time when you'll be able to concentrate and do what you've got to do.
If it helps, leave your cellphone/mobile in another room, or at least turn it to silent if you believe you can leave it alone for a while. Sit with paper and pen/pencil if that works for you, or use your PC/Mac/Laptop/Tablet to type on.
You'll write if you want/need it enough and if you don't? Well, that's OK, there's always tomorrow or next week... I'm kidding. Sit down, sit up straight and write your story because if you don't write it, no one else will do it for you.
Telling people you’re a writer doesn’t make it so. No, don’t argue with me, that’s not the definition of a writer. A writer actually writes, so until you do that, you’re not a writer, you’re a reader, a researcher, a procrastinator, but not a writer. If you want to change that fact, you have the tools to do it, so crack on!
You need to practice. Practice makes perfect and though you don’t need to be perfect right away, you still need to practice. Writing really is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger, more flexible and easier it becomes. Trust me, I’ve been away from writing for about 2 years and it’s HARD to get back into it.
Whilst plagiarism is a crime (yes it is) and copyright is upheld by law (again, yep, truth!) admiring and emulating your favourite writers is neither a crime nor frowned upon. Find writers you like to read and pull their words apart to see if you can figure out what clicks with you when you read their writing.
For instance, I like reading Stephen King, Terry Pratchett, and Dean Koontz (some of his work, anyway). I won’t be re-writing Carrie anytime soon, but maybe I’ll try to capture the creepy feelings I got when I read some of the book. Terry Pratchett was a great comedic writer and I’m almost certain I could never live up to his humour, but I do like reading the stories he wrote and the reason is because I like his visual storytelling, and that, I CAN attempt for myself. Putting your reader into a storyline that they can visualise is an absolute gift.
Some people use outlines, study notes, pieces of paper with chunks of story ideas on them. If you use that method, that’s great! Do that! Utilise everything you can to help you write. Even if someone tells you a method is ‘lame’, ‘old hat’, useless, laughable, whatever. If it helps you, use it and don’t even think about what other people say about your methods.
The first draft won’t be great, but don’t worry. No one shows that first draft to anyone – not even to their mother – so write it and keep it private.
The second draft is what you can build on. The second draft is the first draft after it’s been left for a while. I know it’s difficult, but write it, save it and leave it the hell alone! Seriously!
Leave it for as long as you can bear to leave it for and then re-read it, cringe a little and start the re-write. That’s the start of your second draft and trust me, it will be better.
If you’re writing a book, you WILL need a good editor. Not your mum, not your best friend. They can be beta-readers if you like, but they’re way too close to you to be able to tell you what’s wrong and how to fix it. Again, NOT KIDDING! Good editors are hard to find and they’re NOT cheap! Then again, they’re worth their weight in gold because they can take your work and make it shine! If you find a good editor, do whatever you can to keep them happy and keep them with you!
If the writing is just for a blog or an article, don’t worry, it doesn’t need to be good, does it?
YES! It does need to be good, because if you’re lazy and cut corners, the readers who can see your laziness and corner-cutting will never read anything else you write. You have one chance with some readers and believe me, there’s PLENTY to read out there, they don’t need to be giving second chances to someone who doesn’t put care and attention to detail at the top of their list.
If you have an opinion, don’t be afraid to voice it. You may get yourself in trouble (I know I’ve been down that road before) but if you’re right (and research will help you there), then stick to your guns and debate your point. If you’re proven wrong and you’ve not been a dick about it, your apology will suffice. If you’re proven right (and you’ve not been a dick about it) then you’ll have the start of a following. Build on that.
When you’re researching, don’t just use Google and please, for the sake of all that is holy, DON’T assume the first thing you come across that agrees with your opinion is the defining word on the subject. Look at the opposing arguments as much as you look at articles that agree with you. If nothing else, you may open up your own mind a little and that’s never a bad thing.
At the end of the day, (or middle of the night, whenever you look up from your keyboard and think “That’s finished!”) you can’t edit a blank page, so whatever you do, even if you hire a forest full of monkeys to hammer out Shakespeare’s entire back-catalogue for you, something is better than nothing.
Images from Google search labelled for reuse