On Writing: My Favorite Tips

For many years, I wrote slash fanfiction. I even won a couple of “steamiest writer” awards for my work. In college, I had professors in three different disciplines suggest that I give up my archaeology studies, switch my major to English, and devote myself full time to becoming a novelist. I'm not sure they'll ever know just how much those votes of confidence meant to me. I'm not perfect, and I'm not professionally field tested, but I like to think that I'm a reasonably decent writer.

I search writing tips online about once a month, just to see if there's something new I can use, or something old that is suddenly relevant. Following is a list of the tips I keep in mind every time I write.

1. Write what you like.

This isn't a tip as much as it is my number one rule. First and foremost, I write what I like. I operate under the assumption that if I don't like it, no one else will. This is partly because I don't believe that my tastes are unique and partly because I believe that if I'm not passionate about my work, there's no reason for anyone else to even be interested. I tend not to worry about "readability" until I get to the final revision, and even then, I've been known to say, "Meh, if they don't like it, they don't have to read it." Don't get me wrong, I do think about my audience. But I don't think about my audience first. I write for myself before I write for anyone else. It's a selfish way of doing things, but in my experience, it's the most effective.

2. You're not totally sane and that's okay.

The latest--and longest-lasting--incarnation of my muse is named Tim. He smokes, he drinks, he really likes sex, and he can be kind of an asshole sometimes. Tim and I have had explosive arguments and not spoken to each other for days. I've written pages and pages that will never see the light of day just so Tim and I could do things like haul zombies around in a cattle truck, discuss why kissing is intimate, and fight over the fact that I can sometimes be a coward when it comes to my writing. Two different health care professionals have also officially described me as "sane" and "remarkably well-adjusted." All of the writers I know have muses, and all of the writers I know have gotten into it with their muses. It's okay. It's like having an imaginary friend, and your ability to use your imagination to create an inspiring friend is what's going to help you create a world and characters people want to read about.

3. If it's not working, try something else.

When I write, I'm a plotter. I've read this way of writing described as “boring,” and I'll agree, sometimes it can be. But I benefit immensely from having a specific goal and a plan to achieve that goal. However, sometimes, it just doesn't work. Some stories require a way of doing things that is different from your normal routine, and you have to be flexible enough to accommodate them. If you're not, you get stuck. I don't know about you, but I hate writer's block.

4. Create the mood with music or video.

Background music can help you get into the right frame of mind for your story, especially if you have only a specific and very limited time in which to write. It depends entirely on the piece, of course, but for many years, I had a "Writing Playlist" saved in my media player. Over the last few months, the computers and our iPod containing all of our music have crashed, so I've lost them, but I'm slowly easing back into it. I listen to Charlie Parker a lot these days. Movies help in a different way. I like coming up from my writing for a breather to be met with something visually interesting and creative. My two favorite movies for this? Top Gun and A Few Good Men. They're the perfect balance of interesting without the risk of me being too drawn in to get anything done on my own.

5. Write what you know, learn what you don't.

You should absolutely write about what you're an expert on. Use some big event in your life, some key emotion you're intimately acquainted with, and run with it. Your passion makes for compelling storytelling. But sometimes, a story calls for expertise you don't have. That's when you learn what you don't know. Google is your friend! The library is your friend! Online communities like LiveJournal's little_details can also be invaluable resources. The world is, quite literally, at your fingertips thanks to the Internet. If you want to be able to write with authority, you need the authority of knowledge. Or, you know, you need to be really good at faking it.

6. Think about it.

Sometimes, when I get a bit overwhelmed by something in the story, I pause every sentence (or few) to close my eyes and think about what I'm writing. I really imagine the scene, the characters, the moment. I focus on each detail at a time. I then write slowly. It can be a huge help to really think, in detail, about what you want to show and then write it slowly. You may even notice a detail that you hadn't previously considered, maybe even a detail no one else has considered, either.


7. Act it out. 


This is especially useful if what I'm trying to write is action-heavy, like dogfights and hand-to-hand combat. Sure, I might end up all alone in the middle of my living room fighting an invisible opponent (or myself) and looking crazy, but it helps a lot more than you might expect. When you sit back down to write, you'll have better spatial awareness and be better able to describe what's going on.


I'm sure that I'll be making more posts about this topic in the future because this is by no means a definitive list, but these are my favorites.