8 Tips To Improve Your Writing

1. Keep your story moving forward. Every word, every sentence you write should move your plot forward. If you don’t write to keep your reader turning pages to see what’s next, they will put the book down and move on to another writer. To prevent that, make everything you write advance your plot.
2. Don’t drop the ball. Make sure there are no loose ends in your story. Not much frustrates your reader more than plot holes. Your reader should never be left with unanswered questions.
3. Show, don’t tell! Don’t tell us the sun is shining or that your character is hot. Let them come to those conclusions themselves by- seeing her squinting and shielding her eyes while fanning herself with her hand. You want your story to be so real, so vivid in your reader’s mind they can’t put down your book.
4. Your idea is important. When thinking of ideas for your novel, don’t just choose one that interests you. Choose an idea that you can’t imagine not working on and growing for 40,000 words or more. If you’re not ecstatic about it, neither will your reader.
5. Be prepared to edit, edit, and edit some more. After you edit a few times, eliminate what doesn’t work, and rewrite until it’s the best you can make it. Do all this BEFORE you send your work to your editor. An editor’s job is to refine your work, not rewrite it to make it legible and give you grammar lessons.
6. Read, a lot, especially books in your genre’. The idea is to decide what works and what doesn’t, not to emulate anyone. You can’t write well if you don’t read.
7. Don’t ever stop learning. There are a plethora of free or low-cost writing courses online. Seek them out and sign up. The more you learn, the better you’ll get.
8. Know all about your characters. Get to know your characters inside and out BEFORE you write about them. If you know your characters like you know a best friend, you’ll know what they’ll say and how they’ll say it.

Enjoy your writing. Don’t be intimidated.

You can always improve if you keep writing, but you’ll never improve if you remain afraid. Pick up that book and get to work.

Happy Writing!

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