10 writing tips you won’t often hear

TIP #1STOP WATCHING

REALITY TVReality TV affirms the every man can be a hero.

Strong stories centre around the reluctant hero.

You simply don’t get the same tension of a person being pushed by circumstance when they’ve lined up for 3 days to participate.

Your writing needs tension, not producers and zany antics.

REALI

TY

TIP #2SHALLOW PEOPLE

WRITE SHALLOW THINGS

No one is going to take your perspective seriously if you live in a bubble, especially if that bubble is wallowing in your own crapulence.

Yes there are universal experiences in writing, but perpetuating boredom, the grotesquely self serving, or the generally inane moments of life should not be one of them.

TIP #3WRITING IS

NOT A SPELLING BEE

When people talk, they express emotion and get the point across. The words paint a picture.

They don’t use proper grammar or get awards from the English teacher.

You don’t give a damn about diction and sentence construction when your arse is on the line. So why should you characters?

TIP #4READ TRUE

CRIMEThere’s no better place to see human beings and their motivations than in crime.

From the abnormal personalities to the irrational behaviour, the selfless acts up against the selfish satisfaction, crime is the great distillation of what is wrong with humanity.

Understand people at their worst and the rest will be a piece of cake.

TIP #5APPRECIATE

CRITICISM

Surrounding yourself with ‘yes men’ will only service your ego. Stop chasing the spotlight!

Chase what is readable. Not what your ego can handle cutting.

If someone tells you your stuff sucks like an Electrolux, listen to them.

TIP #6BURN THE

RULE BOOKThere’s a big difference between knowing what to do and following the rules.

Rule followers take comfort in knowing where the lines are drawn and the safety of following them provides.

That’s boring.

Create the breakthrough. Not the box ticker.

TIP #7WRITE IN

ALTERED STATESYou don’t have to be Hunter S.

Thompson to understand altered states.

Changing scenario, taking up a new form of exercise, suffering from jetlag, being hungry or any spectrum of emotional response will influence your perception.

Use these moments when you are outside of your comfort zone or outside of yourself to stretch your work.

TIP #8READ CHALLENGING

STUFFPick the stuff that doesn’t match your ethical ideas.

Challenge yourself to deeply understand the way another person thinks.

Have a friend that has different views to you who can articulate a sentence.

See the faults in the arguments and the writing and learn from the holes in it.

TIP #9STORY TRUMPS

STRUCTURE

You can always tweak the structure later but if the story is boring, you're boned.

The only exception is rhyme. ACTUALLY make it rhyme.

Near enough is in either case is bullshit.

TIP #10SITUATIONAL

INFLUENCE IS WHERE ITS AT

People and characters are designed to buckle under the strain or come through in difficult situations.

If you create an “evil dude” with no situation, you’ve got nothing.

If you put an every day dude in a bad situation, that’s writing.

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