Better Writing Skills

8/13/2019 Better Writing Skills

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How to Improve Your Writing Skills

Do you dream of changing the world with your words? Do you aspire to be the next AnnieProulx, or the next David Foster Wallace? Or maybe you just want to be able to better express

your thoughts and ideas more clearly. Becoming a great writer—or even a good writer—takes practice and knowledge, but with enough hard work perhaps someday somebody will aspire

to be the next you!

Method 1 of 4: Better Writing Basics

1. 1

Be active instead of passive. One of the most common manifestations of bad writingis overuse of the passive voice. The passive voice makes the object of an action intothe subject of the sentence with verb forms like "X had been attacked by Y" instead of

simply "Y attacked X." Learn to avoid these constructions as much as you can.[1]

o "The novel had been written by Frank while he was in college" is passive."Frank wrote the novel while he was in college" is active.

o Using the passive voice isn't always bad. Sometimes there is no clear way tomake a statement active, or sometimes you want the lighter touch a passive

construction allows. But learn to follow this rule before you start makingexceptions.

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2. 2

Use strong words. Good writing is precise, evocative and spiced with the unexpected.

Finding the right verb or adjective can turn an uninspired sentence into one people willremember and quote for years to come. Look for words that are as specific as possible.Try not to repeat the same word over and over unless you are trying to build a rhythm

with it.

o One exception to this is the words used to describe dialogue. Bad writing isfilled with "he commented" and "she responded." A well-placed "sputtered"

can work wonders, but most of the time a simple "said" will do. It may feelawkward to use the word "said" over and over, but changing it up

unnecessarily makes it harder for your readers to get into the back-and-forthflow of the conversation. When writing dialogue, you want readers to hearyour characters' voices, not your own.

o Strong doesn't mean obscure, or more complicated. Don't say "utilize" whenyou could say "use." "He sprinted" is not necessarily better than "he ran." Ifyou have a really good opportunity to use "ameliorate," go for it—unless

"ease" is just as good there.




3. 3

Cut the chaff. Good writing is simple, clear and direct. You don't get points for

saying in 50 words what could be said in 20. Good writing is about using the rightwords, not filling up the page. It might feel good at first to pack a lot of ideas anddetails into a single sentence, but chances are that sentence is just going to be hard to

read. If a phrase doesn't add anything valuable, just cut it.

o Adverbs are the classic crutch of mediocre writing. A well-placed adverb can be delightful, but much of the time the adverbs we use are already implied by

the verb or adjective—or would be if we had chosen a more evocative word.Don't write "screamed fearfully";"scream" already suggests fear. If you notice

that your writing is filled with "-ly" words, it might be time to take a deep breath and give your writing more focus.

o Sometimes cutting the chaff is best done at the editing stage. You don't have to

obsess about finding the most concise way to phrase every sentence; get yourideas down on paper however you can and then go through to edit outunnecessary verbiage.

o Your writing doesn't just exist in a vacuum—it's experienced in conjunctionwith the reader's imagination. You don't need to describe every detail if a few

good ones can spur the reader's mind to fill in the rest. Lay down well-placeddots and let the reader connect them.




4. 4

Show don't tell. Instead of just sitting your readers down for a long exposition

explaining a character's background or a plot-point's significance, try to let the readersdiscover the same ideas through the words, feelings and actions of your characters.Especially in fiction, putting this classic piece of writerly advice into practice is one of

the most powerful lessons a writer can learn.[2]







5. 5

Avoid clichés. Clichés are phrases, ideas or situations which are patently unoriginal.

They may have been powerful at one point, but now they have been overused to the point of having little value unless reimagined in some creative way. It's hard to sayexactly what makes a cliché, other than that, as with pornography, you'll know it when

you see it.

o "It was a dark and stormy night" is a classic example of a clichéd phrase— even now a clichéd concept. Compare these similar weather-related opening

lines:[3] “It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking

thirteen.”— 1984, by George Orwell. It's not dark, nor stormy, nornight. But you can tell right from the start something's not quite right in1984.

“The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a deadchannel.”— Neuromancer , by William Gibson, in the same book thatgave us the word "cyberspace." This not only gives you the weather

report, it does so in such a way that you are immediately placed into hisdystopian world.

“It was the day my grandmother exploded.”— The Crow Road , by IainBanks.

"“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of

wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it wasthe epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of







Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had

everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all goingdirect to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the

period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiestauthorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the

superlative degree of comparison only.”— A Tale of Two Cities, byCharles Dickens. Weather, emotion, damnation, and despair—Dickenscovered it all with an opening line that leaves the reader ready for

anything.

6. 6

Break the rules. The best writers don't just follow the rules—they know when and

how to break them. Everything from traditional grammar to the writing advice aboveis up for grabs if you know a transgression will improve your piece. The key is thatyou have to write well enough the rest of the time that it's clear you are breaking therule knowingly and on purpose.




7. 7

Edit, edit, edit. Don't believe your English teachers: there is no such thing as a

"perfect" masterpiece in writing. Every author could have found something to changein even their greatest works if they had given it another once over. Editing is one ofthe most essential parts of writing. Once you finish a piece of writing, let it sit for a

day and then read it over with fresh eyes, catching typos or scrapping whole paragraphs—anything to make your piece better. Then when you are done, give it

another read, and another.

Method 2 of 4: Consume the Written Word Voraciously




1. 1

Pick up a good book or ten. Read and understand the works of great and influential

writers to learn what is possible with the written word. By immersing yourself inwriters who have given us the world's the most compelling stories and ideas, you willexpand your vocabulary, build knowledge and feed your imagination.[4]

o Look for different ways of organizing a piece of writing or presenting a

narrative.o Try comparing different author's approaches to the same subject to see how

they are alike and how they differ. For example, Tolstoy's Death of Ivan Ilych,and Hemingway's The Snows of Kilimanjaro.









3. 3

Make sure you understand why a classic work is considered great. It's possible to

read a novel like The Catcher in the Rye and not "get it" or see its value immediate ly.If this happens, try reading an essay or two about the piece to learn why it was soinfluential and effective. You may discover layers of meaning that you missed.

Understanding what makes great writing great is one of the best ways to grow yourown skills.




4. 4

Attend the theatre. Yes, watching a play is passive—like television or the movies—

and there's not a bit of reading involved. But it will fire your imagination in ways youmight not expect.

o More than a movie ever can be, a theatrical performance is like words come tolife, with only the director's interpretation and the actor's delivery as filters

between the author's pen and your ears.




5. 5

Read magazines, newspapers, and everything else. Literature isn't the only place to

get ideas—the real world is filled with fascinating people, places and events that willinspire your writerly mind.




6. 6

Know when to put down your influences. It happens all the time: you finish an

awesome novel, and it leaves you fired up to get cracking on your own writing. Butwhen you sit down at your desk, your words come out sounding unoriginal, like animitation of the author you were just reading. For all you can learn from great writers,

you need to be able to develop your own voice. Learn to cleanse your palate ofinfluences with a free writing exercise, a review of your past works, or even just a

meditative jog.

Method 3 of 4: Write Voluminously

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1. 1

Buy a notebook. Not just any notebook, but a good sturdy one you can take with you

anywhere. Ideas happen anywhere, and you want to be able to capture those oft-fleeting ideas before they escape you like that dream you had the other nightabout...um...it was...uh...well it was really good at the time!




2. 2

Write down any ideas that come to you. Titles, subtitles, topics, characters,

situations, phrases, metaphors—anything that will spark your imagination later whenyou're ready.




3. 3

Fill up your notebook and keep going. When you finish a notebook, put a label on it

with the date range and any general notes, so you can refer back to it when you need acreative kick in the pants.




4. 4

Join a writing workshop. One of the best ways to improve your writing and stay

motivated is to talk with others and get feedback on your work. Find a local or onlinewriting group. In these groups members usually read each other's writing and discusswhat they liked, didn't like and how a piece might be improved. You may find that

offering feedback, as well as receiving it, helps you learn valuable lessons to buildyour skills.




5. 5

Write every day. Keep a diary, mail a pen pal, or just set aside an hour or so for free

writing. Just pick a topic and start writing. The topic itself doesn't matter—the idea isto write. And write. And write some more. Writing is a skill that takes practice, and amuscle that you can strengthen and nourish with the right training.

Method 4 of 4: Crafting a Story




1. 1

Pick a topic and lay out a general arc for your story. It doesn't have to be complex,

just a way to get your head around the direction of the plot. For example, that classicHollywood story line: boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl backagain. (The chase scenes are added later.)




2. 2

Write an outline. It can be tempting to just start writing and try to figure out twists

and turns of your plot as you go along. Don't do it! Even a simple outline will help yousee the big picture and save you hours of rewriting. Start with a basic arc and expandsection by section. Flesh out your story, populating it with at least the main characters,

locations, time period, and mood.

o Note that in an outline like this, you discover that of the 4 sections, the last onewill take up the bulk of the story. When you have part of an outline that will

take more than a few words to describe, create a sub-outline to break thatsection into manageable parts.




3. 3

Write the first draft. You're now ready to start your "sloppy copy," otherwise known

as your first draft! Using your outline, flesh out the characters and the narrative.




4. 4

Keep some space in your story online to add characters, and what makes them

who they are. Give each of them a little story of their own, and even if you don't addthat info into your story, it will give a sense of how your character might act in a givensituation.




5. 5

Don't be afraid to hop around. If you suddenly have a brilliant idea about how to

resolve a situation near the end, but you're still on Chapter 1, write it down! Never letan idea go to waste.




6. 6

Let your story guide you. Let your story have its say, and you may find yourself

heading in unexpected, but very interesting directions. You're still the director, butstay open to inspiration.




7. 7

Finish your first draft. Don't get caught up in fine tuning things yet, just let the story

play out on paper. If you realize 2/3 of the way through the story that a character isreally the Ambassador to Dubai, make a note, and finish the story with her as theAmbassador. Don't go back and start re-writing her part till you're done with the first

draft.




8. 8

Write it again. First draft, remember? Now you get to write it from the beginning,

this time knowing all the details of your story that will make your characters muchmore real and believable. Now you know why he's on that airplane, and why she isdressed like a punk.




9. 9

Write it through to the end. By the time you are done with the second draft, you will

have all the information about your story, your characters, the main plot, and thesubplots defined.




10. 10

Read and share your story. Now that you've finished the second draft, it's time to

read it—dispassionately, if possible, so that you can at least try to be objective. Share

it with a couple trusted friends whose opinions you respect.




11. 11

Write the final draft. Armed with notes from your reading the story, plus notes of

your friends or publishers, go through your story one more time, finalizing as you go.Tie up loose ends, resolve conflicts, eliminate any characters that do not add to thestory.

Tips

• Writing should be fun. Or it should be torture. Depends on whom you ask. It can leaveyou feeling revved up, or exhausted. There is no one correct way to write or feel about

your writing. Find your own style.• If you don't like an idea at first, still try it and it might take you somewhere.

• Similes and metaphors are fun to use! When done well, they are like the scent of arose, and make you look smart as a whip.

Warnings

• Use words with care. There is no quicker way to sound ignorant than to use a word asthe wrong part of speech or in the wrong context. If you are unsure of a word's usage,

look it up in the dictionary and make sure you understand its meaning andconnotations.

• Do not plagiarize! Presenting the words or ideas of others as your own is a serious

offense in academics, journalism and fiction. If you are caught, you can be expelled,fired, sued or blacklisted from further publication. Just don't do it.


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Better Writing Skills