These expert tips to improve writing will change your mind if you feel like QUITTING
Some people give up after a few unsuccessful write-ups, and then there are the ones that don’t. By “unsuccessful”, I mean not getting the overwhelming response that every writer wants to witness at least once in their lifetime.
The first category I mentioned above has obstinate people, that don’t care about the results, but rather focus on getting their words across. The other category, according to me, consists of people that generally use their reasonable minds. Their rational brains talk themselves out of believing that their words can also do wonders.
A famous adage goes something like this:
“A writer is a writer because, even when there is no hope, even when nothing you do shows any sign of promise, you keep writing anyway.”
By Junot Diaz (Goodreads).
A lot of people already know it, but most of the people from the second group seem to have forgotten it.
Don’t get me wrong here. People have their reasons for not doing stuff, and I’m not blaming them for that. Trust me; I feel you, and every other writer, that loses hope after a few defeats.
And I won’t be lying to you when I say, I faced the ups and downs too, but yet came back just like people starting afresh after their company went bankrupt.
Even J.K. Rowling, the author of the magical Harry Potter series, faced rejection by twelve publishing houses. Yet today, we see her as one of the world’s richest, and most renowned authors. She is an icon, whose struggle story inspires millions to make their way in times of emotional burnout.
Apart from her, many writers made wholesome careers out of their writing. And if they can do it, so can you, my friend.
So get up, get going, my friend, unless the slightest of the hope vanishes and until the very last breath from your lungs signifies that it’s over.
In this article, I share how to restart your writing journey with techniques that the best authors out there recommend.
And am I sharing these because I’m experienced enough to share them? The answer is a straight no. If you know me closely, you know I’m stubborn enough to share them anyways.
So here’s a step-by-step guide to writing creative masterpieces. Let’s go.
A step-by-step guide to writing creative masterpieces
1. Figure out the style of writing you most resonate with
“Writing is learned by imitation. If anyone asked me how I learned to write, I’d say I learned by reading the men and women who were doing the kind of writing I wanted to do and trying to figure out how they did it. ”
- Excerpted from “On Writing Well” by William Zinsser
You might have heard a lot of industry experts stressing the importance of developing your unique writing style. Here, the style includes your tone, the way you form sentences, and the words you use to express your thoughts.
But the truth is, most well-known authors you see today once tried to adapt to the styles of their favorite authors. With time, they gradually developed their own style.
Similar to how you first ride a bicycle with training wheels. Your training wheels’ firm support helps you gain confidence in your driving skills. With time, you take a leap of faith, and with enough confidence in your capabilities, you start riding your bicycle without support. The same applies to your writing too.
Always remember, your brain needs a blueprint to make you perfect at something. It follows the same blueprint (in this case, a writing style) and ensures that your writing looks similar to that blueprint.
Hence, learn to absorb the style of a particular writer whose work you love reading.
2. Write down the best quotes from various authors in your journal.
You read a lot every day, and in almost all cases, you don’t remember what you read. However, there are a few quotes and pieces of writing that can infer credibility to your content.
Your reader is more likely to believe you if you cite people that they believe in. So it’s a good idea to use quotes now and then to back up your statements with solid pieces of evidence.
3. Subscribe to the newsletters of various authors; so that you don’t get away without reading one every day.
By subscribing to the newsletters, you are setting an alarm for yourself to get notified every time the author publishes a new article.
Two of my favorite authors’ newsletters are those of Mark Mansion and Darius Foroux. You can look out for authors that you like, and subscribe to their newsletters too.
4. Keep the audience in mind
My intention of writing this headline might sound like a content marketer resorting to the method of clickbait to gain the audience’s attention.
In a way, it is similar to clickbait too. Maybe I wanted to get you to read it, thinking that the content within aligns with its heading. While in reality, it doesn’t.
My suggestion would slightly contradict the heading. Write keeping in mind, not the whole crowd, but rather one single person.
Even Darius Foroux, the author of the book “Think Straight” recommends writing for the type of person you want your content to resonate with. In short, only your target audience.
“If you try to appeal to everyone, you’ll end up appealing to no one. Don’t waste your time and energy doing that. ” - Darius Foroux
5. Practice, practice, and more practice.
“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. ”
-from “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft” by Stephen King.
Now that you have learned about the kind of content you should absorb, learn how to put your learnings into practice. Write more of the content you want to write regularly.
Make it a point to sit down every day and write whatever comes to mind, while also attempting to write in the manner in which you want your writing to look.
Conclusion:
In this article, I covered why you shouldn’t quit writing and expert tips to help you start over your writing journey. I wish I could cover the whole thing in a single article, but I couldn’t. Nobody can.
You can start with implementing a few of the above-mentioned tips and can move on to discovering the other essential things that help in writing better content.
I acknowledge your patience for having reached the end of this article. Enjoyed reading it? Why not tell me in the comments? I’m eager to know what you think.
