Writing Tips That Help Me!

It seems like my life at the moment revolves around creative writing, so I thought I’d dedicate a blog post to it as well haha! Doing a creative writing course has been such a challenge for me because it’s something that I’ve never done before. I’ve always written little stories here and there, but I didn’t think I was any good at it, and since doing this course, I’ve realised just how difficult it really is.

I’ve learnt so much over the past few months during this course, and I’m sure I’ll learn a whole bunch more once I finish the course over the next year. I thought I would share some of the tips that I’ve found useful, and some of the things that have helped me along the way!

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Write in scenes

Whenever I start writing, I generally have no idea where the plot is going. I find that if I break it down into little scenes, then that will help me find out what I want to do with the piece. It doesn’t matter if the scene doesn’t come to much either because there will be something in it that becomes useful, whether it’s the setting or a character’s thoughts or actions.

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Begin with an action or speech

First lines are incredibly important but so difficult to write. If you find that you’re struggling to find the perfect line, then begin with an action or speech. It will immediately help you to write the rest of the page, and you can always go back later and edit it if you don’t like it!

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Get in late, get out early

This is some advice that a friend on my course gave to me and it’s been some of the best that I’ve ever gotten. I waffle in my writing, a lot (both in essays and creative pieces). By starting a scene late and getting out early, it stops me from over-explaining things, or adding in things that are unnecessary. Obviously in first drafts these things will happen, but they can be edited out in further drafts once you know where the scene is headed.

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Write from a different character’s perspective

Whenever I struggle to write something, or what I have written just doesn’t feel “right”, I’ll write it from another character’s point of view. Sometimes this helps me to find the issues with the original piece, it can help with dialogue, but it’s also incredibly useful to see how it the other character will react in that situation.

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Mood/Aesthetic Board

If, like me, you write without ever knowing where the piece is going and become stuck, then mood boards can be your new best friend! This is something that I’ve just recently started trying out and I really didn’t know how much I needed it before. Seeing pictures, colours, words, and other things in front of me makes me focus my work so much more so that I can finally see an end point.

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Don’t force yourself to write!

If you’re not in the mood for writing at that moment in time, do not put pressure on yourself to do it. There’s plenty of other things that you can do instead of writing that will eventually aid your story and writing; taking a break, jotting down ideas in a notebook, research, and reading for fun. Just let your creativity rest for a bit!

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I hope that some of these tips are helpful for you! Let me know if you have any great writing tips in the comments!