Writing Advice

Good Writing

You do not have to be a reader to be a writer, but it definitely helps. I've read books for as long as I can remember, but I didn't start writing stories until I was ten. Thus began my collection of empty notebooks in which I write of multitude of full-length stories. What reading stories did do for me is provide more than just a word bank; good literature fed me wonderful tropes and thought-provoking themes, which can often flow into your own writing. Of course, I've read the occasional awful book that did nothing to benefit my writing but showed me exactly what NOT to do. What makes writing worthy of praise? How can you make your own writing worthy of praise? This section will focus on more general advice, then we'll dive into specifics.

Think of published books that have received love and attention, like Lord of the Rings, Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, and many others. They're very different, aren't they? There's something these celebrated books share in common, and that's their verisimilitude. 

Whoa, fancy word. Don't panic; it's actually really simple.

It's the idea that literature should be true to reality. In a word of magic, kingdoms, dragons, and all sorts of made-up words, there should be some element of truth. It should point to humanity. It should pull us in because we can understand the characters, even if we don't necessarily understand their world yet.  Fiction with verisimilitude (now you can impress your friends and family with this word) will withstand the test of time. Lord of the Rings, for example, was written a very long time ago. Maybe you don't even like these books, but I'm using it as an example, and its popularity can't be denied. Despite the fact that its an "old series" and things were different back then, the truth embedded in the writing is true no matter the time period.

The truth should be profound, and not a simple moral of the story. Readers can catch when a writer is simply trying to teach the reader a lesson by having their character learn a lesson, and it may or may not apply to the reader, or maybe it just doesn't resonate with them at the moment.

Friendship can be used as a truth. Ask yourself what friendship looks like. Do friends fail each other from time to time, and is it difficult to see a betrayal coming? Won't true friends be honest with one another? This is the truth we see in the world, and don't be afraid to include the characters messing up from time to time. They don't always have to promote truth; they can struggle against it.

Now, friendship is a very basic example. It isn't easy to come up with new truths (ones you're sure most, if not everyone, would agree with) that others haven't covered yet. However, uniqueness is refreshing. And, let's be honest, predictable truths don't leave us sitting on a couch contemplating life after reading a book.

Observe how people behave and you can more easily accomplish verisimilitude.

Here are some qualities of good writing you can think about...

1. Clarity

Obscurity helps bring a sense of mystery, but you want your readers to understand what you're talking about. A long paragraph of an explanation of a pencil is unnecessary, but if its a complicated person, place, or object... don't assume a reader knows what you're talking about. We need descriptions. More importantly, we need descriptions that make sense.

2. Simplicity

Fancy words have a time and a place, but not in every paragraph. Readers can digest bland words a lot faster, and sometimes bland words are the most impactful. If we don't get lost in translation, a reader's mind is free to roam, which is exactly the state you want them to be in.

3. Conciseness

Short and sweet. This is closely related to simplicity, but "simple" words are not always small. Long, agonizing paragraphs with colorful language are difficult to read after awhile. It takes incredible patience to finish a book like that, and you don't want a reader to forget your story after finishing it.

4. Concreteness

Nouns are very important. In writing, they must accurately "paint" what you're trying to represent. Vague nouns are hard to grasp the meaning of, and nouns are meant to be the main point. Obviously, it's not wrong to use vague nouns, but they should not show up more than concrete nouns. "Dog" and "backyard" are concrete nouns; we don't need a huge description to make sense of these words. "Devotion" and "world" are very broad and can be used in a multitude of ways. If you start with vague nouns, it can be difficult to elaborate while still moving the plot along. If you start with concrete nouns, however, the reader already has an idea of what they're "looking" at, and you can move on from there.

5. Uniqueness

Help your reader look at things from a different perspective. Come up with fresh new ideas; they are more exciting than a copy and paste of every other book. Yes, you can even do this with fan-fiction, if you put a lot of focus on original characters you developed. Readers don't want "normal" and "mundane" when they read the entirety of a book; they want to be pleasantly surprised every now and then. How do you do this, you ask? Be observant and watch the world around you, catching things you never noticed before. Read books that stimulate the brain with thought-provoking ideas.

Writers are always "borrowing" from other writers, but avoid plagiarism and make it your own. Give your writing real thought and ponder your real-life experiences or ponder what it would be like to have other, out-of-this-world experiences.

6. Precision

Choose accurate words. There is nothing more confusing than reading a word that seems disembodied from the rest of the paragraph. Fully understand the definition of words you're not sure about instead of guessing what they mean, because a random reader may know better and get confused.

A good writer will have a sporadic and mildly concerning (for writing purposes) search history.

Last thing I'll add. Whether you're shy or outgoing, get advice from people. Drafts are written in isolation, but they shouldn't stay that way after you've gained confidence in what you've written. Take advantage of opportunities where you can ask a friend to read a short excerpt of your writing aloud, or seek advice online. Be careful with seeking advice online, though. This is fairly obvious, but, social media is chaos. There are good things that come out of it, but I have too many writer friends that have grown upset with their own writing simply because a single comment ruined their perspective, even if it was from someone who clearly had zero experience in writing. Pay the most attention to people you know you can trust, either personally or by their experience. Constructive criticism is a good thing. That's criticism with "reasons why" and hope for growth. Encouragement in what you have done well in, too, so the writer can narrow down their mistakes.

This may seem daunting, but I've learned so much more from the people who weren't afraid to be blunt and honest (in the most loving way possible) than people who criticize everything for the sake of criticism.