Note: The following tips are adapted from a post graciously published by KevinMD.com.
I've been writing professionally for almost 20 years now, and there’s still so much to learn. Here are five favorite writing “secrets” I’ve picked up so far:
- First drafts are supposed to suck. Aim low. Lower. Don’t try to sound any particular way. When I tutored at the writing center of my college, I’d always ask students (most of whom arrived with a crumpled, blank piece of paper) to describe their thesis to me as casually as if they were explaining it to a friend. Next step: Write that down, word for word. That’s your lump of clay. You can do whatever we want to it later.
- Read books about writing. The life-changers I can list off the top of my head include On Writing, by Stephen King; Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg, Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, and Get a Freelance Life by Margit Feury Ragland. For instance, Mr. King isn’t a big fan of thesauri; and I patently disagree.
- Appreciate the difference between significant detail and “painting a picture” that is too cluttered to really see. If your memory from an event you’re writing about is a little fuzzy, fantastic. The bits and pieces that have stuck with you (a look, a physical sensation, something out of place) are the most significant details. These standout snapshots do exceedingly more to elevate your writing than big words.
- Don’t judge your work while you are writing. My college track coach had similar advice: Don’t judge your performance while you’re in it. Run the race while it’s happening. Analyze the footage later. It’s very difficult to break the habit of evaluating as you go, but it keeps you from holding yourself back.
- Read it backwards. As part of every revision, read the last paragraph (or sentence) of your manuscript in reverse order, and see how they each hold up individually. It will help you craft better sentences. Backwards reading can also help you rethink the organization of your piece. But remember that moving stuff around usually results in needing to re-read from the beginning again a couple of times to make sure it still makes sense.