Writing 101
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Being a ghostwriter is about fifty different kinds of fantastic and right now there’s no job I’d rather do. To a lot of people it sounds easy enough: sit at a desk, stare at a screen, and occasionally release all ten digits to dance upon the keyboard once your inspiration is shining.
While there is truth sitting inside that stereotype, a writer must also stay alert, and the best writers are pouring a piece of themselves into every composition.
Writing 101
If your heart isn’t in it, it will be evident in the flow of your prose. If you must wrangle each syllable and find it a constant struggle to put your thoughts on paper, you can still be a writer, but writing is probably not the job for you. Being a born writer isn’t about spelling well or even perfect grammar (though for a professional writer both are non-negotiable), a born writer must be able to fully lose themselves in the tangle of verbs and nouns, climbing past adverb and adjective to plant their flag decisively in a well articulated idea.
To find out if you were born to write, simply select a topic. Anyone should be able to organize information given enough time, but a born writer can burn brilliance from bullet points by bringing the heart and soul to the surface of any subject. If you find that you can write with minimal pause and be proud of what your penning, please move forward.
The best writers have one thing in common: practice. No one becomes Shakespeare overnight. Stephen King is at the top of the game because he writes each and every day without fail. Your garden may grow unattended, but it will only flourish after it is provided with the water and nutrients it needs. Practice takes place along the printed page, but it isn’t always with your own ink. Being a great writer has every bit as much to do with reading as it does writing. Be avid and varied: fiction, non-fiction, magazines, and children’s books. They all add to the symphony; listen and your brain will be better tuned to the music of language.
Read your work aloud. If you stumble as you’re reading, others will as well. Once your prose is polished enough to pass your own recital, it’s time to pass it along for the judgement of others. Don’t seek friends and family as you may merely obligate them to compliments. Insincerity, no matter how well intended, is only a detour toward the disintegration of a dream. Share your work in hopes of genuine judgement.
The fiercest criticism can often lead to the best lessons.
Don’t leave your words to memory. Sometimes our best thoughts really are lighting in a bottle. Capture, release, repeat.
I heartily agree with this post.
I have recently taken it upon myself to write every day. A hurricane coming? Write. Got only 24 hours to build a large wooden ship before a deluge devastates the earth? Fit some writing in. You just got robbed in the street at gun point? Sorry, son, you better get that writing in when you’re done telling the fuzz the report.
I have found that by writing every day, my writing becomes unquestionably better on a variety of levels. I’m actually surprised by it. Not only do I get better at construction, but I’d argue I can come up with ideas quicker.
Reading is also paramount for the writer. No doubt about it.
One post a week huh? Sounds good. Consider me as good as subscribed.
Bamboo! My man, welcome to the GWD! It’s so awesome to get a comment here. This puppy started out as just another niche site, but now she’s barking and I want to giver her a fair shake. It was this right here that did it:
“Anyone should be able to organize information given enough time, but a born writer can burn brilliance from bullet points by bringing the heart and soul to the surface of any subject. If you find that you can write with minimal pause and be proud of what your penning, please move forward.”
As soon as that sentence came out I knew I cared about what I was writing. Thanks for the comment and the subscription. I’ll do my best to make it a great read.
Since you’re a ghostwriter, it would, of course, be interesting to see what really goes on as someone who writes professionally for the internet.
You could even give writing advice (which you do) since you obviously have strategies for writing well, day in and day out for your clients.
By the way… one of your tabs says “recent posts,” I find that this personally does not register in my cranium. It’s rings of confusion. I think “blog” would be better – that word sends a direct message, everyone is aware of the term. But “recent posts” I find throws me off. Of course, I could be wrong about that, just my take.
That’s a great idea to change the tab. Blog is far more to the point. I’ll change it this weekend. Thanks for the terrific advice!