These writing tips can help you improve your grammar, polish your style and increase your speed.
1. They call it a rough draft for a reason, it’s not meant to be perfect. Don’t worry too much about spelling, grammar or structure, at least at your first. Your aim should be to get started with the full knowledge that you’ll have plenty of opportunity to make corrections and improvements later.
2. Outlines and mind maps can help you visualize what you want to say. Even taking five minutes to jot down a rough outline or mind map can help you crystalize what you truly want to convey.
3. Give yourself time away from your writing before you return to edit. This will allow you to re-visit your copy with fresh eyes and easily identify those places that need work.
4. Cut the fat. Be ruthless in editing anything that doesn’t illustrate your points, isn’t entertaining or distracts readers from the road you want to lead them down. If you’re in love with something that doesn’t deserve to make the cut, save it in a file for future inspiration.
5. It’s often easier to spot errors in spelling by reading backwards. Double check commonly misused homophones like you’re/your and their/there/there, words that are often mistaken for each other like choose/chose and lose/loose, or affect/effect and imply/infer.
6. Read your drafts out loud to discover places where the writing doesn’t flow or is difficult to comprehend. Our ears can pick up what our eyes miss. Better still, ask a trusted friend or family member to read your piece so you aren’t distracted by your own voice.
7. Read voraciously. Don’t limit your reading to one genre or niche. Pay attention to how different writers weave pictures through word choice and cadence. Don’t slavishly imitate authors you admire, but borrow from the best and tailor it to your unique style.
8. Refuse to surrender to writer’s block. Write 500 words of absolute dreck to get warmed up, then throw it away. More often than not you won’t feel compelled by angels to spill your soul on paper, so accept the fact that much of the time spent writing feels like work (because it is).
9. Make time for writing when you are fresh and alert. For some people this is the crack of dawn, others hit their stride after midnight. Writing takes a lot of mental energy so don’t leave it for times when you are tired, fuzzy or cranky .
10. The most powerful writing tip I know: write constantly and stay humble. Look at each piece of writing as a new opportunity to improve. Take note of where your writing falls flat and be proud of what works. Understand that writing is a life long journey to strengthen your voice and perfect your craft. Although it will be hard, the rewards for the modern writer are immeasurable.
