I've had a few of my friends ask me how I manage to have the patience to write. Some have asked me how I get my ideas down on paper, how I organize my thoughts, and how I break everything down into a flowing story. Thus, I decided to write a post about these topics so that it may be helpful to anyone who reads it!
1. Notes
Scribbling down ideas that pop into your mind is essential for getting a story idea together. Any idea you get should be written down so you don't forget it later when you go to write.
2. Story Outline
Making an outline for a story is helpful because then you can begin making a structure of the events in your story. I never get too descriptive when I make an outline, I simply put down the general things that take place.
3. Drafts
When I go to write a story, I write the rough draft in a fairly simple form. Generally I don't elaborate too much, I just write to get the foundation for it. Then, I give it to someone to read so they can give me their input of what they think. After that, I move onto the second draft, in which I go through it from the beginning and add more dialogue if needed, more events for depth, etc. I let someone proofread it again, and sometimes I am satisfied with the second draft. Other times, I feel it needs more and I make a third draft, or fourth. It all depends on the writer!
4. Finding Your Comfort Zone
Finding your comfort zone makes writing so much easier. I've had people mention that they get writer's block or can't think of ideas, which is normal of course. It took me awhile to figure out what genre I enjoyed writing. Initially, I thought writing stories from long-ago time periods was perfect for me. I tried writing historical fiction, but I kept getting stuck. I just couldn't get over my writer's block. I gave up on it and had no other idea for a story for quite some time. Then, October of 2010, I suddenly had a random idea for a contemporary story. I began writing it, and miraculously, it flowed quite smoothly for me. I realized that writing contemporary fiction was comfortable and easy for me, so that's what I stick to. For others, they may find it more comfortable to write sci-fi, mystery, historical fiction, etc. It all depends on the person!
5. Inspiration
Finding something that inspires you to write is very, very helpful. For me, it's always been music. When I go to write a story, I find music that relates to my idea. For example, my second eBook "Tiny Little Crystals" is (in parts of the story) set in 1998/1999. I was constantly listening to music from those years to get in that frame of mind. Songs with lyrics that go well with the story are also good to listen to. I try to picture what I write as a movie, and I ask myself: "What kind of songs would I want for it?"
These are the top five writing tips that really work for me. Of course, everyone is different and I'm sure not all of these may be helpful for everyone, but they have helped me out a lot, personally.
- Samantha
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