'Beautiful Disaster'

I didn't see a thread like this, but feel free to close this and re-direct me if there is

I'm new to this board, but it seems like there are a quite a few experienced writers here I thought that less experienced writers (including myself) could benefit from a tips thread.

So basically just post anything that could help aspiring writers to write better fiction.

Silversun

Excellent idea! We have a writers' Q&A thread but that's more to do with questions of fact. I like that there is now a thread we can talk about more general, stylistic things.

Someone posted on another thread earlier a link to using punctuation and capitalisation correctly when writing dialogue. I tried to find it, but I must be blind. Could you post it again?

Ms Carolyn

The first thing I would say to aspiring writers is "Use your spellchecker, but don't trust it implicitly".

Silversun

The first thing I would say to an aspiring writer is "read."

Chiqa

Lol, I would say that your first story is probably going to be trash. The sooner you accept that, the better your chances of growing as a writer

Learn to take criticism. Not all critiques are good, in fact, some are downright detrimental. However, always listen to what these critics say and take the good with the bad. If you honestly disagree with their comments, disregard them -there are some people who like stories written a certain way and if yours breaks the mold, they hate it. Ignore those idiots

Always be true to yourself- write what you like. Write what you know. Write what feels natural. The minute you try to conform or be like someone else is the moment you start to suck. Think about it, if you don't like what you write, how would someone else? And even if they all like it, you can never be fulfilled or at least a little content if you don't like your own work.

Now, there are basic rules to writing. Learn them, use them and if it feels right, break them. But there are certain rules that should never be broken, like those pertaining to spelling, grammar, punctuation etc etc... but then again, as a writer, you should know better about attempting to break these rules

When it comes to dialogue, all bets are off!

Know your characters. There's no reason an 18th century character should say, "Yo, what's up?"

Always do your research... it's fiction but it's also got to be realistic.

Try to stay away from cliches... but still make sense. "Her eyes were as green as a computer" doesn't make sense. Besides, sometimes cliches are useful - just use them sparingly.

Don't believe the hype - you are not the best writer in the world. There's always room to grow, and as you write you'll even notice the gradual improvement.

Unless you are writing romance, try to be creative Predictablity isn't your best friend but don't go crazy. There are some things that are just fated. If a man jumps off a building, he will fall.. don't suddenly make him sprout wings to shock the reader if you don't have a darn good explanation for it.

Learn to pace yourself and the story.

Don't get too bogged down with description - there's really no reason to write five pages about some girl's outfit. Yeah, we get it - Show, don't tell, but there's a limit. Unless her clothes are later going to show up on a dead body, I really don't need to know that the "left pocket had a stain that was off red with a hint of green."

Above all, have fun.

P.S.
I am hardly an experienced writer but these are things I've leard along the way

Catalinay

Wonderful advice from all of these people.

I'd add, try to find a good beta or editor - someone you trust to show your in-process work to, who will offer good critiques and actually help to make the piece better instead of simply praising or damning it.

Crossbow

Read
Read
Read
Read
Read
Read
Read

I don't think that people who want to write novels need to be reminded of this - they probably already love reading. The problem is with people who want to write poetry or non-fiction, and of course with fan fic writers.

Poetry: I've noticed that most amateur poets don't read poetry. I don't know what that's about. If you don't like poetry, why are you writing it? If you think you're better than all those other people, you're going to be in for a rude shock. If you think your poetry will be better if its not influenced by other writers, you're wrong. And by the way, just putting random breaks in sentences does not constitute poetry. Neither does repeating the same word 600 times.

Non-fiction: A lot of people think they have something to say about a particular topic, but all the knowledge in the world isn't going to get you published if you don't know how to express it.

Fan fic: I will NEVER understand why people who can't or don't read are writing fan fic. This must stop. And then this illiterate drivel gets rave reviews from their friends, which makes the "writer" think it's OK. Have you ever noticed than in bios on ff.net, people will list their eight thousand favorite Anime, their favorite Harry Potter 'ships, their idea of the hottest sctors/actresses in Hollywood, but not one mention of a favorite book?

Ms Carolyn

Fan fic is just too easy to get out there, thanks to the internet. Back when it was in printed zines, that people had to compile, edit, and most of all, get someone else to pay for copies to cover the cost, there was some limited control over the amount of drek that got printed. Not enough, but it looks really good compared to the stuff that passes for fan fic now.

Thus sayeth the old person.

Bronson

I love all of the advice as to how to writing Fanfictions. Now if I could find a place to post it.

Catalinay

Well, there's always the dreaded ff.net....

Bronson

Thanks for the information.

Hermione Weasley

I don't usually write fanfiction, but all the advice is great for stories, which I like to write. Thanks!

Violet Blues

Know Your Characters. Someone already said this, but I'm reinforcing it. You should know your character like the back of your hand. You should know how they'll react in every situation, who they are, what's their hopes and fears, etc. Most of the information you need to know about your character you won't even use directly in the text, but that still doesn't mean you shouldn't be acquainted with it. In order to have good fiction, your character (all of them, not just the main) must be 3D. Don't be afraid to make them have flaws. The more flaws, the more believable. Nobody wants to read about someone who's perfect. Fanfiction's even easier because your characters are already established--so really, there's not excuse to be OOC (unless intended for some reason or another... ). A good excerise for creating a character is doing a written interview. Profiles are good too, but I'm partial to the interviewing method.

Don't Stop Writing. Okay, so you've just written the crappiest story known to man. Who hasn't? The more you write (and read) the better you'll become. You've got to build your craft. Don't expect Hawthorne on the first try. Never give up! Take that crappy story and turn it into a well-written, developed, good story. Most of all, take critiques as fuel for your "writing" car and not as a three story building in the middle of the highway blocking your way. Not everyone's going to like your work anyway, so hey--just keep doing what you're doing.

Catalinay

Great advice there, Violet Blues!

Silversun

Bringing this link over because it's fabulous, back-to-basics stuff that everyone should know by heart:

Tips for dialogue punctuation, the use of proper nouns, etc