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Hello, furballs, and welcome to the next part of my little writer's assistance guide! In my earlier guides, you've learned a bit about how to fight your way through writer's block, how to remain motivated, and how to realize your time amongst other things. But there's more to writing than just these little things. Writing is a bigger process than most people who don't write understand. It requires the drawing of every weapon in a writer's arsenal, the opening of our own personal toolbox. You don't know what tools you've got at your disposal? Well, that's what we're here to talk about this time; the contents of your personal toolbox, and how to use those tools!
First, a reiteration of some core facts about this guide. I am NOT a trained writer. I've done no courses, no workshops. I don't attend any writers groups, and I don't claim to have professional knowledge. I HAVE been writing for over ten years, and I HAVE sought out the knowledge that I can to improve my skills. However, this little guide is going to have little to nothing to do with technical writing, if I have my way. Rather, this guide is being provided as a way to motivate and inspire other writers here on this site. I'm not going to tell you what to write, or how to write. I only hope to provide you with some mental ‘tools' that will allow you to craft your words to their greatest potential. That said, let us begin!
The next lesson is this: Know your tools, so you can use them effectively!
You're a tool. No, really. You're the biggest tool you've got in your writing toolbox, and the most versatile to boot. You are a living, breathing person, interesting and intricate and crafted with depth and character. Well... most people are. Most everyone who writes is, at least. As a result, simply being provides a writer with a wealth of information and stimulus for writing. You're living life, right now. You're experiencing things. You're learning things, and seeing the world. Everything that you can see and hear and taste and smell and touch is filed away in your memories. Don't be afraid to mine those memories for events, places, times, and people.
People. That bears special mention. As I said, you're a living, breathing person; a character in the Discovery Channel special that we call Human Existence, if you will. You have feelings, and thoughts probably unlike anyone else in the world. You're a unique being. As a result, you yourself are a character template. Characters (which we'll address next time!) need to be every part the living, breathing people that we are in the real world, and then some. They need to do the things we can't, but more importantly, we need to empathize. We need to sympathize. We need to love the characters, and hate the characters, fear for them and fear because of them. And if you use yourself as a template (in the most basic sense; no emailing me about Mary-Sue comments you cop on forums and the like), then at the very least you have an emotional, thinking character with the depth of any real person. You go from there to craft them... but that's all the time I'll spend on characters here. Tune in next time for more!
So, you've got your experiences and memories, and yourself. That's a pretty limited toolbox, isn't it? Infinite combinations and permutations and mixing be damned, that's barely a screwdriver, right? Imagination expands on that a whole lot. As writers, of course we've got to have a pretty deep imagination (well... not all of us in this fandom, but there's room to grow!) in order to tell the fantastic stories that play through our minds. But while imagination allows us to craft these scenarios in their most basic sense, we've got to sand down the rough edges somehow. Dedication is that sander. Any piece you've just finished the first draft of is going to have a lot of rough edges, as I mentioned in my revision article. Dedication needs to be born out of love for your own work, which any writer needs to have if they plan to finish any piece of work. If you don't love your work, you won't be able to stick out the procrastination, the distraction, the discouragement and the long hours of revision necessary to perfect it. So if dedication is your sander, then... I guess love for your work (and love for writing itself) would have to be about three cans of your caffeine-loaded energy drink of choice.
Not every tool can come from you, though, and this is important especially for me. Encouragement. Take it wherever you can get it, people. I don't often get much encouragement, which drives me utterly batty sometimes, but the bits that I do get are more than enough to keep me going. Encouragement is a tool in the box that's often overlooked by the reader, because they're the one that has to use it. A writer can love his work, and love producing it, but dedication and will can flag without the people around him/her/it/potato to show them that their work is appreciated. If you're a reader rather than a writer who's glancing over this by visiting my page, then take note! Leave a comment on something you read. Message the author of a piece you particularly enjoy. Let them know that their work is appreciated and enjoyed. It's a major source of encouragement for any writer to know that their audience is enjoying their work. And to the writers who are reading this, don't be afraid to ask your friends, family and loved ones to give your stuff a cursory glance, presuming of course that the content is appropriate. Grandma might not appreciate hardcore gay furry smut as much as your vulpine boyfriend might. Ask them; the worst they can do is say no. And if those friends of writers are reading this, don't you say no. They're not asking much, and often not even asking for a critique. Just a, "Did you like it?" Be a good mate, and give it a read. I shouldn't even need to say that.
Another tool that bears mention is Inspiration. And I'm not talking about the kind that gets you writing in the first place. I'm talking about those writers who inspire you to write, those with mastery of pen and dominion over the word. Read up! Remind yourself often why you love to write, by reading those pieces that you love. Pick up something new, or go over an old favourite. Enrich your writing with the works of those you admire. Suspend your writer instincts while you read, and immerse yourself in another world. Often, I do this and find myself utterly recharged.
The final tool in your toolbox goes back to you, yourself. Bravery. How's that a tool for writing, you ask? Simple. If you bind yourself to one story, one genre, one series, one setting, one character... you'll get stale and boring. It's possible that you'll be the only one bored with your work, but others will pick up on it in time. Break out of the mould from time to time and do something different. If you write in a modern setting, try jumping up to sci-fi! If you write romance, dip momentarily into action! Start a new series with a new lead! Those jumps too drastic? Temper them. If you like writing modern and sci-fi scares you, try near-future. Research some new technology in the works right now, and incorporate it (doing this, I might add, inspired a novel idea in me. I was just reading interesting science articles!). You love writing romance? Incorporate a strong romantic theme into a new piece. New setting too daunting for the moment? Try taking a jaunt into spin-off country, with a character you've already touched on! Breaking the mould you've set yourself in isn't hard. Acknowledging that you actually can, is.
You've got a head full of brilliant ideas, and your own toolbox is fully stocked. There are more tools that you might have, but I've tried to focus on the ones that every writer out there should have. Using them, be able to craft the stories you want to write. A better understanding of how they work though will let you bring true depth and life to your work.
Bullet points NAO. What have we learned?
- You're the biggest tool in the world! *snerk* Use your experiences and life as basis for locations, characters and stories! Let the real world and real life guide your writing hand.
- Don't be afraid to base characters on people you've known; they'll create a good base for you to grow that character into who your story needs.
- Imagination lets us craft our stories, but we need our dedication in order to perfect them.
- Love for your work can keep pushing you forward, giving you the energy to complete your story!
- Take whatever encouragement you can get. Readers here, go encourage your favourite writers, now!
- Read works you enjoy; let them inspire you to greater literary heights. Unless you enjoy Stephanie Meyer, of course. Then burn her work... or her. If, indeed, something that evil can even catch alight.
- Be brave! Don't be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and try something different, even if only by a few degrees! You might enjoy it!
Whew, this one became a little longer than what I really expected. I suppose everyone needs to get a firm hand on their tool from time to... no, I'm not making that joke. No. I'm better than that. *cough* I hope. Anyway, I hope that this has enlightened those writers who didn't know quite what was driving their writing, or provided some extra tools for those who didn't realize the impact of some of these. My biggest hope is that this entry could inspire some new writers to pick up the pen and give writing a shot. I'd like to see more people embracing the joy of writing, and I hope that these provide some good words of advice for those new authors out there.
So, what's next? Characters are central to any story, regardless of what form that story takes. They need to be complete and whole, and more than any ol' real-life person. We'll touch on the voices in my head, tea parties and cul-de-sacs in an attempt to deliver a concise article on the creation of truly alive characters for your story. Until then though, take care and keep writing!
Faora
First, a reiteration of some core facts about this guide. I am NOT a trained writer. I've done no courses, no workshops. I don't attend any writers groups, and I don't claim to have professional knowledge. I HAVE been writing for over ten years, and I HAVE sought out the knowledge that I can to improve my skills. However, this little guide is going to have little to nothing to do with technical writing, if I have my way. Rather, this guide is being provided as a way to motivate and inspire other writers here on this site. I'm not going to tell you what to write, or how to write. I only hope to provide you with some mental ‘tools' that will allow you to craft your words to their greatest potential. That said, let us begin!
The next lesson is this: Know your tools, so you can use them effectively!
You're a tool. No, really. You're the biggest tool you've got in your writing toolbox, and the most versatile to boot. You are a living, breathing person, interesting and intricate and crafted with depth and character. Well... most people are. Most everyone who writes is, at least. As a result, simply being provides a writer with a wealth of information and stimulus for writing. You're living life, right now. You're experiencing things. You're learning things, and seeing the world. Everything that you can see and hear and taste and smell and touch is filed away in your memories. Don't be afraid to mine those memories for events, places, times, and people.
People. That bears special mention. As I said, you're a living, breathing person; a character in the Discovery Channel special that we call Human Existence, if you will. You have feelings, and thoughts probably unlike anyone else in the world. You're a unique being. As a result, you yourself are a character template. Characters (which we'll address next time!) need to be every part the living, breathing people that we are in the real world, and then some. They need to do the things we can't, but more importantly, we need to empathize. We need to sympathize. We need to love the characters, and hate the characters, fear for them and fear because of them. And if you use yourself as a template (in the most basic sense; no emailing me about Mary-Sue comments you cop on forums and the like), then at the very least you have an emotional, thinking character with the depth of any real person. You go from there to craft them... but that's all the time I'll spend on characters here. Tune in next time for more!
So, you've got your experiences and memories, and yourself. That's a pretty limited toolbox, isn't it? Infinite combinations and permutations and mixing be damned, that's barely a screwdriver, right? Imagination expands on that a whole lot. As writers, of course we've got to have a pretty deep imagination (well... not all of us in this fandom, but there's room to grow!) in order to tell the fantastic stories that play through our minds. But while imagination allows us to craft these scenarios in their most basic sense, we've got to sand down the rough edges somehow. Dedication is that sander. Any piece you've just finished the first draft of is going to have a lot of rough edges, as I mentioned in my revision article. Dedication needs to be born out of love for your own work, which any writer needs to have if they plan to finish any piece of work. If you don't love your work, you won't be able to stick out the procrastination, the distraction, the discouragement and the long hours of revision necessary to perfect it. So if dedication is your sander, then... I guess love for your work (and love for writing itself) would have to be about three cans of your caffeine-loaded energy drink of choice.
Not every tool can come from you, though, and this is important especially for me. Encouragement. Take it wherever you can get it, people. I don't often get much encouragement, which drives me utterly batty sometimes, but the bits that I do get are more than enough to keep me going. Encouragement is a tool in the box that's often overlooked by the reader, because they're the one that has to use it. A writer can love his work, and love producing it, but dedication and will can flag without the people around him/her/it/potato to show them that their work is appreciated. If you're a reader rather than a writer who's glancing over this by visiting my page, then take note! Leave a comment on something you read. Message the author of a piece you particularly enjoy. Let them know that their work is appreciated and enjoyed. It's a major source of encouragement for any writer to know that their audience is enjoying their work. And to the writers who are reading this, don't be afraid to ask your friends, family and loved ones to give your stuff a cursory glance, presuming of course that the content is appropriate. Grandma might not appreciate hardcore gay furry smut as much as your vulpine boyfriend might. Ask them; the worst they can do is say no. And if those friends of writers are reading this, don't you say no. They're not asking much, and often not even asking for a critique. Just a, "Did you like it?" Be a good mate, and give it a read. I shouldn't even need to say that.
Another tool that bears mention is Inspiration. And I'm not talking about the kind that gets you writing in the first place. I'm talking about those writers who inspire you to write, those with mastery of pen and dominion over the word. Read up! Remind yourself often why you love to write, by reading those pieces that you love. Pick up something new, or go over an old favourite. Enrich your writing with the works of those you admire. Suspend your writer instincts while you read, and immerse yourself in another world. Often, I do this and find myself utterly recharged.
The final tool in your toolbox goes back to you, yourself. Bravery. How's that a tool for writing, you ask? Simple. If you bind yourself to one story, one genre, one series, one setting, one character... you'll get stale and boring. It's possible that you'll be the only one bored with your work, but others will pick up on it in time. Break out of the mould from time to time and do something different. If you write in a modern setting, try jumping up to sci-fi! If you write romance, dip momentarily into action! Start a new series with a new lead! Those jumps too drastic? Temper them. If you like writing modern and sci-fi scares you, try near-future. Research some new technology in the works right now, and incorporate it (doing this, I might add, inspired a novel idea in me. I was just reading interesting science articles!). You love writing romance? Incorporate a strong romantic theme into a new piece. New setting too daunting for the moment? Try taking a jaunt into spin-off country, with a character you've already touched on! Breaking the mould you've set yourself in isn't hard. Acknowledging that you actually can, is.
You've got a head full of brilliant ideas, and your own toolbox is fully stocked. There are more tools that you might have, but I've tried to focus on the ones that every writer out there should have. Using them, be able to craft the stories you want to write. A better understanding of how they work though will let you bring true depth and life to your work.
Bullet points NAO. What have we learned?
- You're the biggest tool in the world! *snerk* Use your experiences and life as basis for locations, characters and stories! Let the real world and real life guide your writing hand.
- Don't be afraid to base characters on people you've known; they'll create a good base for you to grow that character into who your story needs.
- Imagination lets us craft our stories, but we need our dedication in order to perfect them.
- Love for your work can keep pushing you forward, giving you the energy to complete your story!
- Take whatever encouragement you can get. Readers here, go encourage your favourite writers, now!
- Read works you enjoy; let them inspire you to greater literary heights. Unless you enjoy Stephanie Meyer, of course. Then burn her work... or her. If, indeed, something that evil can even catch alight.
- Be brave! Don't be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and try something different, even if only by a few degrees! You might enjoy it!
Whew, this one became a little longer than what I really expected. I suppose everyone needs to get a firm hand on their tool from time to... no, I'm not making that joke. No. I'm better than that. *cough* I hope. Anyway, I hope that this has enlightened those writers who didn't know quite what was driving their writing, or provided some extra tools for those who didn't realize the impact of some of these. My biggest hope is that this entry could inspire some new writers to pick up the pen and give writing a shot. I'd like to see more people embracing the joy of writing, and I hope that these provide some good words of advice for those new authors out there.
So, what's next? Characters are central to any story, regardless of what form that story takes. They need to be complete and whole, and more than any ol' real-life person. We'll touch on the voices in my head, tea parties and cul-de-sacs in an attempt to deliver a concise article on the creation of truly alive characters for your story. Until then though, take care and keep writing!
Faora
Category Story / Tutorials
Species Western Dragon
Size 120 x 120px
File Size 174.5 kB
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