If you’re looking for some strategies on how to be better writer , then you’ll love this article.
So you want to be a writer, but you can’t get past the first word. In any kind of work, the beginning is always the hardest.
The same thought applies in writing.
No matter how long you choose to stare at the blank document, you know in your mind that you have to keep going, keep pushing ideas and keep on writing in order to fill the page with words that may not necessarily end up as a masterpiece, but at least you have conquered the hardest part of it and you are en route to becoming better.
To guide you on your way in honing the craft, here are 15 easy steps to writing well.
How To Be Better Writer:
1. Know your audience
It will be easier to write if you know exactly whom you are writing for.
This will help you in setting the tone and in knowing the kind of language to use in your piece. Your message must get across your audience.
This will only happen if they will understand what you have written.
2. Decide on what you want to say
What do you really want to tell your readers?
If this is commissioned work, your superiors will dictate on the theme and on the message that you ought to include on the write-up.
If you will be writing according to your own will, you must first make up your mind on where you intend to bring the material.
SEE ALSO: How To Be a Better Conversationalist: 15 Essential Tips
3. Research
Even the most prolific writers spend time in researching about the material and about their audience before they sit on it.
This is a great way to get more ideas flowing (1) and to add veracity to your claims. Researching does not always have to be done outside.
You have to utilize all the resources that are readily available and accessible, such as the Internet, books and other printed materials.
4. Read
It will be easier for you to write if you know the right format and style of writing that is expected on the kind of material that you are doing.
This is especially true to those who will be doing this for the first time.
If you have been asked to write a product review, but you haven’t done anything like this before, you might as well read other people’s work.
This will give you insights on the structure of the material, which will make it easier for you to create a draft and begin your work.
5. Follow the Basic Rules
In most kinds of writing, it is essential that you stick with the basic rules of grammar, spelling and punctuation.
There are instances when you can break the rules, like when you are writing fiction and the character calls for it. In general though, you have to know the rules and follow these religiously.
6. Organize your thoughts
There are some writers who can finish a novel-length piece in one sitting and without creating any drafts.
For beginners though, it is best that you create an outline of what you intend to write about and how you want to go about it.
This way, you will not lose track of your thoughts even if it takes you longer to finish the material.
7. Make the material easy to read
If you are writing about a foreign place and you want to convince a tourist to go there, you have to explain things to them, bearing in mind that they don’t have any idea where it is and how it looks like.
This is the same in writing any kind of piece.
You have to place yourself in the position of the reader and make sure that they will hold on to the piece and finish reading it.
8. Go straight to the point
Not unless it is your intention to delay the ending of your essay, you will state your intention in the beginning of the material and you will use short sentences and paragraphs to make reading it a breeze.
SEE ALSO: 15 Deceptive Things You Should Give Up To Move Forward
9. Avoid fluff
There are times when you will be restricted with a minimum number of words in order to make the material acceptable to your boss.
In this case, make sure that you have ample information that you have gathered through your research that can support your claim.
This way, you can avoid including unnecessary words and phrases into the piece just to meet its required length.
10. Edit your own work
Aside from looking out for spelling and grammar mistakes, you have to go over your material before you submit it, so that you can check if you have delivered the message that you intended to get across in the first place.
11. Rewrite
There are times when simple editing won’t do the trick in making your work acceptable, so you simply have to sit down on it and rewrite while following the guidelines that were set by your editor or those who have given critiques on your work.
12. Find your voice
You have to develop your own style of writing (2) that will set you apart from the rest.
13. Practice
Even though you don’t become perfect, practicing the craft will definitely help you become better.
14. Write
Get into action before your muse escapes you.
15. Do not be afraid of rejection
This is part of many writers’ life. The rejection will force you to become better and to deliver a better output the next time around.
I want to thank you for taking the time to read my article about how to be better writer. I sincerely hope its contents have been a good help to you.
