Writers - Sensitive or Touchy?
Writers are such a moody species. We call ourselves sensitive, but honestly, downright touchy is a truer description. We are so touchy, in fact, that we take every criticism and remark made about our writing personally. We only hear what we expect to hear, way down deep in our hearts. If we are told to 'keep practicing', our ears hear, "you're not a good writer." If we are rated anything under five stars we burst into high drama and exclaim, "I can't write and everyone hates me!" Sheesh, we are so melodramatic! Write a story and take advantage of the emotion!
Practice
Some writers have a natural talent they were born with. They should trust that talent and don't mess with it too much. I really think some good work is ruined with too much correcting. But, natural talent also needs to learn refining and discipline.
For most people though, writing well must be learned. It's a skill that requires lots of practice, just like anything else. If we expect the first words we set down to be good enough, we'll not get very far and we might give up with our first critique. To learn to write well requires a certain mind set; a real desire to learn and a willingness to 'keep practicing' - a lot.
Pay attention!
When I tell someone to 'keep practicing,' this is what I have in mind.
Take a walk and pay attention to your surroundings. Pay attention to the way your body moves. Run. Do you feel a stitch of pain in your side? What does it really feel like? Think. Where exactly is the pain? Do you feel it in the pounding of your pulse too? How does it affect your breathing? Examine it from all sides and remember it. Can the feeling be applied to a wound received by a character? Describe how it feels to be out of breath.
Take a hard bicycle ride, uphill if possible. Jot the description in your notebook, or describe it in your mind as if you were writing it and save it for later. Stand alongside a group and listen to the conversation for a few minutes. As you're changing classes think about the hall scene descriptively. Take a seat on the bench at the bus stop and observe people as they rush or saunter by. Describe their facial expressions as they interact with each other.
Look at the buildings, the street, the sidewalk. Really look. You might be surprised how difficult it is to describe something so familiar as a sidewalk, because you've not really looked with a writers eye before. Could your character climb to that roof across the street? Could someone enter the second floor window? What type of handhold's are available? Could someone jump from one rooftop to another? This is practicing to write well.
Plagiarize!
Pull a book off the shelf and copy a paragraph or two. Think about the words as you write them. Notice how they are strung together to give an image. Don't post this on the site though; they aren't your words and it's for your eyes only. It's more good practice.
Keep a notebook handy while watching television and write down the dialogue. Notice how the words alone don't show what is actually happening? They're flat and don't make a lot of sense without the body language and setting. This too, is practicing.
Hey, It's Not About Me!
Remember the most embarrassing or scariest thing you've ever done or had happen to you? The thing you just can't forget and don't want anyone to ever find out about? Write about it. Don't leave any details out to save yourself, because no one needs to know this is about you. It's fiction, babe! Write down every cringe, blush and emotion. Put it away for a few days or weeks and then read it again. Does it still affect you with the strong images and emotion you began with? If not, write it again because you've definitely left some of the best details in your head. Get them all in there - details are the heart and the hooks of a story.
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About the Author
Harriet is an author on
http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Writers. Her portfolio can be found at
http://www.Writing.Com/authors/storytime where she is a reader reviewer of beginning writers.
