Honestly, there is so much advice out there for writers. Some is for writing in general, and some is for specific aspects. None of that is more important than this one piece of advice I am about to give you. None of it would matter without this single thing.
Always be writing.
I know: simple, right? Simple, but not only the most effective piece of advice I can give you, but also the hardest to follow. I’m betting some of you have already heard this advice, in which case you might already know the whole spiel. If you ask me, it can’t hurt to hear it again.
So just write. Write every day, once, twice, three times a day. Fill pages, notebooks, fill the screen with words. Because without it, you can’t ever do anything with the other advice. It doesn’t have to be good, it doesn’t have to be something you want to keep working with, it doesn’t even have to be coherent. Just write something. Keep your words flowing. For the past month or so, i’ve lost track of why I write. I lost the passion, I let other things cloud my desire to write and play with words. And I realized, its because I stopped writing. I stopped jotting down thoughts, dreams, ideas; I stopped using my writing skill, and it dried up on me. Temporarily, I assure you. But nonetheless, I had to kickstart it again recently.
So I advise you, please just keep writing. Nobody has to read it, so don’t worry about what you are writing, just write.
Don’t know what to write? Here are some ideas:
- Write your dreams. First thing in the morning, grab your notebook, or plop down behind the computer screen and write everything you remember, in any style.
- Writing prompts. They are ALL over the internet. Just google ‘fiction prompts’, ‘nonfiction prompts’, ‘poetry prompts’, ‘writing prompts’, etc. One day i’ll post some of my favorite sites to find them, but for now you will have to rely on Google.
- Keep a journal. Write down what happened to you during the day at the end of every day. As much or as little detail as you want.
- People watch. Grab a notebook and sit in a park, or a coffee shop, or a mall, or somewhere crowded. Watch people, write about them. Give them a background, a family tree, a tick, a character flaw (or two), a redeeming trait. Give them goals, motivations, enemies, friends, etc. Get creative with it!
- Stream of conscious. Take a thought and run with it. Don’t censor, don’t think about what you’re writing, and don’t worry.
That’s all the ideas I can think of right now, but if you have any more please feel free to comment them! And if I think of any more, I will be sure to add them to the list!
Christian Felicioli 