How to Master Writing in 5 Simple Steps
Whatever happens, keep on writing. I always hear this from those who genuinely believe in my competence. Not just once, but several times that I decided to quit because I thought I was not good enough. For me, it was torture.
Why?
Rejections. I am aware that every writer struggled to avoid it. As an aspirant writer, my works received a massive weight of refusal. Repeatedly. It hurts that triggered me to quit writing. So then, I questioned myself:
What motivates people to write?
Each of us has our motivations. In terms of my aspirations, I write because it is a creative outlet for me. As they say, “passion” is highly infectious. Yes, I can attest it’s true because some of my favorite authors influenced me. And besides, it’s my natural escape from every realm I’m in. No matter how frustrating it was, I kept writing because I knew it was integral to mastery.
As we persist on our writing journey, we can’t help but feel inferior because some writers are famous and we aren’t. For me, it’s not important whether I am known or not, as long as I’m happy with what I’m doing. Hence, here are some simple steps that will help us optimize our writing abilities. It is extremely crucial to be aware of these because they help bring our writing career to the leading edge.
1. Prewriting
Is prewriting similar to outlining? Well, outlining is one of the methods of prewriting. Before you do an outline, prewriting exercises you to layout structures and give meanings to your topics or stories before you start to create a draft. Also, it develops the skills of the writer to seek weak or strong conflicts in your story. An effective way to establish good prewriting skills is to analyze ideas by brainstorming.
Determine what kind of prewriting works for you. You can check some useful sites that suggest different types of prewriting.
2. Preparing Outlines
What are the outlines? An outline is your book’s main structure. It is a frame of your reference which includes your main topics, sub-topics, ideas, opinions, and facts. For stories, it contains the arrangement information of your plot, characters, scenes, and settings.
How to create effective outlines?
1. Create the main plot for your story:
This is the groundwork of your story’s central idea, which will serve as your promise to your readers. This is what your narrative is all about.
2. Determine the story settings:
This is critical because this is where you will transport your readers to another location within your book. Other writers describe their actual travels or destination, and I think that is a good idea.
3. Plan your characters:
Introduce your characters as you know them personally. Consider their personalities. Don’t forget to use captivating names instead of difficult ones; otherwise, your readers may struggle to connect with your characters.
4. Arrange the scenes:
Once you already have your plot, characters, and settings, you can track down the scenes in every chapter. Start with the settings by providing immersive details of where it occurred. Make sure to create a dialog in each scene using specific points of view of your characters to avoid confusion to your readers.
3. Revising or Editing
This is applicable to all authors. You can either self-edit a narrative or get experts to do it when it’s finished. I leave it to you as long as it allows you to see your work before you submit it.
What are the differences between revising and editing? Editing entails revising sentences that include grammatical problems, whereas revisions involve fundamental modifications to the structure or organization of your work.
Why is it important?
Do you want your book to be published with the same error repeatedly? You don’t, obviously. Whereas when you do some editing or revisions of your work, you don’t have to worry about criticism. Well, a writer will undoubtedly face criticism, but you can avoid it if you take steps to avoid it. I recommend that you seek proficient help from professionals in order to master your piece.
There are also some motivational ways to master writing aside from the technical skills which I mentioned above. This involves your emotions, your strengths, and your weaknesses.
4. Don’t pay attention to judgments.
I understand that you value your emotions and that you frequently monitor or manage them. When you hear somebody say negative things about you, it will have a detrimental effect on you. Why would you allow them to ruin your happiness? First and foremost, you are not writing to impress anyone; otherwise, you are writing because it is a reflection of you. It’s a visual representation of your thoughts.
On the other hand, you can take their judgment and turn it into a tool for mastery. To be honest, some criticisms can be beneficial to you because they can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses. Let them know that you’re happy with what you’re undertaking.
5. Just Write.
Make a connection with your pen. Write.
When you’re happy, write.
When you’re feeling down, write.
Every day, your emotions, whether positive or negative, fuel your mood. Whatever it is, take a seat and begin writing. It may not lead to instant mastery, but it will gradually motivate you to get there.