For the creatively blocked and uninspired, how about a little help from your friends? Advice from famous writers means simple ideas from people who understand the struggles of the writing process, have been there, and
know the secrets to overcoming them. Here are 15 of the finest pieces of advice for writers everywhere.
“Writing is its own reward.” – Henry Miller
If you’re looking to write for money, recognition, fame or any sort of material gain, your work will be a reflection of that. You’ll pander to audiences, write about things like everybody else and fit right in line with all the people waiting to get into the hall of fame. Dare to be bold and tell a story no one’s heard before. Write about something that excites you or don’t write at all; because you won’t be exciting anybody else either.
“Don’t describe an emotion – make it.” – Ernest Hemingway
Words don’t always do justice to an emotion, like a camera trying to capture a sunset the same way your eyes do, but instead of describing the feeling, make the feeling. Otherwise, you’ll miss the mark, and more importantly, the point.
“No music + Bad TV = Bad mood & no pages.” – Hunter S. Thompson
Silence can be golden, but if you’re going to fill your head with something, it should be conducive music or something inspiring. Putting on reruns of bad TV is only going to frustrate you – especially if you have good taste – and keep you from good work.
“Be persistent, endure struggle and hone your craft. Develop a routine and be relentless about it.” – Jack Kerouac
This speaks to the idea of creating a consistent, routine part of daily life. Even if you’re not in the mood to write, you should write, if nothing else to learn something about writing when it’s not flowing. The more you write, the more you learn about your weak spots, the better you become at removing them. It can’t always be rainbows and sunshine, but we can sure try.
“The secret is in the line.” – Charles Bukowski
Giving everything to your words is a tough way to write, but it’s the honest way. Don’t rush your work and write things you don’t mean, as the end result is shitty writing. If you give each line your all – though it may take longer – you appreciate your work more, giving it more meaning, more quality and yourself a sense of self-worth and time well spent. If you’ve got somewhere better to be, then you’re more likely in it for the wrong reason and should work under a time clock somewhere else.
“Absolute silence isn’t imperative, in fact I often have the radio going, but I must be alone. Can’t have anybody with me, even in the next room.” – J.D. Salinger
An honest writer or artist will live alone, or at least in some sort of seclusion, where the ideas can flow uninterrupted. If you’re living with a bunch of people and partying like a clown while not sitting your ass down, you’re simply a poser. If you want to be a good writer, you’ll write as much as you can and keep your mouth shut about it until it’s done.
“It’s a good rule not to tell what a thing is about until it’s finished. If you do you always seem to lose some of it. It never quite belongs to you so much again.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald
See. Even Fitzgerald agrees with me. Telling people constantly what you’re working on adds more pressure to finish and create something impressive. There’s nothing wrong with writing something and tucking it away as if it never happened. The only people you should be telling are people you know can improve your process after you bring it to them. Write something completely first, then share it.
“Be a sadist. N
o matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them in order that the reader may see what they are made of.” – Kurt Vonnegut
Although it’s self-explanatory, many writers steer away from doing bad things in inspiring stories without realizing it’s the hero’s journey to go through hell and high water and come out on the other side. Here’s more good advice from Vonnegut: “Every sentence should either reveal character or advance the story, and every character should want something, even if it’s only a glass of water.”
“The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.” – Steven Pressfield in “The War of Art“
Fear of success, rejection and other inevitable emotions keep people from entering or finishing the writing process when, in fact, fear should be the motivator. There’s no better strategy for fear than to face it head on. Stare that big grizzly bear in the face and challenge yourself to overcome. Otherwise, fear wins and you end up working at Starbucks for life.
“If you desire to arrest attention, to surprise, do not give me the facts in the order of cause and effect, but drop one or two links in the chain, and give me a cause and an effect two or three times removed.” – Ralph Emerson
Predictable storytelling is dead, especially when you look at television today. The successful shows are the ones constantly throwing you for a loop. Seeds are planted, some grow into larger story lines and others fade away in the dirt as if they never were planted. Allow plenty of opportunities to arise in your writing, giving you options, but know that you don’t need to use them all.
“Make some sacrifice for your art, and you will be repaid, but ask of art to sacrifice herself for you and a bitter disappointment may come to you.” – Oscar Wilde
Spoken like a true poet, Oscar eludes to the fact that sacrifices have to be made in order to achieve truly good writing. Going out on the town, getting skunked, laid and paid are things that might need to take a backseat when you’re striving to create something that’s bigger than you. But those things may come back around if and when your hard work pays off, but don’t expect anything in return. Enter the process with no expectations of its outcome.
“All the information you need can be given in dialogue.” – Elmore Leonard
Narration helps move the story along, fills in the gaps, but real life has little to no narration. Remember that when you’re writing, but also notice how dialogue says things in people’s expressions that narration can’t quite say.
“Not that the story needs be long, but it will take a long while to make it short.” – Henry David Thoreau
Don’t use ten words when four will do, but don’t worry about that in a first draft. Write what comes out and edit later, or as Hemingway says, “Write drunk, edit sober.” If 500 pages come out, you can always edit it down to half that, but you can’t double a hundred pages by going back and adding in useless adjectives.
“Any man who keeps working is not a failure. He may not be a great writer, but if he applies the old-fashioned virtues of hard, constant labor, he’ll eventually make some kind of career for himself as a writer.” – Ray Bradbury
It takes a long time for most writers to find their style and make strides in the right direction, but not every writer makes it to the Promised Land. Just know that the harder you try, the more likely people are to take notice, which can pay off in other ways, like writing for a website for men. If you like writing, then write. Good things come to those who work hard.
“So the writer who breeds
more words than he needs
is making a chore
for the reader who reads.”
– Dr. Suess
Once again, brevity is key. Most writers hit hard on this idea because it’s a tough skill to craft. As much as we want to throw in the kitchen sink, keeping it simple and concise while giving action to the words we use moves things swiftly. It’s better to have a 250 words straight to the point rather than 400 dancing around ideas that confuse the reader. Don’t be too stubborn to throw out words, even if they seem special to you. Say what you want to say and move on. Have confidence in the words you choose, because overthinking them will only cloud your story.
