5 Strategies to Improve Your Writing Skills and Become a Better Writer
Oct 31, 2024
Writing is a skill that requires practice. This is true for all kinds of written work, but with creative writing, it's sometimes hard to tell if our skills and creativity are actually getting better.
We know that the best way to improve as a writer is to write every day, but what can you do to improve your skills faster outside of working on one specific project? That's what we'll discuss in this post. We're sharing five strategies that will make it easier than ever to level up your writing game!
Strategies to improve your writing skills
Focus on one story element at a time
When you're looking to improve your writing skills, it's important to focus on one story element at a time. Whether it's character development, world building, setting, or something else, diving into one element at a time will allow you to give it the attention it deserves. If you try to work on too many things at once, it can be overwhelming and you might not make much progress in any of the areas. It can also make balancing all the elements together difficult, so it's better to focus on one thing and build your skills gradually.
For example, if you’re trying to improve the dialogue, character development, and setting all at once, you may struggle to balance these elements effectively. The dialogue may end up feeling forced, the characters may lack depth, and the setting may not be fully realized. However, if you focus solely on improving your dialogue skills first, this will give you time to practice and refine the dialogue without being distracted by other elements. It can also build your confidence and help you feel a sense of accomplishment as your skills improve, which can be a motivating factor to continue working on other elements.
Master the foundations first
As a writer, it's important for you to master the basic foundations of writing before trying to improve your skills, because these foundations are the building blocks of good writing. Just like building a house, if you have a strong foundation, your writing will be stronger and more effective. It’ll also help you avoid common mistakes new writers make, such as lack of character development, issues with pacing , or overuse of adverbs or repetitive sentences.
So, how can you master the foundations of writing? One way is to take a class or workshop on writing fundamentals. This can provide you with a structured approach to learning the necessary skills and give you the opportunity to practice and receive feedback. Reading books on writing and editing can also be helpful for improving foundational skills.
Another strategy is to practice writing regularly and seek feedback from others, such as writing groups, critique partners, or mentors. This will help you identify areas that need improvement and give you insight into how to address these weaknesses. It's important to remember that learning and improvement are ongoing processes, and there is always more to learn and improve on. By building a strong foundation in the basics, you can set yourself up for success and continue to develop your skills.
Level up with exercises to improve writing skills
Learning how to write well requires constant sharpening of skills. Luckily, there are various writing exercises that can help level up an author's skills in different areas. Let’s look at character development. While most writers are familiar with the type of change that occurs when a character goes through a transformative arc–whether positive or negative –many writers forget about the subtle changes a character will experience when interacting with different characters in their world. Think about this for a moment: all of us interact with the people in our lives in different ways, depending on our relationship with them. When we’re with our parents, we interact slightly differently than we would with our spouse, kids, or a best friend. These are the small, subtle changes, when incorporated with your characters, can help flesh them out, give them layers, and make them feel like real people.
If you have a current work in progress, here’s a quick, easy exercise you can use to practice this. Pick 3 characters that your hero regularly interacts with and analyze what happens when they talk to this specific person. Do they get annoyed and easily irritated by them? Do they ignore and tune them out? Are they excited to see them? Are they shy and quiet because they have a crush on them? If you didn't see a difference between the way your hero interacts with each of the three characters, it could be a sign that you're not showing enough of the different sides of your hero.
Get comfortable revising
Revising can be tough sometimes, especially when you're attached to your story and don't want to change anything. We know how hard it can be to “kill your darlings,” but trust us, it's worth it. Here's why:
- Reveals weaknesses: by going back through your story with fresh eyes, you can identify areas where you could improve. Maybe your pacing is off, or your dialogue doesn't ring true to your characters.
- Strengthen your writing: revisions are your chance to refine your writing. You can clarify confusing passages, tighten up your prose, and make sure each sentence is clear and concise.
- Learn from your mistakes: as you revise and edit, you'll likely see patterns in your writing. Maybe you rely too heavily on adverbs, or you have a tendency to use too many exclamation points. By recognizing these patterns, you can learn from your mistakes and avoid making them in the future.
So, how do you go about revising and editing your story? Here are a few tips:
- Take a break: give yourself some time away from your story so you can come back to it with fresh eyes.
- Read aloud: this can help you catch errors you might not notice when reading silently.
- Focus on one element: Don't start by trying to fix every paragraph and punctuation mark! Start with big-picture issues like plot and character, then move on to smaller details like sentence structure and grammar.
Here’s one more bonus tip for revising/editing. If you struggle to edit your own work, try finding a critique partner and help them revise/edit their work. We know that it can help to get feedback from other writers on our own work, but being a great critique partner can also give us a deeper understanding of why something in a story works or doesn't work. Many times, it’s much easier to spot problems or issues in someone’s writing than it is in our own, and helping critique and proofread their work can make you a better writer too!
Practice different types of writing
Another great way to improve your writing skills is by practicing different writing styles. By trying your hand at essays, short stories, poems , articles , and other types of writing, you'll not only become a more versatile writer but also find your unique style and voice. For example, writing short stories or flash fiction can force you to tell a story in a brief and concise manner, while poetry can challenge you to use language in new and creative ways.
If you're someone who writes in the same genre , branching out into different ones can help you discover new techniques and approaches that you can use in your genre as well. For instance, if you're a fantasy writer, even if you've never written mystery before, practicing this genre can help you learn a lot about foreshadowing and using red herrings to create surprising twists in your fantasy stories. So, next time you begin your writing session, try switching up the genre or the piece of writing you're doing–you may just surprise yourself with how much you learn!
You’re ready to become a better writer!
Remember, by focusing on one story element at a time, mastering the foundations, leveling up with different writing exercises, getting comfortable with revising, and practicing different writing, you'll increase your writing abilities outside of working on one specific project and be well on your way to becoming a better writer. Some tips we’ve discussed today were taken from the Level Up Your Writing course, so if you want to kick your writing up a notch, check out that course in the Writing Mastery Academy. With this course, you'll focus on 7 key areas in writing to improve your skills one at a time. So, are you ready to start writing at an even higher level?
