Hello, I am Jahangir Khan , new on this forum. I am student of medicine and surgery, but I really want to be a writer. English being a foreign language poses a certain challenge, but I am determined and ready to work hard. Please suggest me a way to develop an artistic touch and style? any particular book on creative writing?
Read as much as you can get your hands on, the more you read the more you feed your mind creative ideas as well as learn how published writers wrote and which style they use. Practice writing also come up with stories pick any theme and come up with different ideas for it and write, would suggest to write at first short stories till you learn how to form them well than move to bigger projects. Good way to start is while you read figure what would you change in this scene and make it different than later write it. But the most important thing is for you to know is this what you really want, its a long road and lots of work, if you want to be published some day get used to the idea that very small percentage of writers make it so learn to write first for yourself. Check around the forum there are many good topics to find tips on everything else you will need, and dont be afraid to ask if you need help. Good luck!
Read, read, read! Read as much American and English Literature as you can. It really does help. Though, I will also suggest, don't completely lose your native touch. Blend your native tongue with your writing. You may find that it can yield some interesting results
don't read writing 'how-tos'... just read the best-written examples of the kind of writing you want to do... you'll learn all you need there...
write daily, even if its just a journal for your eyes only. Read lots of novels you enjoy. Why do you want to write in English? Write about what you know in your own language. It can always be translated later.
This was exactly what I was going to tell you. Read, write, practice and read with thinking not just to enjoy the story. Read old literature and new once,compare and look at writing styles. If you are new to writing then you will need to find your own true voice.this should take a while and during that time you might find yourself copying someone else's style,that's fine. I suggest strongly that you read as much as possible. I am a foreigner too but since I started reading every night my writing skills have changed. honestly, even being on this forum and talking to people is improving my thinking. I also try to do brain teasers everyday, this helps a LOT! I just read an old write of mine and one I am writing now, the difference was huge. So practice and read and don't hesitate to ask for help or tips.
I'm in exactly same shoes career-wise, only about 15 years later I never felt that just reading fiction is enough. I found several books on writing an invaluable resource: 1.Writer's Journey by Vogler 2.Scene and structure by Bickham 3.Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card and 4.Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell. There are many other great books out there but I found that these four were all I needed to feel like I generally know what I'm doing when I'm trying to write a novel. As for improving your English, make sure that you are constantly reading something, preferably good fiction of all kinds. After a while you'll notice great improvement to your vocabulary and grammar. Good luck!
As others have said, it is most important that you read and write consistently. Try to write 200 words EVERY DAY, and if that's too easy bump it up to 500, etc. If you don't read and write, it's like trying to learn an instrument without ever playing it or listening to it being played. That said, I think books and other resources can guide you well in your writing. A resource I use is a free, award-winning podcast available on iTunes called "Writing Excuses." They are each 15 minutes long and give great advice for beginning & intermediate writers. When using writing resources like books, podcasts, etc., it can get overwhelming. Don't worry about whether your writing is good or bad until you have your first draft completed. Your ONLY goal should be to finish your first draft, no matter how terrible it is. Sprint to the end. Skip scenes if they are too hard to write. Trust me, it's hard enough to finish your first draft without having to worry about good writing at the same time. Everything that you learn from books, podcasts, blogs, tips, etc. should be used in the second draft. Even then, don't try to fix everything at once, but work on only one aspect of your writing at a time. If you are ever discouraged because you think your writing is terrible, don't worry. It's SUPPOSED to be terrible. You would never expect to pick up the oboe for the first time and have it sound pretty. So it is with writing. You seem to have a lot of determination, and that's all it takes to be a good writer. Congrats on starting to write!
I find that drifting off into the realm of What if? when watching a film or reading a book works wonders. It often gives birth to embrionic ideas that grow in the back of your mind. As you continue to mentally toy with possibilities you'll find that the odd brilliant turn of phrase or colourful description will pop into your head. Write them down. What if Luke Skywalker's relationship with Leia had gone a lot further before he found out they were siblings? What if Bruce Willis' character in Die Hard had been wearing shoes when the terrorists attacked? What if Frodo had turned down the quest put to him by Gandalf? Who else would have taken it on? What if Firefly hadn't been cancelled? What might their next adventure have been like? Also: READ! Read a lot!!
A wonderful method I have done to develop my writing style, is automatic writing. Write whatever comes to your mind. There is no minimum nor a limit to how much you may write, just as long as you are flowing with your consciousness. You will find your voice by doing so. When you are confident that you have found your voice, then try writing fictional stories. Write character development pages and see how your voice shows through them. Every writer has their own style, even if they don't know it. I am sure your style is wonderful.
agreement here -i write whatever comes to mind when i have paper available (and a sharp pencil i never have enough of those). Originally, i focused on setting description and then moved on to character and story development. Big Tip: do not focus on one thing directly such as setting -too much description is very hard to shorten up. You can always build up things rather than cut them up into smaller pieces.
