Improving myself as a writer

Discussion in 'General Writing' started by Nervous1st, Mar 4, 2009.

  1. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    I like to embrace a tolerance of "good enough" in my writing. IMO, the best way to improve is to write a _lot_, so if I chew on each sentence and paragraph until it's perfect, in six months I won't have improved as much as I would with a more casual, and more prolific, strategy.

    So my goal is just to (1) write and (2) try to do one little thing just a little bit better each time I write. Just one. Just a little. Perfection is not a goal I want to even think about chasing.
     
  2. Kaymindless

    Kaymindless New Member

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    It is? I honestly just write long hand to slow me down and so I can do it anywhere I feel.


    Honestly, yes it does get harder the more you improve. Like countless people said, it's going to. Do I still wish for the days where I was just writing with out a concern, yes, because it was freeing. But I can tell the difference in quality from something last year and something now and that's just as good of a feeling, to me personally. I still write freely now though, because as your master one concept (For the time being) it becomes a part of you and you move onto something else to master. Eventually, you get back to that first thing and go through the process all over again.
     
  3. John Eff

    John Eff New Member

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    Now, where was I? Oh, yes. That is not the definition of something becoming harder; it's the definition of something difficult to master. Most things worthwhile have a complexity to them which can form part of the attraction of attempting them in the first place. A challenge. It should be the case that as you you climb up the mountain your knowledge and experience make it easier. Of course, there's always more of the mountain to climb and you may not expect to reach the top, but I would hope that's because it's so high, not because it gets harder to climb.

    Yours,

    Kevin Tensing (Mrs)
     
  4. Cassiopeia Phoenix

    Cassiopeia Phoenix New Member

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    Oh, I think it does. It's definitely hard for me to write something and go: "This is pretty good". The more the write, the more I'm unsatisfied with my work, and I take longer to write. Or I write and delete everything.
     
  5. jazzabel

    jazzabel Agent Provocateur Contributor

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    ^This.

    Also, there's a learning curve. I think initially, it all seems easy when we have no idea how bad we are. Then we start learning and the more we learn, the harder it gets. But eventually, time and experience make any activity second nature. This is when writers become able to write a book on anything, in a few months, and it is of a publishing standard. The only thing that might be missing in those advanced stages is inspiration. This is why, I think, loads of best-selling writers have slightly rough around the edges start, but a great idea. Then they progress onto excellent style and great ideas, and end up with excellent style and no ideas. I see it in thriller and mystery writers all the time.
    But usually there's a good 10 year career in the "golden" stage, for whomever perseveres long enough to get to that stage.

    Obviously, imagination is important also.
     
  6. indy5live

    indy5live Active Member

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    I think, the more you learn and the more you write the more you want to challenge yourself and craft more difficult scenarios, characters, plots, dialog, etc. I'm already planning a second novel while my first is being editing, and believe me, it's going to be way more difficult to write. First off, I've never written in first person beyond a few scenes and this next novel is going to be all in first person. Second off, it deals with a limitation most people aren't going to be able to relate too, but I want to bring an audience into their world and craft an entertaining story around it. Third off, I myself have very little knowledge about the limitation so it's going to take a lot of research.

    So, yes and no. Yes it gets harder because you should be challenging yourself to get better and try new things. But no if all you're going to do is stick within your comfort zone and write in the same style and about the same subject you've already mastered.
     
  7. NAOKO

    NAOKO New Member

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    Hi everyone! i am new here.
    i am wishing to write more fluently. My grammar and sentence structure are also poor. As English is my second language it's extremely difficult to improved my writing. often my writing is direct translation from my native language and it don't sound fluent in English. what kind of books will help me? what else can i do to improve my writing other then to read?
     
  8. Revenant

    Revenant Member

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    Interacting with people on this and other forums is a good start! Welcome, by the way.
     
  9. Thornesque

    Thornesque Senior Member

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    Yeah, my suggestion would be to simply watch how other people use the language. I would suggest published books. They'll have been reviewed and edited and can help you learn to form the sentences properly.
     
  10. idle

    idle Active Member

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    Watching (or reading) other people is great, it helped me a lot, but it is not enough by itself. To be fluent, you need to practise as well. Joining a forum like this one and engaging in discussion is a good idea. I think that in conversation on a specific topic there's bound to be some repetition, so it is easier to watch how others say it and soak up the vocabulary and phrases.
     
  11. madhoca

    madhoca Contributor Contributor

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    When you learn vocabulary, learn words as a phrase, not as a single word. And when you want to translate something, remember we probably don't say it the same way in English as you do in your native language. Try and find the correct way of expressing the same thing in English without translating word for word or tense by tense. Keep a phrase book of common expressions, and if you ask a native speaker how to say something, note down the whole sentence.
     
  12. Xatron

    Xatron New Member

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    When i decided i wanted to start writing in English i had already been reading English novels and transcripts for a few years. What you want to do is engage in conversations and encourage native speakers to correct you when you make mistakes. Also try using a thesaurus to find out how words from your language would translate in English without losing their original meaning. There are many cases where a word in English is an accurate translation of a word in your language, but the meaning when it is used is completely different.
    Also you may want to start an index of phrases or expressions you like when reading English texts, since it will help you get better in short time.

    Lastly, our forum has a word mechanics section that contains a wealth of information on any topic you can think of from different notions of the same expression to common grammatical errors and rules.
     
  13. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    that's all good advice given above...

    if you need one-on-one help with anything, i've been mentoring ESL writers living all over the planet for many years and can always take on another mentee...

    love and hugs, maia
    maia3maia@hotmail.com
     
  14. Thornesque

    Thornesque Senior Member

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    My only thing with trying to learn from the way people talk on a forum is that people on forums aren't always mindful of their grammar and spelling. People make mistakes. So while it may help a bit with how to word a sentence, it can also skew how people perceive grammar.
     
  15. Shannonpeel

    Shannonpeel New Member

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    The first question that comes to mind is why would you want to write in a different language then your mother tongue? You can always have a professional translator translate it into English if necessary. It would be better for your creative writing process to write your story in the language you know instead of constantly trying to figure out how to say it in English. Unless this is a project for an English writing course I'd suggest you write the story first and then have it translated.
     
  16. Thornesque

    Thornesque Senior Member

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    ^I would say probably because the English and American publishing companies are bigger than most other publishing companies in the world. It's why you often hear about American and English books being translated into different languages, but rarely hear "This book was translated from Portuguese/Turkish/Italian."
     
  17. idle

    idle Active Member

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    Well, a professional translator is expensive and still you never know what gets "lost in translation". And unless you're already a successful author in your home language/market, you'll go through the same submitting process as others, which means you're likely to never get the money back. So it makes sense in a way.
     
  18. Xatron

    Xatron New Member

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    Even professional translators have a hard time conveying the original feeling the author intended for the book, and more often than not they fail in doing so. That is why i have only been reading novels in the language they were originally written, because most translations available including the published ones range from bad to utter rubbish. Writing in English from the get-go eliminates that risk to a degree.
     
  19. matwoolf

    matwoolf Banned Contributor

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    Hey Naoko,

    Trust your voice. In the first instance why not write in English as a Hungarian man/Lebanese woman or whatever you may be, my Chinaman and I apologise if I have guessed, my 7th sense, call it force is at times overwhelmingly strong...writing English as a french person may prove flavoursome, for example. I have a German pal who is at her most appealing when she conveys idiom 'like a Dusseldorf whore,' or you know 'with the slipper that is his lifes he walked the stair' - kind of strange, but interesting and you'll improve through communication with well-trained experts such as myself..

    You want to try and avoid the year of cliches that you sometimes hear on the streets of London with early learners, that Bosnian bandit pulling the old ring in the gutter trick on me, I'll never trust a Bosnian again. You know I felt sorry for him, was only eight quid and a full packet of cigarettes for what turned out to be a curtain ring. All he said was two words of English, 'my friend,' and he wasn't. Or the Russian I knew once who'd taught himself English through the 'voice of America.' Spoke like Chicago gangster, although a bit of an idiot with sunglasses - 'you wise guys for sure comes with me for party, you like party. Life is life.' Oh yes that's a fascinating arena, English expressions English speakers never use

    'for sure.'
    'for sure.'
     
  20. Fullmetal Xeno

    Fullmetal Xeno Protector of Literature Contributor

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    A simple answer is Rosetta Stone, i heard it's great for non-English speakers to learn English and vice versa. :)
     
  21. Escritor

    Escritor New Member

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    oh some many things to practice, i don't know where to begin:

    from grand scale plot, passing medium scale chapters, to little scale coherent paragraphs.

    Developing my character

    while being coherent, being also interesting

    Having good dialogues

    Having good descriptions/narrations.

    Playing with multiple POVs

    so much to do , where do i begin?


    How do i improve my writing, where do i begin? could you describe your first days as a writer... your first weeks, months, years. Do you remember how did you learn, what did work?
     
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  22. chicagoliz

    chicagoliz Contributor Contributor

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    Like anything, you just have to practice. The best thing is if you can join a local critique group, where you critique and get critique from others in the group. Being able to discuss some of the things is immensely helpful.

    I have found it helpful to read some of the writing books, but use them more as food for thought, rather than as laying down "THE" rules. Read them as indicating what the author thinks worked for them, and see what resonates with you.
     
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  23. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    for starters, you can learn the lingo...

    'dialogue' is a collective noun, so we don't put an 's' at the end...

    same with 'narration'... though in re writing, it's called 'narrative'...

    first, by identifying what needs upgrading... you can post an excerpt of your writing in the workshop section if/when you've fulfilled the site requirements and we'll give you feedback on what you need to improve...

    i didn't become a serious, full time writer till my early '40s, so since i was always good with words and was a constant reader of good writing, all i had to learn was how the publishing world works... i started a writing services business and wrote my own stuff between clients...
     
  24. EmmaWrite

    EmmaWrite Member

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    I'm reading this book right now called Spilled Ink. It's for new writers and covers all the things you listed. You should look into it.

    My advice would just be to write every day. You'll get better through revising your work. You can submit on this forum or on other writing websites like Figment for feedback. You should also read as often as you can make time for and notice what you like about those books and see how you can use them in your writing.
     
  25. EllBeEss

    EllBeEss Senior Member

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    Write. You can improve your writing by writing plain and simple. If you need to work on dialogue write dialogue then read it back think, 'would anyone say that?' 'does it fit the character?' and try to identify whether it seems plausible. Also edit what you've done to improve it, through writing and improving what you write you can find what you need to work on and how to improve. Getting others to read over your work and be honest may not be good for your self esteem but it will help you improve.
     

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