The Written Word

Writing is a very personal and often painful process. There are so many aspects to writing which have nothing to do with technique.

The first step is the idea that you will build your story and characters upon. This is very important and at times can be difficult as the idea doesn’t always lead to a strong story.

Another aspect of this is, are you a planner that creates story boards and creates a detailed character template? Or are you one who doesn’t plan how the story or characters are and just flies by the seat of your pants? Both of these have very valid points and can easily succeed as a writer.

With myself I love to create a detailed character template that evolves over time. It’s actually one of my favourite parts of the writing process. Some of my characters have been created years ago and continue to evolve after each time I do a story or each time I go back to update or edit the story.

Being able to write doesn’t mean you will be able to do everything for your manuscript. Grammar and spelling don’t have to be your strong suit but what you do have to be able to do is use your own knowledge and what software that you have access to which will assist with your writing.

Also remember once you have polished your manuscript as much as you can, it is now time to send your baby out to the world of editing and to eventually rebuild your story with the helpful suggestions of the editors.

I also find getting beta readers also a huge help when you have a solid group who won’t just tell you what they believe you want to hear but actually tell you what you need to hear. This will help you improve.

Reviews are another thing and they are always subjective however reading them can do both good and bad for an author. I write them and think that they help the reader and author equally.