You’ve been writing for a while now, and you think you have a handle on it. Maybe you‘ve shared some of your work with someone, and maybe you haven’t. Either way, I guarantee you are making some of these amateur mistakes. How do I know that? Experience.
When I started researching how to improve my writing, I came across a list of mistakes all new writers make. I thought the claim was preposterous. No one had even read my writing yet so they couldn’t know what I did. That’s when I learned my first lesson as a writer: don’t think you know what you’re doing just because you finished a book…or five.
Below is a similar list I want to pass on to you. If you want to improve your writing, pay close attention. Ten to one, you’ll be editing your past work and trying to break these habits as you continue to write.
1. Avoid Adverbs
Particularly, ones that end in -ly. (“He walked quickly and stopped abruptly beside her.”) If you can’t find specific verbs to tell your story, you need the work on your vocabulary. Make your characters “rush” instead of “walk quickly” across the room. It’s more concise and gives a better picture for the reader.
2. Shy Away From Passive Voice
Passive voice is encouraged in academics but frowned upon when writing books. (“The bacon was flipped and grease splattered.”) An active voice progresses the storyline in a clearer and more interactive way for the reader. (“Tessa flipped the bacon and felt the grease splatter her hand.”)
3. Don’t Use Exclamation Points By The Truck Loads!!!
While they’re good for a text message to convince your friend you really are happy to see her tomorrow, they’re considered lazy writing in books. If you word your dialogue right and have good descriptions of the characters, your reader will understand it’s being said with high emotion. An editor wrote that, if he saw an exclamation point within the first five pages of a manuscript, he put it down. Don’t let that be your story.
4. Keep The Past Perfect Tense To A Minimum
Using had + verb is telling the reader what already happened. (“She had cried all night and given herself a headache.”) Tell them as it happens. Even if you’re writing in past tense, it’ll feel more immediate than past perfect tense. (“She cried all night and gave herself a headache.”)
5. Don’t Go Crazy With Emphasis On Your Text
A lot of bold, CAPS, underlined, or even italic words will pull your reader from the story and make them focus on reading the words. The same is true for too many ellipses, parentheses, and dashes. If the reader is distracted by how you’re writing, then they leave the world of the story. Once that happens, they may put the book down.
Final Thoughts
These are things to avoid in excess. Some exceptions apply, but these are good rules to follow the majority of the time. You’ll be pleased with how clean your manuscript looks. So will your editor.
Thanks for reading!
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