Dear Friends,I've been sharing some of my favorite writing tips over on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/teresamedeiros) for months now and thought I'd finally gather them all together in one place. Happy writing!
1) Don't give characters unpronounceable names. Unless you're German, umlauts are not your friend.
2) Almost any sentence except "I am born" can be improved with revision.
3) Don't fear adverbs but actions verbs are always better. Not "He walked slowly" but "He trudged..."
4) It's the 1st sentence of your book that sells that book to the editor or reader. It's the last sentence of your book that sells the next book.
5) A creative silence may be your subconscious saying, "Hush, child. I'm working on a better plan."
6) Characters don't have to be perfect from the first page. Character growth is the hallmark of good fiction.
7) Writing is part talent and part craft. The craft part can be improved with practice.
8) You don't learn how to play the piano by reading books about playing the piano. You learn by practicing.
9) If you can stop writing, you probably should.
10) If you're stuck, go for a walk. Moving forward moves the brain forward. (Thanks to the Dog Whisperer for this tip :)).
11) If you're stuck, go back and do a read-thru from Chapter 1 to pick up the thread of the story.
12) The key to a truly successful romance novel is foreplay--not just physical but emotional.
13) There will come a time in every book when you will hate the story, hate the characters, wish they were dead, wish you were dead...just keep writing and you'll love them and yourself again.
14) Expect some resistance when finishing a book. Your subconscious knows it's the end of a great love affair.
15) Don't foreshadow your characters' every action by revealing their every thought through introspection.
16) If you're stuck for a phrase or word, insert [TK] or something else easily searchable and move on. Return later to fill in.
17) To preserve the sanctity of your imaginary world, consider writing on a computer completely cut off from the internet.
18) Dialogue is the hardest thing to write but the easiest thing to fix.
19) Protect your creativity as if it's a small defenseless child entrusted to your care.
20) When the story is over, shut up and write THE END.
