Quiznack I'm pregnant

A/n: writing tips~

So someone asked me for writing tips , so I thought hey why not make an authors note about this for everyone who's interested? So that's what I'm going to do~ now I won't pretend to be a professional. I'm really not (I wish...) I'm not the best writer at all but these are just a few tips and rules I try to follow when writing that I've either came up with myself , or learnt through trial and error or constructive criticism. Which brings me to my first point of this little thingy~

1) always ask for constructive criticism.

I always ask my readers if they like my writing and if they like the story , wether or not they want longer or shorter chapters and what they'd like to see as it's always nice to see my readers ideas and try to incorporate that with my own ideas as long as their okay with that. It's also a good way to see what you need to improve.

2) how to get into your characters mind.

Getting into character is always the hardest part of any story , play , film , anything that involves characters really. One thing I do when I'm writing is play music that either describes the characters personality or emotions , or music that describes what's happening in the chapter. For example the chapter control that I wrote. I listened to Halsey - control about 50 times. It helped me get into the mind frame with lance being controlled and kept me focus on the chapter and give me ideas. There's a lot of playlists on Spotify , YouTube ect for Characters. Ones i frequently listen to are lance's , Keith's , Klance , shiros , lotors , nagisa's (assassination classroom) and karma's (assassination classroom) if your someone who doesn't like music (your weird , jk , but seriously music is amazing) or you want to do something as well listening to music , you could list the traits of your characters or the characters. If you remember how your characters act , speak , think , how they come off then your readers can imagine the character too. And you can stay true to a character if it's from a show or something. You can also list your characters intentions , desires and innermost feelings. As many characters have deeper feelings than first appear. For example Karma from assassination classroom originally comes off as a cocky , arrogant sadist. But deep down he cares for his class mates , and yes he may be a tiny bit insane but he from small tit bits of information we were given we can infer that might be from his not too happy past. His backstory fuels his motives and actions as is such with many characters. If your writing about your own character obviously playlists won't obviously exist already , so you could create your own , or if you can't be bothered , just listen to the songs without making a playlist.  Getting invested into your characters is key. I even make outfits for my characters which you'll get to see in future chapters. I'm so attached to some of my characters that I celebrate their birthdays.) Also making mood boards is a very good idea. I make a ton of them.
(Yes I'm sad I know. I'm lonely okayyyy I have no friends because I'm shy and antisocial so I'm friends with characters)

3) naming chapters and creating titles.

When I name chapters I either name it after a song title or lyric , name it after something to do with the chapter , or something funny , interesting  or eye catching. Same thing with titles (even though this books was cringy but me can't be bothered to change it.)

4) language

Improving your vocabulary is key.
If you wright something like "he looked at him sadly." Compared to "he stared at him , ocean eyes wide with pain. Tears spilled over his cheeks. He was completely distraught." It's obvious which will keep your readers more interested. Obviously some simple sentences and words can't be avoided , but looking up synonyms to words and reading different texts is really helpful. Writing down interesting words and looking them up is good too. And these come in handy for school too~ (*cough* when the teacher asks you for a good descriptive word *cough*)

5) motivation and schedules
Hahaha..ha...ha...honey I'm not the right person to answer this~ pfft. I don't have a schedule because I know I can't stick to it. I keep trying and keep failing. If you are going to have a schedule. I guess I'd suggest making the time frame long enough that you have time and don't get stressed out but short enough your readers don't lose interest (like all of mine T - T) motivation wise , it helps if you get comfortable to right. Being in an environment you like is better. I always listen to music when writing , having a drink and snack at hand is good , maybe some scented candles if I'm in the mood and can be bothered to light them. If I could get away with it I'd probably take my iPad or laptop to the river and right down there. I get toasty with blankets too because I hate being cold. If your someone who gets easily distracted (like me) try getting rid of all the distractions and do something to focus on writing. Like music that relates to the chapter will keep you focused on the chapter. If you do get distracted try taking a shower to wake yourself up a bit. You don't have to finish a chapter in a day. I seldom do that. I normally take a few days up to a few weeks, in some cases months and years when I lose hope. Reading comments keeps me motivated to keep writing. Write in small sections if it's easier to let your mind rest. And write down the key points of the chapter so you don't forget~

6) structure

The structure I try to follow is an old historic one we were taught in English for context in Jekyll and Hyde. Called Todorov's narrative theory. This is were the events in the story fluctuate between good and bad. Good happens , then bad happens , then good happens , then bad happens , then good ect. This way readers are still interested but it doesn't get too dark. I sometimes go off script a little and make too much angst though 😅😅

7) Grammar

Grammar is definitely my weakest point in English. (I am that person who still sometimes forgets full stops. I used to forget capital letters too but I'm better at that now) one rule that I do remember to follow. Is spaces between punctuation. It's easier to read if there's spaced between your punctuation. For example. "Red,blue,yellow and green"
Vs "red , blue , yellow , and green" I put a spade before and after the comma but you could just put one after. I just prefer it this way. Another punctuation rule. Is always use "...." for dialogue. It's really confusing if there's no speech marks. Technically you should also start a new line every time someone talks. I don't do this anymore as it bothers me when the line doesn't meet the end of the spread/page. (If you know what I mean. I'm weird like that) so yeah.

That's all I've got for now~ I'll give more tips when I can think of them XD