I’m pleased to welcome author S.L. Eaves as a guest to my blog as part of The Endangered book tour. Take a look at these excellent writing tips from the author:
- Write when you want to, not when you have to. You will notice a difference in quality.
- Have fun. Creative writing should be an enjoyable process. If you aren’t having fun writing it, you can’t expect the audience to have fun reading it.
- Be passionate. If you care about your characters, so will your readers.
- Fill a gap in literature. Write a story you want to read that you haven’t read/seen yet.
5. Get it on paper while it’s fresh in your head. Then go back and polish it up. Story first. Grammar and technical elements later.
- Make your writing relatable. Give your readers characters and/or settings that they can relate to. It’s important to connect to your readers.
- Listen to constructive criticism. Be open to feedback. Always be learning and evolving.
- Read books outside the genre you’re writing in during the process. I find different genres inspire and influence my writing in new and exciting ways. Infusing different elements and tropes helps writers avoid platitudes and overall blandness.
- Be consistent with your style. The writing style becomes part of the world. You can use stylistic themes to add depth to your narrative.
10. Do not be predictable.
11. Use relatable and believe dialogue. Do not opt for the ‘fifty-cent’ word just because it’s a ‘fifty-cent’ word.
12. Avoid distractions. Focus is key to strong storytelling. Turn off the TV, silence the cell phone, disconnect the internet, etc… It can be very challenging to find a place to write without distractions in today’s world. Do whatever you have to… the adorable kitten videos will still be there when you’re done.
About the author:
S.L. Eaves is a graduate student at Drexel University, pursuing her MBA in Marketing. She received her undergraduate degree in Film from University of Pittsburgh. While attending Pitt, she took a number of writing courses and earned a certificate in Professional Writing.
Originally from West Chester, PA, she has lived in Pittsburgh and Minneapolis before returning to the Philadelphia area, where she currently resides.
Her professional background is in marketing, primarily in the media and publishing industries. She enjoys being in an environment that promotes creativity and challenges her to apply her film and writing skills to generate innovative marketing campaigns.
Outside of writing, she’s an avid sports fan and concert goer who enjoys running and biking in her free time and readily confesses to being bit of a film and television junkie. When home, she’s never without a book in arm’s reach.
The Endangered is her debut novel and is slated to be the first in a new series from Zharmae Publishing Press, with the sequel scheduled for 2015.
Connect with the author:
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads (author page)
Goodreads (the book)
LinkedIn
vanessafinaughtyfantasybooks 
I disagree with the first point. If you’re going to produce work at anything approaching a regular pace, then you will need to learn to adopt a degree of pragmatism and show up to the page regardless of how you feel. If you write poorly, then you can edit later. If you go to work and you don’t feel too good, you still do the work required. Same with writing. Relying on inspiration is a recipe for inconsistency and frustration plus when you write on the days that you do feel inspired after a spell of grinding achievement, it feels so much more intense.
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I agree a little with both of you. It’s easier to write when you’re in the mood, and the results are certainly better, although… that’s how I ended up writing nothing for two years. What do you do when your life is just *that* stressful and busy? Sometimes it helps to have good motivation – in my case, that motivation is a ‘new’ baby I want to leave a great legacy. I also find that, the more often I write, the more easily I’m able to ‘get into the zone’ once I sit down.
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It’s paretos principle. 20% of the work done produces 80% of the results. I have a small daily goal and it’s helped me write three books thus far. I keep it small because it is easy to commit to.
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Realistic goals are good. I think too many authors try to do too much and then, when they can’t, become disillusioned.
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Meditation helps as a stress relief for me.
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Me too 🙂
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