I’m beginning a new tradition for you on the TeacherWriter blog of posting Tips for Writers. These tips will be holistic and inspirational, designed to entice your muse to visit more often. When your lovely muse, (or biotch, whichever you prefer,) doesn’t visit, these writing tips will help you keep the faith and write on without her.
Beginning today. Right here. Right now.
You will become a better writer.
Tips for Writers #1
Always have something to write on with you. This could be a notebook, a scratch pad, index cards, or the back of an envelope. But you’ll still need a pen or pencil. For those of you who eschew the old fashioned pen and pencil, it could be a netbook, it could be a word processor on your phone, or even a digital recorder.
I’m carry around a little mini-notebook in my purse, because I can whip that baby out fast and write in it anytime. Flipping through the notebook reveals a jumbled treasure trove of thoughts, descriptions, and passing inspirations.
Image by Kriss Szkurlatowski
Five Reasons to Carry a Writer’s Notebook
- You never know when inspiration will hit, when the muse will stop by and slap you on the back of the head with a great idea and then run away. When you have an inspiration, or see something interesting, write it down immediately. Don’t wait. If you do, you’ll probably forget what it was you wanted to write down, especially when you get to be a certain age. (That would be my age.) Thoughts and dreams are fleeting, and if you have the notebook handy, you won’t lose those gossamer thoughts.
- You can use extra time for quick moments of writing practice. Do you ever play the game where you look at people in a crowd and make up stories about them? Come on, admit it. I won’t tell anyone. If you’re a writer, you probably make up stories in your head all the time. Write them down in your notebook. They might come in handy for a future story.
- You can use your writing journal to experiment. Just write. Try new things. Emulate a writing style that you like, but you aren’t sure if you can pull off.
- Having a notebook or writing device handy will encourage you to write more often. Writers write. That’s what they do. So allow yourself the freedom to be a writer.
- Use the notebook for quick writes on any topic. Don’t know what to write about? Check the end of this post for a slideshow of pictures from my Writing Picture Prompt Monday posts. Or flip to a random line in a book.
Wherever you go, whatever you do, just remember:
You are a writer.
Read more about how to use a Personal Journal for Writing Fiction. Enjoy!
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