#or just learn how to focus?????? but idk the osmosis required practical :( | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lillupon · 3 years

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hi! I’ve been an avid reader of yours and I’ve been inspired to write my own fic 😊 but idk how to write fics because I used to study engineering and I haven’t taken creative writing courses while in uni 🥲 do you have any tips for writing? any will be appreciated 🥰 thanks! also here’s what I have so far: wwjeonkim/status/1428300922132701184?s=21

https://twitter.com/wwjeonkim/status/1428300922132701184

Glad to hear that you've been inspired to write your own fics ^^ I started out as a reader too. Taking creative writing classes is definitely not required in order to write. There's nothing you can learn from a creative writing class that you can't also learn from the University of Google and Youtube (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ The only upside I can see to taking creative writing classes in university is the opportunity to connect with like-minded writers and receive feedback. Being part of the fanfiction community makes it easy to do both of these things, and the feedback is also more genuine lol

I'm no writing authority, but my personal tips for new writers are:

Write a lot

Read a lot

Finished, not perfect (link goes to a 1:33 minute YouTube video)

*shot*

But really, I think as a new writer, the single best thing you can do for your writing (at least in the first few months you are starting out) is to get a lot of volume under your belt. I think this is true for any discipline, not just writing. I would focus on writing down the stories in my head without worrying about perfect grammar, character development, story structure, reader input/feedback, or any of that other stuff. In my first year of writing, I wrote about 250,000 words, which is a lot for me. You get to see really big improvements in your writing after the first 50,000 words, then 250,000 words, then 500,000, then 1,000,000! (I am still working towards 1,000,000)

(You can read my early attempts at writing on my AFF account. They were Not Great lol)

When reading, I would pay attention to prose, and character and plot development. There's a lot to be learned via osmosis! As a new writer, I spent a lot of time imitating the styles of authors I looked up to.

Lastly, I would encourage new writers to commit to finishing projects, whether that is a scene, a short story, or a novel. When I first started writing, I could not finish a project to save my life. I developed a bad habit of starting stories and then abandoning them. You can learn a lot by seeing projects through to the very end.

After a couple months of writing, you'll probably be able to pinpoint your weaknesses and you'll have some writing goals in mind. That's when I would venture to writing resources and YouTube. I think it's too overwhelming and paralyzing to start with all these guidelines and techniques. But now you will be ready for some deliberate practice (*´▽`*)

I remember enjoying the craft book Sol Stein's On Writing. There was a lot of good information in a single book. Over the years, I pretty much read every single book on writing that was available at my local library.

Here are my two favourite YouTube Channels for writing: Alexa Donne and Abbie Emmons. Alexa Donne has a video on Book Writing 101 and a playlist for Writing Basics. Abbie also has a playlist New Writers: Start Here.

I like these websites for writing:

https://www.savannahgilbo.com/blog

http://www.publishingcrawl.com/resources/

https://blog.reedsy.com/category/perfecting-your-craft/

If you have a tumblr, there are so many writing blogs you can follow, too!

Hope that helps >.< Happy writing!

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