Successful Writing Attitudes

Strategy 7: Set realistic expectations and trust your instincts.

Explanation: Be realistic about what you can accomplish; break larger tasks into smaller ones; and trust your own voice, instincts, and interests.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 1: Don’t over explain.

Explanation: Often, less is more. Writers sometimes

over explain to ensure the reader understands their

point. Trust your reader’s intelligence and don’t over

explain. Present ideas clearly, but leave just enough

unsaid that the reader can put ideas together.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: Homer was a reliable, stable child, always keeping

his younger brother Charlie safe and out of trouble.

Correction: When walking home from school, Homer once

stood between Charlie and an angry wild boar. He didn’t

have his gun. The hog mauled Homer for a full minute,

throwing his body in different directions on the ground, until

his three brothers managed to kick it off.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 2: Apply this saying to tackling projects:

“By the yard, life is hard. By the inch, life’s a

cinch.”

Explanation: Break larger tasks into smaller bite-sized

ones. This is common sense, but when people get

caught up in a project, they often forget this.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: “. . . thirty years ago my older brother, who was

ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three months to write, which was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said. ‘Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.’” Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 3: Don’t become attached to words,

phrases, or sentences.

Explanation: If something isn’t doing useful work, cut it.

Often, writers become attached to clever and cute turns

of phrase, but if they are not necessary, be brutal for

the sake of your work’s overall quality.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: The air and sky were hard, steely, and gray

on that December day when I was eight years old. I paraded a red spandex leotard with sequins, red and silver, down the front of the outfit. It had red tassels.

Correction: The sky was hard and gray that December when I was eight years old. I wore a red spandex leotard with silver sequins and red tassels.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 4: Don’t expect to have the last word on

a subject.

Explanation: Think small. Many well-intended writers

feel obligated to cover everything on a topic, but this

simply isn’t possible. Narrow your choice to a corner of

a broader topic and do that corner justice.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: J.D. Salinger doesn’t write about every

teenage angst; he writes about Holden from

Agerstown, Pennsylvania. John Steinbeck doesn’t write

about the Great Depression; he writes about George

Milton and Lennie Small, focusing on their individual

stories during the Depression.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 5: Know your voice.

Explanation: Even if you write various genres and

subjects, keep a certain “you-ness” in everything you

write. Keep your voice in each piece of writing, and

don’t change it to fit each piece, though other elements

may change.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: Be true to your identity, your voice and your

heritage. That doesn’t mean you cannot write different people, cultures, and experiences, but your voice should be uniquely yours. Read diverse, eloquent writers and you’ll get a clear picture that no voice is the same. Shakespeare and Toni Morrison are both celebrated authors, but worlds apart. Give the world the enjoyment of your unique voice.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 6: Write for yourself first.

Explanation: Every writer has a unique identity just as

much as every human. Don’t compare yourself to other

writers, as any form of comparison is not accurate or

productive.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: The only person you can compare yourself

with is yourself. Often, slow starters overtake more

experienced writers because they persist in their craft.

Think of “The Tortoise and The Hare.” Write what is true

to you.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: If your college rival Jane Stewart has five

books published and sixty five articles in major

magazines, that doesn’t mean she is a great writer, and

even if she is, that has nothing to do with your potential

as a writer. It takes nothing from you. Do what is true to

and for you. Persist and celebrate your gifts.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 7: Write what you care about.

Explanation: Write what interests you. Many believe

certain subjects they love are “dumb” as writing pieces,

but if you engage with the topic, so will your reader.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: If you love cats and are engaged in writing a

piece on this subject, your reader is also be more likely

to engage with the writing. Often, your engagement is

what keeps them reading, not the subject, because

interest comes through in the writing. If you are

engaged, they will be too.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 8: Trust your curiosity.

Explanation: If there’s something you want learn or

know more about, it may make a good writing

opportunity. Your enthusiasm comes through in your

writing, and your reader is more likely to engage in the

piece as well.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: While similar to following your interests,

when you find yourself curious about a topic, follow

your instincts and investigate. Those instincts are

usually leading you somewhere. Follow and write what

has energy for you.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 9: Trust yourself. Find the process that

works for you.

Explanation: While all these rules are good practices,

find the process that works for you. Learn the rules,

practice them, and them learn when it is appropriate to

bend or break them.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example 1: Many authors have a daily quota, for example, Arthur

Conan Doyle allegedly wrote 3000 words a day, while Stephen King writes 2000. Perfectionists may write 500, and some writers may not use a quota. What’s important is being productive.

Example 2: Some writers type or scribble madly for hours to produce a torrent of words, while others meticulously construct an outline before writing a word. Try different techniques, find what works for you, and go with it. And--what works for you may vary from one situation to the next.

Successful Writing Attitudes Technique 10: Silence the internal critic early in the

writing process.

Explanation: The internal judge or critic is the number one block to productive writing. So many writers expect perfection, a completed product, or the last word on a first or second draft, but strong writing takes several drafts. The process is messy by nature, and that’s okay.

Successful Writing Attitudes Example: Remember that writing is a process. Write

stream of conscious if you have this problem and just

let the mess be what it is. As the army says, “Embrace

the suck.” Let it be as bad as it wants to be. Early in the

writing process, your job is to generate ideas and

thoughts. Later in the writing process, you can look at

writing with a more critical eye.

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