Your simple writing tips

[TheOtherTeacher]

I sometimes think there isn't enough discussion about writing in this sub-forum.

So... let's change that.

What are your simplest, easiest to implement writing tips?

My first one - use the weather to set the mood.

Main character is in a bad mood? Mention the rain outside.
Main character is happy? Mention the sun coming in through the window.

 

[onehitwanda]

What if your main character loves the rain and has Lupus?

 

[StillStunned]

Nowadays we have a stickied thread for this: A place to discuss the craft of writing: tricks, philosophies, styles

But I agree, we should spend more time discussing the craft.

 

[XerXesXu]

In your first sentence or paragraph, dramatically encapsulate your theme.

 

[lovecraft68]

The 'non sex sex scene"

Something I do for stories that are longer and where the MC's aren't going to hook up for some time. Have the character have a sexual memory/flashback and give it just enough detail to make the reader say "Oh, wow" but it's not a full scene, just a sexy little appetizer, especially if can tie in to something that's going to happen later in the story.

That’s exactly what we did. The show started in a hot tub with me making out with all three while they took my top off and sucked my tits, then them standing around me as I knelt in the tub and sucked on them, turning in a slow circle as I took each one with Barry circling the tub, catching it all. We made our way to bed and the rest of it was a goddamn blur. There were six hands, three tongues and three big hard cocks all over me, and in every damn hole. At that stage of my life there wasn’t much I hadn’t done when it came to sex, including double penetration in threesomes.

But that night I had my first and only airtight gang bang and it was un-fucking believable. They moved around so they all got a chance to get their dick in every hole, and this was after I’d sucked them all off, so it lasted for some time, and I was fine with it. The show ended with me on my back, the room spinning and my face covered in sweat, smeared lipstick, tear streaks of mascara and the cum of three men who had all finished on my face.

 

[NotWise]

In your first sentence or paragraph, dramatically encapsulate your theme.

That's an interesting approach that could produce eye-catching openings. I'm not sure how I'd fit that into my goals, which are very character-oriented. I usually use my opening sentence or paragraph to introduce characters rather than themes.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

My first one - use the weather to set the mood.

Main character is in a bad mood? Mention the rain outside.
Main character is happy? Mention the sun coming in through the window.

I used the quiet morning sun and still air in a different way. Very, very different.

 

[SimonDoom]

1. Learn the basic grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions of standard written English and follow them, unless you have a sound, well thought-out reason not to. Always have a standard guide handy when you write so you can use it to answer questions. I have at least half a dozen within arm's length when I write.
2. Have a clear focus for your story. With an erotic story, I like to have an erotic focus. What is the erotic focus of the story? Have one in mind as you write.
3. Start quickly. Skip explication and background. Jump into a scene right away to get your story going.
4. As early as possible, establish your main character(s). Who are they? What are their main traits, that are important to the story? What is their unfulfilled need, the thing that will drive the story?
5. Focus on verbs. They're the most important parts of speech. Action words. Try to make them interesting without getting too fancy or silly.
6. Make a point as you write of mixing up dialogue, narrative, and internal thought narration.
7. Vary your sentence and paragraph lengths.
8. As you write, actively think about incorporating the senses: what things smell like, sound like, look like, feel like.
9. Don't worry too much about real-world believability. Most readers don't care too much. Focus on verisimilitude instead. This is the APPEARANCE of plausibility. Within the realm of your fantasy world, say a little something to make your character's behavior seem plausible, or kind of plausible. It doesn't matter whether the terms of your world are different from those of the real world. It does matter whether you are somewhat consistent within that world.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

^^^ I'm opposed to a lot of that. A story should be easy to read and comfortable to the reader, like a letter between friends. We're not doing college thesis papers here.

 

[TheLobster]

5. Focus on verbs. They're the most important parts of speech. Action words. Try to make them interesting without getting too fancy or silly.

I like this. I think we could expand it into a hierarchy of importance for all parts of speech.

Verbs on top, like you said.
Noun just below, including pronouns. Who’s doing the action and to whom?
Adjectives a fair distance below.
Adverbs at the bottom. Drop ‘em with extreme prejudice.

(Not that I practice any of that, mind you, but it feels like it’s a nice theory).

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

There used to be a bunch of posts here about how stories had to follow a certain style manual, or they weren't worth posting and should be rejected.

 

[Rob_Royale]

^^^ I'm opposed to a lot of that. A story should be easy to read and comfortable to the reader, like a letter between friends. We're not doing college thesis papers here.

Everything he posted there is designed to do exactly what you described. Plus pull the reader into the story quickly.

 

[NotWise]

^^^ I'm opposed to a lot of that. A story should be easy to read and comfortable to the reader, like a letter between friends. We're not doing college thesis papers here.

And I agree with about all of it.

 

[NotWise]

There used to be a bunch of posts here about how stories had to follow a certain style manual, or they weren't worth posting and should be rejected.

Style manuals are mostly about format and punctuation, and your story will be rejected if you abuse Laurel's accepted style.

 

[filthytrancendence]

Something I'm noticing a lot as I've read a lot of new writer's stuff over in the feedback board:

If you spent zero time thinking about what perspective to use for your story up front, there's a good chance you've made a big and difficult to fix mistake.

But, in order to be able to think about that, you need to understand what the pros/cons of each perspective style is. And in order to do that, it's helpful to use all of them at least once. So I recommend writing a short story in all the perspectives you're less comfortable with, whether that's 1P or 3PO or whatever. I don't want to start another half dozen threads arguing about whether 2P is good or bad, but I don't see any harm in trying it yourself so you can get a feel for the pros/cons.

The simple wording of this tip: Your choice of perspective should be intentional and suit your story. If you don't feel comfortable making the judgment, get out of your comfort zone and try some new ones until you do.

 

[Voboy]

Don't settle for easy verbs.

"Good writing is in the verbs," as one of my favorite teachers once told me, and she was right. Search for more interesting verbs, always, even if they seem kooky.

 

[ronde]

My tips are those I learned on this very forum over twenty years ago.

1. Write what you know or find something that interests you and do enough research that you can write intelligently. This makes the writing a lot easier. If you fake it, a reader who knows the subject will call you out in a comment and probably a low vote if they even vote at all.
2. Write about real people with all the warts, hopes, failures, dreams, and regrets we all have. Give them a personality. That's how you connect with a reader.
3. Use the language that real people of the time period and occupation would use in everyday conversation. A thesaurus is your enemy here. Use those long, fancy words and most readers will think you're trying to show your superiority. They come here to read and enjoy, not to need a dictionary to understand what you're trying to say.
4. Make your characters real, not what you imagine to be "perfect". Few women are truly gorgeous and few men are truly handsome. Most of us are just OK except to a very few people.
5. Do not go into infinite detail about anything, and especially not anatomical dimensions. Sketch instead of painting a picture. Let the reader draw the picture as he or she sees fit. The reader will do a much better job, for their pleasure, than you ever will.
6. Start the story with at least a rough roadmap for where it's going. That way you know where to steer your characters.
7. When you get to the end of the story, stop writing. This sounds pretty obvious, but if you read enough here, you'll find a lot of stories that seem to end, but then start back up with either a different story plot or will have new characters enter the scene.

 

[Nynah]

^^^ I'm opposed to a lot of that. A story should be easy to read and comfortable to the reader, like a letter between friends. We're not doing college thesis papers here.

A lot of what Simon said is designed to create a story that is easy and comfortable to read.

College thesis papers are nothing like original fiction, at least in my experience. They are arguments designed to prove a point, not a narrative designed to tell a story, so this metaphor does not work.

 

[TheLobster]

Search for more interesting verbs, always, even if they seem kooky.

Just don't do it for speech tags. "said" is king; if you feel like you have too much "said", drop some tags entirely.

"Cried", "whispered", "stuttered", "hissed", etc. can work, but must be matched with the tone of dialogue, words being spoken, and the situation the character is in.
"Asked" / "replied" can be used sparingly.

Anything else is suspect. In particular, don't make the mistake of using the accompanying action as the speech tag, which sometimes results from a failure of dialogue punctuation.

"That's great," he smiled.

"That's great." He smiled.

 

[lovecraft68]

Nowadays we have a stickied thread for this: A place to discuss the craft of writing: tricks, philosophies, styles

But I agree, we should spend more time discussing the craft.

People like to repeat themselves.

 

[SimonDoom]

^^^ I'm opposed to a lot of that. A story should be easy to read and comfortable to the reader, like a letter between friends. We're not doing college thesis papers here.

I'm curious: what that I wrote is INCONSISTENT with making a story "easy to read and comfortable to the reader"? I think every single one of the points I made makes a story easier to read and more enjoyable for the reader.

 

[SimonDoom]

Don't settle for easy verbs.

"Good writing is in the verbs," as one of my favorite teachers once told me, and she was right. Search for more interesting verbs, always, even if they seem kooky.

A wise exception to this idea, however, is with the use of dialogue tags. To my way of thinking, there's no better indicator of amateurish writing than an exaggerated attempt to find replacements for "said" and "asked."

"That's the correct path," he expostulated.

"There's the door," she indicated.

"Let me explain how this works," Bob mansplained.

"May I say a word?" Emily interjected.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

1. As many have heard me say in other threads, "Be patient". Don't give up control of your work by rushing parts of it to publication before the entire story is complete.
2. Be consistent. Whether it the names of your characters, the symbols that you use to denote section breaks, the formatting that you use for thoughts versus dialogue, or anything else that occurs more than once. Be consistent.
3. Don't force the erotica. If it doesn't fit the spirit of your tale, leave it out. A well told story here doesn't require sexual content. Don't feel compelled to try and meet someone else's expectations in this regard.

 

[TheLobster]

"That's the correct path," he expostulated.

"There's the door," she indicated.

"Let me explain how this works," Bob mansplained.

"May I say a word?" Emily interjected.

And don't forget the classic:

 

[filthytrancendence]

Ron does seem like he would ejaculate loudly.