The A-B-Cs of Success in Writing - Be Specific

Jack Kerouac once stated, “It ain’t whatcha write, it’s the way atcha write it.” Every person has their own voice, and finding that voice is the key to achieving your goal of writing. When you combine your writing voice with the images you pay attention to, you will see the empowering experience your work can have in the writing world.

Everyone loves specifics. Would you rather read a sentence like, “She went to the mall and bought some groceries for her mom, who was sick.” Or, would you prefer a sentence like, “Her worn shoes shuffled down the black sea of marked tar towards the double doors. She looked down at them with red eyes, thinking about the splash of spit up from her mother just seconds before. Feeling sorry for the one who always nursed her, she knew she had to get back. She picked up her legs and strode inside the store for the lettuce, chicken and broth her mom asked her to pick up.” See how much more detail there is in the second sentence? The details lie within the images – “worn shoes,” “spit up,” “concrete road,” the list is endless! How these images are put together is your voice. There are endless methods to this, too. To know if you are a natural born writer, ask yourself these questions:

Do you have dreams of adventure while you sleep or daydream?
Many natural writers have dreams they can’t get out of their heads that would be good story ideas. They keep thoughts and ideas about characters or stories, and must write them down on anything they find. But it doesn’t stop there! Ideas and dreams are just the foundation of the details. You can flesh those out as you write your story.

Do you find it hard to put a book down? – Reading sets up the pathway to effective writing because you’ve had exposure to different ideas, images and words. Reading lots of different kinds of books helps your writing skills stay fresh.

Do you love projecting the endings to stories? – Many writers can strategize the endings to stories and movies based on the details or clues within the story. They find enjoyment discovering what the ending will be.

What kinds of ideas stick with you? – Writers often are swimming with ideas more often than they are stuck on writing. My advice would be to write them down, keep tabs on the bits and pieces, and try to work them together.

If these pointers don’t resonate with you, and you don’t feel you are a natural born writer, that doesn’t mean writing isn’t for you! Anyone can be a writer. I’ll be honest – aside from grammar – I think I am just an average writer. But with hard work and determination, I know I can do anything, and so can you! If you want to be a writer, take your reading and writing seriously. Sure, it’s a hobby, but if you want to be a true writer with published books, you’ve got to buckle down and get serious with it. Make reading and writing a regular occurrence in your day-to-day life. 

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