writing tips
#1
let yourself be crap
We all want our writing to be good... perfect even (good luck with that). But, the truth is that to be a good writer, you first have to let yourself be bad. All first drafts are crap... or at least have big blobs of crap in amongst the gold (or vice versa). Allowing yourself to write the crap draft is hard if you are a perfectionist like me. But, if you agonise over every word and sentence at the start and edit and re-edit, you'll never finish. And that's what you want... you want to get the story out as quickly as possible and then you can shape it and fine tune it and whittle it until it's a masterpiece. Think of it like this (as good writer friends of mine and I often say to each other), you have to shovel the sand into the sandbox before you can build castles.
#2
make sure you write regularly - inspiration will come
How do we as writers come up with a steady stream of ideas? We're all scared of sitting down, staring at the page, and drawing a blank, right?
Keep a writing schedule and be as disciplined as you can about keeping your writing appointments with yourself. This will help ensure a steady stream of story ideas. As writer, Mario Vargas Llosa, says, "If I started to wait for moments of inspiration, I would never finish a book. Inspiration for me comes from a regular effort.