Ideas oftentimes come on a whim, and we agree that it’s important to sometimes just take the time to sit down and start writing. The thoughts will definitely come as you go.
5 Writing Advice from Internet Strangers
Written By: AJ Bajo
April 22, 2021
The internet’s significance to our everyday lives has definitely spiked over the last year, what with limitations on outdoor interactions. And other than entertaining, few-second-long cat videos, we’ve all definitely come across nuggets of wisdom from internet strangers. In this list, we’ve compiled some writing advice from fellow writers on Reddit.
Find peace in failure.
“Every draft but the final draft is something that will be improved. And that final draft will be far from perfect. And the movie will be far from perfect. The process must be its own reward.”
Writing for film or TV is a continuous creative process because of the sheer number of people that will be involved, and we could not agree more with this advice. There will be many instances when the end product will be different from our initial ideas–it’s just part of the refining process.
Work daily on your craft.
“None of this works if you’re a poor writer. No amount of marketing will get people to buy your books, and if you do they’ll hate them. Become a great writer.”
Writers also have to market their work, and it can be quite hectic to juggle the different hats we wear. But at the end of the day, our core focus should still be on the material itself.
Managing your time.
“Set aside the hour or two and don’t do anything but write or gaze off into space while you think about writing. No distractions. Every single day until you finish.”
Ideas oftentimes come on a whim, and we agree that it’s important to sometimes just take the time to sit down and start writing. The thoughts will definitely come as you go.
Find something that works for you.
“Get up earlier. It’s painful at first, but then you’ll be tired earlier and sleep harder, and it gets easier.”
Relatedly, our journey as writers doesn’t necessarily have to be identical. Finding something that works for us can also be applied in the paths we choose, of course. Do we want to write for mainstream TV and film? Chase success? What does success even mean to us? No matter how we see it, there’s comfort in knowing that success is something that we can have our own definition of.
Instead of going directly to writing, you focus on outlining/planning first.
“After you have a nice outline, then start the actual writing. Outlining is easy and worry-free. If you keep writing and veering off into something else, it sounds like you haven’t got a good plan.”
If simply sitting down to write doesn’t work, consider this as another way to go. For sure, different writers have different creative writing processes. But mapping out your ideas is a practical way to make sure you’re still on track with your story. It can also help avoid the infamous writer’s block because you have a structure and a plan to go back to.
What do you think about this advice? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
