Today we’re looking at 8 practical ways we can be intentional about improving as writers.
With a new year starting it’s the perfect time to think about how we want to be learning and growing!
We don’t need to tackle all 8 strategies at once! But building some of these practices into our schedules and regular routines can definitely lead to growth as writers. Some of us may have left our formal school years behind us but that doesn’t mean we can’t be improving our craft! There is always more to learn 🙂
8 Ways to Improve as Writers
1. Read Widely and Well
“Read, read, read. Read everything – trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it. Then write. If it’s good, you’ll find out. If it’s not, throw it out of the window.
William Faulkner
We can’t be writers without being readers as well.
We’ll all have our favorite genres we gravitate towards, but we should also stretch ourselves by reading outside of that as well! Read classics, read the bestseller list, read award winners, read what your neighbor is reading. This can expand our view of stories and feed our creative gardens.
Plus it can be fun! 😉
2. Review Your Reading
Taking a bit of time to think about what we’ve been reading can be immensely helpful. We don’t need to write formal book reports but even something as simple as evaluating what we liked or disliked can be valuable!
Were there passages that resonated with us? Were there sections that felt boring or fell flat? What tropes do we love or what plot devises tend to rub us the wrong way?
When we deconstruct our responses to what we read it can teach us a lot about our personal story preferences and help us grow our word wrangling skills.
3. Write Something Every Day
“Just write every day of your life. Read intensely. Then see what happens. Most of my friends who are put on that diet have very pleasant careers.”
Ray Bradbury
It’s maybe one of the most talked about pieces of writing advice: Just get your butt in the chair. Write every day. Etcetera.
Well, maybe it’s one of the most shared pieces of advice because there’s a lot of truth to it!
We’re all going to miss days of writing here or there and all of our schedules are going to look different. But one of the best ways to improve our writing is by actually writing. It’s as simple (and as hard) as that.
4. Try New Things
“The hallmark of successful people is that they are always stretching themselves to learn new things.”
Carol S. Dweck
Trying new things both broadens our horizons creatively and keeps us flexible with our thinking.
This could look like some creative play in a new medium or finding some writing prompts that take us out of our comfort zone. These activities keep us from falling into writing ruts and can help us flex our creative muscles in new ways!
5. Organized Instruction
Participating in a class or a workshop can be a great way to improve ourselves as writers!
Along with the instruction we receive, the accountability and structure of a class can also provide added support for our growth. Even with topics we’re familiar with, there is always more to learn!
If you have local, in-person options available- don’t be afraid to take them! It can seem daunting but it may be a valuable opportunity.
And thankfully there are lots of great and free resources available online which can be nice for our schedules and for our budgets! A few places to check out are Reedsy and DIY MFA.
6. Have Support and Accountability
Writing is often a solo activity, but it doesn’t have to be!
Having other writers and supportive people in our lives can be a game changer in terms of motivation to stay on track with our work. We may already have some fellow creative people in our lives, but do we often talk about our work? Do we check in on one another? Having regular check ins (whatever form that may take!) can be hugely helpful.
There are also great online ways to do this as well! Habitica and Write Every Day are two online tools for keeping track of our work and staying accountable. There can be a great community of people through Nanowrimo as well, even during the “off” season!
Being intentional about finding support and accountability around us can lead us to build strong writing habits in our lives and keep us from giving up when discouraged.
7. Get Feedback
We can revise our own work all day long but getting feedback from others provides valuable insights we can’t get on our own. Getting feedback can be a tricky thing- we need to find people who can give helpful critiques while ideally also being encouraging. And of course none of us LIKE being critiqued, it can be an uncomfortable feeling all around.
But this is how we grow. This is how our writing gets better.
Read here for further thoughts on finding beta readers and what questions to ask them.
As a bonus: Giving feedback to others can also be a great way to improve as a writer as well! Critically reading someone else’s work and giving feedback can be a great exercise.
8. Identify Dreams
Maybe this should have been first on the list, but I’ve talked about goals recently and didn’t want to bore you 😉
But knowing our own motivation for writing, our own goals and dreams, can be one of the most valuable tools for improving our craft. Why we write will shape how we write.
What habits and routines fit into our goals? What direction do we want to focus on? What distractions do we need to let fall away?
We don’t have enough time in our lives to do *everything* all the time, as much as we may try! Identifying our priorities will help us to hone in on what is important so that we can improve and grow.
There are countless ways to learn and grow and everyone’s path looks different! No matter where you’re at today, I hope you are able to find good ways to be building good creative habits for the year ahead.
Happy writing!
