Do you have any good tips for those who have problems with making a story come together? (I'm talking about finding solutions for problems, reasons for things etc.) also do you have any advice for those who have a decent vocabulary but have difficulty using it properly when writing? are there other ways to make a story less bland and more descriptive?
So there are two main things I’m going to address in your question, which are the main things you asked about, and they are 1.) making your descriptions more vivid and your writing more clever in terms of vocabulary use, and 2.) finding and fixing plot holes/problem solving in your plot. These things have one very important thing in common: they aren’t something you should focus on in the first draft. They’re things you should fix/improve in the second, third, fourth, etc. draft, but definitely not the first.
Fine details are not the point of the first draft. The first draft is where you get all your initial ideas, details, and events out onto paper so you can refine and improve them. The way your ask was written lead me to believe that you are trying to accomplish these things as you’re actually writing, but these aren’t part of the writing process. They’re part of the editing process.
So, let’s go into the two topics we’re going to focus on, here.
Using Vocabulary & Spicing Up Your Writing
This comes in the reading of the first draft after it’s written. Go through and highlight sentences or words or phrases that you think would enhance your writing if they were heavily refined. After that, go back through and try to recreate the imagery in your mind, and take the time to search for a way to write it that executes that image. It’s fairly simple, but it will take a lot of time, and that’s okay.
Here are some other resources that should help with use of vocabulary:
Improving Flow In Writing
Body Types: Words To Describe Bodies and How They Move Around
Words To Describe Someone’s Voice
Here are some resources specific to description:
Setting: How To Describe The Setting In Your Stories
Resources For Describing Physical Things
Resources For Describing Characters
Resources For Describing Emotions
Finding and Fixing Plot holes
A “plot hole” is just another name for a detail you skipped on accident in either the process of plot development or world building. These can be easily fixed, because most plot holes are simply details that you didn’t remember to explain, or didn’t explain at a strategic moment that would support the pacing of the conflict progression.
These details may mean logical reasoning behind decisions characters make, events that occur spontaneously to push forward the plot, or crucial information about the characters or world within your story. It can also be details that prevent the resolution from looking too convenient, even the little ones.
This process should be done after you’ve completed the first draft. This, like fixing vocabulary, takes a lot of time, effort, and attention to detail, but it’s well worth it. It’s also helpful to get help from people who don’t have all the information in their heads, because they can tell you where the larger questions lie in your story and give you suggestions on which details you could include to make your plot more logically sound. I have a whole article on constructive criticism:
Constructive Criticism: How To Give, Receive, and Utilize
Here are some resources that should help with plot holes and world building:
Resources For World building
Resources For Plot Development
Finding & Fixing Plot Holes
Here are some resources specific to editing overall:
Step-By-Step Plan: Editing Your Own Writing
What To Cut Out Of Your Story
Editing & Proofreading Cheat Sheet
Editing: What To Change, Draft By Draft
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