eight random writing tips
--or things that i’ve found work for me. disclaimer: these may not work for you. take these as only suggestions.
don’t let yourself hit backspace. even though you might think what you just wrote is complete trash, it’s still something you wrote. you never know how helpful it might just be - maybe it’ll further your story, maybe it’s some character building tidbit, or maybe it’s just pointless fluff. whatever it is, you can save hitting backspace for editing.
if you can write using background music, write to your favorite movie soundtrack! or, use one of the million bgm music videos on youtube. personally, i like to write to “in love with a ghost,” “biosphere,” or “snail’s house” since they have some really calming songs. that, or the stardew valley ost! it might help you tune out everything going on around you.
try writing in a new place. the feeling of novelty might help refresh your mind. maybe it’s just another place in your room, or another table at the coffee shop you always go to. who knows?
don’t forget to take a break. burnout can creep on you and take as long as a year to get out of. things to do on a break: listen to music, go for a walk, play video game, or literally anything else!
rotate wips! of course, this depends on whether or not you want to have multiple wips. i’ve found that by rotating wips, i’m able to avoid straight burnout and keep writing, although with a different story in mind. it gives me a break from what i was focusing on, but also doesn’t let me forget how to string words together in nice sentences.
set small goals for yourself. whenever i hit a slump, or get burned out, i tell myself i’ll write 100 words and then go play a little bit of a video game or read a book. of course, that means i usually end up writing less than i wanted to, but it’s progress towards the goal of climbing out of the slump. usually, i up the amount of words as i grow more comfortable with writing again. i go from 100 words to 150, to 300, and so on.
talk to someone about your wip! i ramble to some of my friends about it and it helps me figure things out. sometimes, i fix a plot hole. other times, i figure out what to do with a character or where i should go next. they can give you some really great input, or just help you along the way.
you don’t need to actually write out the part that you’re stuck on. use placeholders! every time i feel stuck, usually i just put a [summary of what is supposed to happen, or what features of the scene i know i want to include] before moving on. it tells me that, when i’m editing, that i need to go back and fill this out. it stops me from burning out as quickly, or losing my momentum.
