how to be better at creative writing

Tip 7: Practice Overcoming Writer’s Block

At some point in their writing journey, every writer has reached a point where writing doesn’t feel fun anymore.

There are lots of different causes for writer’s block. You might be unsure what to write, afraid of failing, or simply burned out from writing too much.

It’s important to find ways to overcome creative blocks, so you don’t end up putting down your pen for good.

One useful technique is to change your environment. If you normally write at home, try writing in a coffee shop or in your local library.

Another technique is to try a different activity for a while. Go for a walk, take a shower, do your dishes, or try another hobby. Before long, you’ll find yourself wanting to write again.

Perhaps the most underrated method is to simply take a break from writing. Give yourself permission to stop for a while—it’s always okay to take a step back.

Tip 8: Study Writing Craft

Many new writers falsely believe that writing can’t be taught; you’re either good at it or you’re not.

But the truth is that creative writing is a craft, just like woodworking, oil painting, or ballet. You wouldn’t expect anyone to be naturally good at ballet without years of training, so why is writing any different?

One way to learn new creative writing techniques is by reading craft books . Some great books to start with include On Writing by Stephen King, Story Genius by Lisa Cron, and The Creative Writer’s Handbook by Philip K. Jason.

These books can help you learn the basics of how to write well. For example, you can learn how to construct high-quality sentences, how to avoid passive voice, and how to use poetic devices.

The more you learn, the more powerful your writing will become.

Tip 9: Invent Your Own Process

When you’re just starting out as a writer, it can be tempting to copy someone else’s writing process.

Maybe you heard an interview with a bestselling author who said you have to outline a story before you draft it. Or maybe you found out your favorite author writes 1,000 words every day, and now you think you have to write 1,000 words every day too.

But it’s important to remember that no two writers have the exact same writing process. What works best for someone else might not work for you.

There’s no right or wrong way to be a creative writer. Your job is to find a writing process that makes you feel fulfilled, productive, and inspired—and if your favorite writers don’t write the same way, that’s perfectly okay.

Tip 10: Don’t Aim for Perfection

There’s a good chance your writing is never going to be perfect. Mine definitely isn’t!

Remember that writing is about the process, not the product. Even if the final product is never perfect, the process has helped you grow as a writer—and hopefully, it’s also been a lot of fun.

You should decide what your main goal for writing is. Maybe it’s writing stories you might be able to publish someday. Maybe it’s telling stories about characters you rarely see in existing stories. Maybe it’s simply a fun new hobby.

Whatever your goal is, remember that you’re already on your way to achieving it. You don’t need to aim for perfection in order to succeed.

There’s no secret to getting better at creative writing. The process is very simple—it just takes a lot of hard work.

All you have to do is follow this two-step process:

• Step 1: Write consistently
• Step 2: Ask for feedback on your writing

The first step is fairly self-explanatory. Whenever you’re learning a new skill, it’s important to practice it. The more you write, the more you’ll learn about how to be a successful creative writer.

The second step is the one that receives more pushback from writers because it requires a lot of courage and vulnerability, but it’s just as important as the first step.

If you don’t get feedback, you could write every day and still never improve. That’s because most people can’t spot the weaknesses in their own stories.

You can ask for feedback from your friends, family, or writing groups. They can help you see your work from a different perspective and identify areas for improvement.

As long as you write consistently and listen to the feedback on the work you’re producing, you’ll be able to create a positive cycle where you create better and better stories over time.

If you want to improve your creative writing skills, there are numerous resources you can use to find help.

One great method is to join a writing community where you can share your work and get feedback from other writers.

You can look for free critique groups online, on websites such as Scribophile and Critique Circle. Or you can start your own group with your friends.

You can also consider joining a local writing class or retreat. Many schools and community centers offer classes and workshops you can join.

Another option is to use creative writing tools. ProWritingAid can give you AI-powered suggestions about how to improve your prose and make your writing shine.

Good luck, and happy writing!

Be confident about grammar

Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.

Hannah Yang

Hannah Yang is a speculative fiction writer who writes about all things strange and surreal. Her work has appeared in Analog Science Fiction, Apex Magazine, The Dark, and elsewhere, and two of her stories have been finalists for the Locus Award. Her favorite hobbies include watercolor painting, playing guitar, and rock climbing. You can follow her work on hannahyang.com, or subscribe to her newsletter for publication updates.

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Top 10 Best Creative writing tips for beginners

• by Domestika @domestika

Starting out in creative writing can be a daunting task, with many writers struggling to know where to begin and how to improve their skills. However, there are plenty of exercises that can help you develop your writing abilities and bring your ideas to life on the page. With practice and persistence, you can turn your thoughts and imagination into beautiful works of art through creative writing.

These tips will help you to become a much better creative writer:

- Find the Best Environment: Everyone has different writing preferences, whether it's a quiet coffee shop or a busy park. Experiment with different writing environments to find what works best for you.

- Freewriting: Set a timer for a few minutes and write whatever comes to mind without worrying about structure or grammar. This can help you get past writer's block and generate new ideas.

- Know Your Characters: Spend time getting to know your characters before you start writing. Develop their backstories, motivations, and personalities to create fully-formed characters that readers can connect with.

- Don't be Scared of Drafting: Remember that writing a first draft is just the beginning. Don't be afraid to make mistakes or write imperfectly. You can always revise and improve later.

- Keep a Writing Log: Keep a notebook or digital log of your writing ideas, snippets of dialogue, or interesting observations. This can help you capture ideas as they come and have a resource to refer back to when you need inspiration.

- Never Stop Reading: Reading widely is essential for improving your writing skills. Read a variety of genres and styles to see how other writers use language and structure their stories.

- Explore Your Emotions: Writing can be a powerful way to explore your emotions and experiences. Don't be afraid to write honestly and vulnerably, even if it's just for yourself.

- Get Perspective: Take breaks from your writing to get perspective. This can help you see your writing with fresh eyes and come up with new ideas.

- Research!: Research can add depth and authenticity to your writing. Spend time researching your setting, characters, and topics to make your writing more believable.

- Explore Ideas: Don't be afraid to experiment with different ideas and concepts. Even if you don't end up using them in your writing, exploring different ideas can help you find your unique writing voice and style.

Here are some concrete exercises that can help you improve your creative writing :

Describe a scene: Choose a scene or setting and describe it in detail, using all of your senses. Try to create a vivid picture in the reader's mind, using specific details and descriptive language.

Write from a different perspective: Take a story or event and write it from a different character's perspective. This can help you develop your ability to write in different voices and points of view.

Create a character: Think of a character and write a short story or scene that features that character. Try to give the character a unique personality, backstory, and motivations.

Rewrite a story: Take a classic story or fairy tale and rewrite it in a different style or genre. This can help you develop your ability to write in different genres and experiment with different storytelling techniques.

Use writing prompts: Writing prompts can be a great way to generate ideas and practice your writing skills. Choose a writing prompt or use a writing prompt generator to come up with new ideas for stories or scenes.

Practice writing dialogue: Dialogue is an important part of creative writing. Practice writing dialogue between characters, focusing on making it sound natural and believable.

Write a story in six words: This exercise challenges you to write a complete story using only six words. It can help you develop your ability to write concisely and effectively.

By practicing these exercises regularly, you can improve your creative writing skills and develop your unique voice as a writer. Remember to be patient with yourself and enjoy the process of learning and growing as a writer.

And last but not least, here are ten quotes from famous writers about creative writing:

"The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself." - Albert Camus

"You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children." - Madeleine L'Engle

"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you." - Maya Angelou

"One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple." - Jack Kerouac

"The scariest moment is always just before you start." - Stephen King

"If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." - Toni Morrison

"You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have." - Maya Angelou

"Writing is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words." - Mark Twain

"If there's no passion in your writing, then it's not worth writing at all." - Jules Renard

"A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people." - Thomas Mann

Enjoy this incredible list of courses which help you to go to the next level in your creative writing:

- Writing a Novel Step by Step - Introduction to Narrative Writing - Creative Writing for Beginners: Bringing Your Story to Life - Narrative Techniques for Children’s Books - Script Writing for Movies and Television

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• Follow Domestika

The best writing exercises bring out our latent creativity. Especially if you ever feel stuck or blocked, making creative writing exercises part of your daily writing practice can be a great way to both hone your skills and explore new frontiers in your writing. Whether you’re a poet, essayist, storyteller, or genre-bending author, these free writing exercises will jumpstart your creative juices and improve your writing abilities.

24 of the Best Free Writing Exercises to Try Out Today

The best creative writing exercises will push you out of your comfort zone and get you to experiment with words. Language is your sandbox, so let’s build some sand castles with these exercises and writing prompts.

Write With Limitations

The English language is huge, complicated, and — quite frankly — chaotic. Writing with self-imposed limitations can help you create novel and inventive pieces.

What does “limitations” mean in this context? Basically, force yourself not to use certain words, descriptions, or figures of speech. Some writing exercises using limitations include the following:

• Write without using adverbs or adjectives.
• Write without using the passive voice – no “being verbs” whatsoever. (Also called “E-Prime” writing.)
• Write a story without using a common letter –  just like Ernest Vincent Wright did .
• Write a poem where each line has six words.
• Write without using any pronouns.

Among exercises to improve writing skills, writing with limitations has the clearest benefits. This practice challenges your brain to think about language productively. Additionally, these limitations force you to use unconventional language – which, in turn, makes you write with lucidity, avidity, and invention.

Freewriting & Stream of Consciousness

What do you do when the words just don’t come out? How can you write better if you can’t seem to write at all? One of the best poetry exercises, as well as writing exercises in general, is to start your day by freewriting.

Freewriting, also known as “stream of consciousness writing,” involves writing your thoughts down the moment they come. There’s no filtering what you write, and no controlling what you think: topicality, style, and continuity are wholly unnecessary in the freewriting process. While the idea of freewriting seems easy, it’s much harder than you think – examining your thoughts without controlling them takes a while to master, and the impulse to control what you write isn’t easy to tame. Try these exercises to master the skill:

• Do a timed freewrite. Start with five minutes.
• Freewrite until you fill up the entirety of something – an envelope, a receipt, a postcard, etc.
• Freewrite after meditating.
• Freewrite off of the first word of today’s newspaper.

Among daily writing exercises, freewriting is one of the best writing exercises. Poets can use freewritten material as inspiration for their poetry. Prose writers can also find inspiration for future stories from the depths of their consciousnesses. Start your writing day with freewriting, and watch your creativity blossom.

Copy What You Read

Plagiarism is still off the table; however, you can learn a lot by paying attention to how other people write. This is what we call “reading like a writer.”

Reading like a writer means paying attention to the craft elements that make an excellent piece of literature work. Good writing requires different writing styles, figurative language, story structures, and/or poetry forms, as well as key word choice.

When you notice these craft elements, you can go ahead and emulate them in your own work. As a fiction writer , you might be drawn to the way Haruki Murakami weaves folklore into his stories, and decide to write a story like that yourself. Or, as a poet, you might be inspired by Terrance Hayes’ Golden Shovel form — enough so that you write a Golden Shovel yourself.

• Read a favorite poem, and write your own poem in the same poetic form.
• Blackout poetry: take another poem, cross out words you don’t want to use, circle words you do, and write a poem based on the circled words.
• Copy a single sentence from a favorite novel, and write a short-short story with it.

Among free writing exercises, this is a great way to learn from the best. The best kinds of exercises to improve writing skills involve building upon the current canon of works — as Isaac Newton said, you achieve something great by “standing on the shoulders of giants.”

Write From Different Perspectives

The conventional advice given to writers is to “write what you know.” We couldn’t disagree with that statement more. The best creative works force both the writer and the reader to consider new perspectives and learn something new; writing from a new point-of-view makes for a great exercise in expanding your creative limits.

Try these ideas as daily writing exercises:

• Write a story with the same plot, but with two or more perspectives. For example, you could write a lover’s quarrel from two different view points.
• Write from the point-of-view of a famous historical figure.
• Write a story or poem from the perspective of an object: a statue, a doll, a roomba, etc.
• Write from the perspective of a person you dislike.

While playing with perspective makes for a great fiction writing exercise , poets and essayists can do this too. Patricia Smith’s poem “Skinhead,” for example, is a persona piece written from the perspective of a white nationalist, but the poem clearly condemns the speaker’s beliefs.

Thus, perspective writing also works as a poetry exercise and an essay writing practice exercise . If you’re stuck in your own head, try writing in someone else’s!

Write Metaphor Lists

All creative writers need figurative language. While metaphors, similes, and synecdoches are more prominent in poetry , prose writers need the power of metaphor to truly engross their reader. Among both exercises to improve writing skills and fun writing exercises for adults, writing metaphor lists is one of the best writing exercises out there.

A metaphor list is simple. On a notebook, create two columns. In one column, write down only concrete nouns. Things like a pillow, a tree, a cat, a cloud, and anything that can be perceived with one of the five senses.

In the other list, write down only abstract ideas. Things like love, hate, war, peace, justice, closure, and reconciliation — anything that is conceptual and cannot be directly perceived.

Now, choose a random noun and a random concept, and create a metaphor or simile with them. Delve into the metaphor and explain the comparison. For example, you might say “Love is like a pillow — it can comfort, or it can smother.”

Once you’ve mastered the metaphor list, you can try the following ideas to challenge yourself:

• Create a coherent poem out of your metaphor list.
• Turn your metaphor list into a short story.
• Try making lists with a different figurative language device, such as personification, pathetic fallacy, or metonymy.

Any free creative writing exercise that focuses on figurative language can aid your writing immensely, as it helps writers add insight and emotionality to their work. This is an especially great creative writing exercise for beginners as they learn the elements of style and language.

Daily Journaling

Of course, the best way to improve your creative writing skills is simply to write every day. Keeping a daily journal is a great way to exercise your writing mind. By sitting down with your personal observations and writing without an agenda or audience, a daily writing practice  remains one of the best writing exercises , regardless of your genre or level of expertise.

Consider these ideas for your daily journal:

• Track your mood and emotions throughout the day. Write those emotions in metaphor — avoid commonplace adjectives and nouns.
• Write about your day from the second- or third-person.
• Journal your day in verse. Use stanzas, line breaks, and figurative language.
• Write about your day backwards.
• Write about your day using Freytag’s pyramid . Build up to a meaningful climax, even if nothing significant seemed to happen today.

Learn more about keeping a journal here:

How to Start Journaling: Practical Advice on How to Journal Daily

Writing Exercises: Have Fun with Them!

Many of these writing exercises might feel challenging at first—and that’s a good thing! You will unlock new ideas and writing strengths by struggling through these creative challenges. The main point is to have fun with them and use them to explore within your writing, without indulging too many monologues from your inner critic.

Are you looking for more exercises to improve your writing skills? Our instructors can offer prompts, illuminating lectures, one-to-one feedback, and more to help you improve your craft. Check out our upcoming creative writing courses , and let’s put these skills to practice.

Sean Glatch

Thank you for this. I’ve been stuck for months—more than that, actually, and you’d think that a pandemic stay-at-home would be the perfect time to do some writing. But no. I’m as stuck as ever. In fact, the only time I seem able to write consistently and well is when I’m taking one of your classes! I’m still saving my pennies, but these exercises will hopefully get me writing in the meantime. Thanks again!

Hi Kathy, I’m glad to hear some of these tips might spark your creativity 🙂 I feel the same way, I was hoping the stay-at-home order might spark some creativity, but we shouldn’t push ourselves too hard – especially in the midst of a crisis.

The best part about writing: all you have to do is try, and you’ve already succeeded. Good luck on your writing endeavors!

Bravo….!What a great piece! Honestly I learnt a lot here!

I picked interest in poetry just a week ago after reading a beautiful piece which captivated my mind into the world of writing. I’d love to write great poems but I don’t know anything about poetry, I need a coach, a motivator and an inspiration to be able to do this. This piece really helped me but I will appreciate some more tips and help from you or anyone else willing to help, I am really fervid about this.

Hi Anthony,

Thanks for your comment! I’m so excited for you to start your journey with poetry. We have more advice for poetry writing at the articles under this link: https://writers.com/category/poetry

Additionally, you might be interested in two of our upcoming poetry courses: Poetry Workshop and How to Craft a Poem .

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at [email protected] . Many thanks, and happy writing!

[…] 24 Best Writing Exercises to Become a Better Writer | writers.com  […]

Hi, kinsey there. Thanks for giving information. it is a very informative blog and i appreciate your effort to write a blog I am also a writer and i like these type of blogs everyone takes more knowledge to check out my essay writing website

As a writer, I often struggle to break free from the chains of writer’s block, but this blog has gifted me with a map of inspiration to navigate through those creative storms. It’s like being handed a box of enchanted writing exercises

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100 Writing Practice Lessons & Exercises

by Joe Bunting | 50 comments

Want to become a better writer? How much time do you spend on your writing practice? Perhaps you want to write novels, or maybe you just want to get better grades in your essay writing assignments , or maybe you'd like to start a popular blog .

If you want to write better, you need practice. But what does a writing practice actually look like? In this post, I'm going to give you everything you need to kick off your writing practice and become a better writer faster.

What Is Writing Practice?

Writing practice is a method of becoming a better writer that usually involves reading lessons about the writing process, using writing prompts, doing creative writing exercises , or finishing writing pieces, like essays, short stories , novels , or books . The best writing practice is deliberate, timed, and involves feedback.

How Do You Practice Writing?

This was the question I had when I first started The Write Practice in 2011. I knew how to practice a sport and how to practice playing an instrument. But for some reason, even after studying it in college, I wasn't sure how to practice writing.

I set out to create the best writing practice I could. The Write Practice is the result.

I found that the best writing practice has three aspects:

Deliberate . Writing whatever you feel like may be cathartic, but it's not an effective way to become a better writer or build your writing skills. You'll get better faster by practicing a specific technique or aspect of the writing process each time you sit down to write.

This is why we have a new lesson about the writing process each day on The Write Practice, followed by a practice prompt at the end so you can put what you learned to use immediately.

Timed . It's no secret writers struggle with focus. There are just too many interesting distractions—Facebook, email, Kim Kardashian's Instagram feed (just kidding about that last one, sort of)—and writing is just too hard sometimes.

Setting a timer, even for just fifteen minutes, is an easy and effective way to stay focused on what's important.

This is why in our writing practice prompt at the end of each post we have a time limit, usually with a link to an online tool egg timer , so you can focus on deliberate practice without getting distracted.

Feedback . Getting feedback is one of the requirements to deliberately practice writing or any other craft. Feedback can look like listening to the reactions of your readers or asking for constructive criticism from editors and other writers.

This is why we ask you to post your writing practice after each lesson, so that you can get feedback from other writers in The Write Practice community. It's also why we set up The Write Practice Pro community , to provide critique groups for writers to get feedback on each finished piece of writing.

Our 100+ Best Creative Writing Practice Exercises and Lessons

Now that you know how we practice writing at The Write Practice, here are our best writing practice lessons to jumpstart your writing skills with some daily writing exercises, for beginner writers to even the most expert writers:

All-Time, Top 10 Writing Lessons and Exercises

These ten posts are our most viewed articles to boost your writing practice:

1. What is Plot? The 6 Elements of Plot and How to Use Them . Great stories use similar elements in wildly different ways to build page-turning stories. Click here to read what they are and learn how to start using them !

2. Top 100 Short Story Ideas . Here are over a hundred writing prompts in a variety of genres. If you need ideas for your next story, check this out!

3. How To Use Neither, Nor, Or, and Nor Correctly . Even good writers struggle figuring out when to use neither/nor and either/or. In this post, our copy-queen Liz Bureman settles the confusion once and for all. Click to continue to the writing exercise

4. Ten Secrets To Write Better Stories . How does Pixar manage to create such great stories, year after year? And how do you write a good story? In this post, I distill everything I've learned about how to write a good story into ten tips. Click to continue to the writing exercise

5. 35 Questions To Ask Your Characters From Marcel Proust . To get to know my characters better, I use a list of questions known as the Proust Questionnaire, made famous by French author, Marcel Proust. Click to continue to the writing exercise

6. How a Scene List Can Change Your Novel-Writing Life . Creating a scene list changed my novel-writing life, and doing the same will change yours too. Includes examples of the scene lists from famous authors. Click to continue to the writing exercise

7. Why You Need to be Using the Oxford Comma . Most people I've met have no idea what the Oxford comma is, but it's probably something that you have used frequently in your writing. Click to continue to the writing exercise

8. Six Surprising Ways to Write Better Interview Questions.  The interview is the most-used tool in a journalist's bag. But that doesn't mean novelists, bloggers, and even students can't and don't interview people. Here's how to conduct a great interview. Click to continue to the writing exercise

9. Why You Should Try Writing in Second Person . You've probably used first person and third person point-of-view already. But what about second person? This post explains three reasons why you should try writing from this point-of-view. Click to continue to the writing exercise

10. The Secret to Show, Don't Tell . You've heard the classic writing rule, “Show. Don't Tell.” Every writing blog ever has talked about it, and for good reason. Showing, for some reason, is really difficult. Click to continue to the writing exercise.

12 Exercises and Lessons To Become a Better Writer

How do you become a better writer? These posts share our best advice:

• Want to Be a Better Writer? Cut These 7 Words
• What I Mean When I Say I Am A Writer
• How to Become a Writer: 3 Simple Steps
• 72% of Writers Struggle With THIS
• 7 Lies About Becoming a Writer That You Probably Believe
• 10 Questions to Find Your Unique Writing Voice
• The Best Writing Book I’ve Ever Read
• The Best Way to Become a Better Writer
• The Creative Writer’s Toolkit: 6 Tools You Can’t Write Without
• Should You Write More or Write Better: Quantity vs Quality
• How to Become a Better Writer in One, Simple Step
• 11 Writing Tips That Will Change Your Life

6 Lessons and Exercises from Great Writers

If you want to be a writer, learn from the great writers who have gone before you:

• 23 Essential Quotes from Ernest Hemingway About Writing
• 29 Quotes that Explain How to Become a Better Writer
• 10 Lessons Dr. Seuss Can Teach Writers
• 10 Writing Tips from Ursula Le Guin
• Once Upon a Time: Pixar Prompt
• All the Pretty Words: Writing In the Style of Cormac McCarthy

12 Genre and Format Specific Writing Lessons and Exercises

Here are our best writing lessons for specific types of writing, including essays, screenplays, memoir, short stories, children's books, and humor writing:

• Writing an Essay? Here Are 10 Effective Tips
• How To Write a Screenplay: The 5 Step Process
• How to Write a Great Memoir: a Complete Guide
• How to Write a Short Story from Start to Finish
• How to Write a Thriller Novel
• How to Write a Children's Book
• How to Write a Love Story
• How to Write a Coming of Age Story or Book
• How to Write an Adventure Book
• 5 Key Elements for Successful Short Stories
• 4 Tips to Write a Novel That Will Be Adapted Into a Movie
• Humor Writing for People Who Aren’t Funny

14 Characterization Lessons and Exercises

Good characters are the foundation of good fiction. Here are our best lessons to create better characters:

• Character Development: How to Create Characters Audiences Will Love
• Writing Villains: 9 Evil Examples of the Villain Archetype
• How NOT to Introduce a New Character
• The Strongest Form of Characterization
• The Most Important Character Archetype
• How Do You Build A Strong Character In Your Writing?
• 75+ Antihero Examples and How to Use Them
• How to Explore Your Characters’ Motivations
• 8 Tips for Naming Characters
• The Protagonist: How to Center Your Story
• Heroes vs. Anti-Heroes: Which Is Right For Your Story?
• The Weakest Form of Characterization
• How to Write With an Accent
• How To Create a Character Sketch Using Scrivener

15 Grammar Lessons and Exercises

I talk to so many writers, some of whom are published authors, who struggle with grammar. Here are our best writing lessons on grammar:

• Is It Okay To End A Sentence With A Preposition?
• Contractions List: When To Use and When To Avoid
• Good vs. Well
• Connotation vs. Denotation
• Per Se vs. Per Say
• When You SHOULD Use Passive Voice
• When Do You Use “Quotation Marks”
• Polysyndeton and Asyndeton: Definition and Examples
• The Case Against Twilight
• Affect Versus Effect
• Stop Saying “Literally”
• What Is a Comma Splice? And Why Do Editors Hate Them?
• Intra vs. Inter: Why No One Plays Intermural Sports
• Alright and Alot: Words That Are Not Words
• The Poor, Misunderstood Semicolon

5 Journalism Lessons and Exercises

Want to be a journalist? Or even use techniques from journalism to improve your novel, essay, or screenplay? Here are our best writing lessons on journalism:

• Six Ways to Ask Better Questions In Interviews
• How to Conduct an Author Interview
• Interview In Person or Via Email?  
• What If They Don’t Want to Talk to You?
• Eleven Habits of a Highly Effective Interviewers

16 Plot and Structure Lessons and Exercises

Want to write a good story? Our top plot and structure lessons will help:

• The Nine Types of Story and How to Master Them
• Points of a Story: 6 Plot Points Every Story Needs
• How to Shape a Story: The 6 Arcs
• 7 Keys To Write the Perfect First Line of a Novel
• The Secret to Creating Conflict
• 4 Tips to Avoid Having Your Short Story Rejected by a Literary Magazine
• 7 Steps to Creating Suspense
• 5 Elements of Storytelling
• 3 Important Rules for Writing Endings
• A Writer’s Cheatsheet to Plot and Structure
• Overcoming the Monster
• How to Satisfy Your Reader With a Great Ending
• Pow! Boom! Ka-Pow! 5 Tips to Write Fight Scenes
• The Dramatic Question and Suspense in Fiction
• How to Write a Memorable Beginning and Ending
• How to Write the Perfect First Page

6 Lessons and Exercises to Beat Writer's Block

Writer's block is real, and it can completely derail your writing. Here are six lessons to get writing again:

• How To Write Whether You Feel Like it Or Not
• This Fun Creative Writing Exercise Will Change Your Life
• When You Should Be Writing But Can't…
• What to do When Your Word Count is Too Low
• 7 Tricks to Write More with Less Willpower
• When You Don’t Know What to Write, Write About Your Insecurities

7 Literary Technique Lessons and Exercises

These writing and storytelling techniques will teach you a few tricks of the trade you may not have discovered before:

• 3 Tips to “Show, Don’t Tell” Emotions and Moods
• 3 Reasons to Write Stream of Consciousness Narrative
• 16 Observations About Real Dialogue
• Intertextuality As A Literary Device
• Why You Should Use Symbolism In Your Writing
• 6 Ways to Evoke Emotion in Poetry and Prose
• 3 Tips To Write Modern Allegorical Novels
• Symbol vs. Motif: What’s the Difference

3 Inspirational Writing Lessons and Exercises

Need some inspiration? Here are three of our most inspiring posts:

• Why We Write: Four Reasons
• You Must Remember Every Scar
• 17 Reasons to Write Something NOW

3 Publishing Blogging Lessons and Exercises

If you want to get published, these three lessons will help:

• The Secret to Writing On Your Blog Every Day
• How to Publish Your Book and Sell Your First 1,000 Copies
• How to Submit a Short Story for Publication

11 Writing Prompts

Need inspiration or just a kick in the pants to write. Try one of our top writing prompts :

• Grandfathers [writing prompt]
• Out of Place [writing prompt]
• Sleepless [writing prompt]
• Longing [writing prompt]
• Write About Yourself [writing prompt]
• 3 Reasons You Should Write Ghost Stories
• Road Trip [writing prompt]
• Morning [writing prompt]
• The Beach [writing prompt]
• Fall Writing Prompts
• How to Use Six-Word Stories As Writing Prompts

Is It Time To Begin Your Writing Practice?

It's clear that if you want to become a writer, you need to practice writing. We've created a proven process to practice your writing at The Write Practice, but even if you don't join our community, I hope you'll start practicing in some way today.

Personally, I waited  far  too long to start practicing and it set my writing back years.

How about you? Do you think practicing writing is important?  Let me know in the comments section .

Choose one of the writing practice posts above. Then, read the lesson and participate in the writing exercise, posting your work in the Pro Practice Workshop . And if you post, please give feedback to your fellow writers who also posted their practices.

Have fun and happy practicing!

Joe Bunting

Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris , a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).

Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.

Work with Joe Bunting?

WSJ Bestselling author, founder of The Write Practice, and book coach with 14+ years experience. Joe Bunting specializes in working with Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, How To, Literary Fiction, Memoir, Mystery, Nonfiction, Science Fiction, and Self Help books. Sound like a good fit for you?

50 Comments

You have THE BEST content for writing on this blog!!

Thank you, Kristen. This made my morning. 🙂

Thanks Mitch. 🙂

I can’t remember when I started following this website. I have to look in my notebooks because that’s where I did these practices. I didn’t have access to a computer when I did them, so I wrote them out, setting the time limit. But even when I do get to a computer, I have my reservations about putting my practices on the page. even though it’s practice, I want them to be the best, almost perfect. But I know it won’t be. I’ve gotten feedback before that says so. It still gets to me that I didn’t put something together that not everyone liked. I need to get over it. After all, that is what these practices are about: to learn and improve on our craft.

I don’t know either, George, but it’s been several years. Perfectionism is something so many of us face, and it’s made worse when you don’t have a critique community as warm and encouraging as ours is. I hope you and everyone here are always willing to try something new, even if it comes out a little messed up, because you know we’ll support you and try to make you better.

What a great share! Thanks so much!

You’re so welcome, Elizabeth. Thank you for commenting.

when I ran writing classes I wrote. when I am “a member of writing classes” the teacher/leader/facilitator is NOT MY AUDIENCE and so I don’t write as well/as much. I don’t get the feedback I need from fellow students because most of them have never run their own writing projects/workshops. So many people expect you to write their story for them. I’ve actually got quite a few stories of me own. I have finally decided I like owning them. 😉

It sounds like you need a new critique group, Patience! Hope you can find a place where you get the feedback you need.

Wow! Terrific round-up of resources. 🙂

Thanks Stephanie. 🙂

Practice is necessary, period. It doesn’t matter what you want to learn. If you want to improve, practice is vital.

It’s odd. I’ve known and applied that principle for years on a variety of things. Painting. Drawing. Blogging. Gardening. Laundry.

But never writing.

Like you, I had the notion that just writing every day was all it took to improve. Why not the same level of dedication to writing?

Perhaps it’s time to change that!

I can relate, Carrie. It’s easy to confuse the craft of writing with journaling, thinking that you can just write whatever you feel like and you’ll get better, write something worth reading. The truth is that writing interesting things to read is a skill, but the good news is that you can get better at it with practice. Thanks for practicing with us! 🙂

I love these suggestions , and have set Writing Practice as my homepage so the first 15 minutes of my day is spent writing, whether its a practice or exercise here or another that is sprinkled through out this site, Thank you for all you do everyone here at The Write Practice

This is great Debra. I want to write the first 15 minutes of my day too!

I agree with Joe, Do it. Could be your to do list… ( that could lead to something else story wse later)

I love that, Debra. Such a good way to start your day.

Thanks Joe!

The best! Thank you so much for this.

You’re very welcome!

I simply LOVE all the tips and suggestions given on this blog. They are super helpful!

THANK you. We love sharing them with you. 🙂

Hi! You forgot the link to How to Write a Story a Week: A Day-by-Day Guide.

Thanks a lot for your work! This post is amazing.

It’s a great post Thiago. Definitely one of our most shared. Thanks for mentioning it! BTW here’s the link:

https://thewritepractice.com/a-story-a-week/

Wow!! There are so many exercises…. I just love it..! I am gonna really enjoy it..!

Awesome! Thank you for reading and practicing with us. 🙂

I only read halfway , My tootie is jumping all over me, and typing this is a struggle when a 3yr old wants his Toy Story movie on Youtube in this computer. Thank you for this article, will come back later to finish reading.

I know the feeling! Good luck!

Can’t wait to get stuck in with this! 🙂

Very helpful! Thank you!

I’ve just bookmarked this page. Thanks for this wonderful list.

This is awesome! So many helpful tips. I will be coming back to this often. Thanks for posting this!

Wow, so many goodies! Thank you for always providing such amazing content!!

I have enjoyed all these articles. Thank you for the help an inspiration to get my writing on its way. My creativity is boosting with confidence. Tootle loo.

Amazing contents for beginners like me Joe. I am highly inspired by your commitment. Thank you.

Hey, thanks!

Although I have only read half of thisc article, the practice exercises are excellent. Some of them are exactly what a beginning writer like myself needs. I am committing to at least try ALL of them. Thanks Joe!!

very helpful! thank you..

Amazing articles! Thanks so much for sharing!

My god this article made me love this site . You know it’s kinda hard for a beginner writer, who don’t know where to start and fixing goals, even samll ones give us a direction . A place to go , an aim for our creativity so thanks you , this community and this site. Love you all . At your pens ! 😉

Wow. This is great. I find all your posts informative, but this one is the best for me to use as a guide to get my self starting to write….Thank you.

I’m an old lady who wants to publish one more book before I die — have published several, all non-fiction, and done two under contract to a major publisher (reference books). So help me, the BIGGEST problem I have all along, is keeping track of the damned paper work and research that goes into a book!!! Yet I never ever see articles on something as simple as “How to file” — Oh I know, there’s wonderful software these days so probably I will never find a way to get paper organized — everybody will use software and do it on the computer. I’m too old for that — just one look at the learning curve for software, even putting the damned stuff into computer files is even MORE frustrating than paper!! Oh well, somehow I managed in the past to get books published, I may be able to do it one more time.

you enjoy writing more than anything else and you do indeed care to help others write. I love writing but translation from Arabic into English and English into Arabic is taking all of my time from the early hours of the morning till the evening. I will soon get all of your books in order to read them as soon as possible. One thing I am sure of. You know what you are doing very well. Hamzah

Excellent! Many useful tips. Many thanks!

Liz and Joe, I have only looked at a few exercises. Already, I am convinced that your site is one of the best sites out there. Thank your for sharing your wisdom.

Wow, these are the best lessons and exercises for writing. Actually i’m participating in a compitition this wendsday. so, i’m quite nervous and exited. this helped me a lot

Magnificent post ever I have read. This article will help me a lot to write a right way. Thank you.

i need your help to improve to become a better writer please. i think i usually commit moist of these errors and i don;t pay attention to many advices too.

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10 Effective Ways to Improve Your Creative Writing

Writing a story is a craft that requires constant tweaks, edits and trial and error by the writer. Here are ten tips to improve your creative writing and save you hours of painful re-writing in the future.

(1) Don’t underestimate your reader

You have a fantastic plot, your characters are realistic, the setting is ideal and you want to make sure that the reader gets every little detail that you have in mind. Great!

The only problem is that you may be tempted to bombard your reader with many intimate details so that they see it exactly as you do. In-depth descriptions can be useful and effective, but don’t overdo it. Keep your writing neat and tight; don’t waste space on long, rambling descriptions about things that aren’t necessary to your story.

Wouldn’t it be ideal if editors received submissions and decided to look past the typos and incorrect formatting because they think it might be a little gem of a story? The fact is that if your manuscript is full of errors or doesn’t follow the required guidelines then it’s going in the trash.

Don’t rely on your computer’s spell checker. If you make a typo, the computer will not warn you if you’ve still spelt a valid word. Your gorgeous heroine meets the bog (boy) of her dreams? The wealthy doctor places his golf ball on his tea (tee)?

(3) Give Your Characters Life

Characters are vital to your story so treat them with care and give them that breath of life that you, the writer, have the power to give. Give them unique characteristics; make them believable by making them have a purpose, motivation and conflicts to resolve.

(4) Use Strong Words

You want your writing to sound decisive, so use words that get the point across. Did Bob’s really big headache cause him a lot of pain or did Bob’s migraine cause excruciating pain? But remember not to overdo it: don’t use words that the reader won’t understand, you want to use strong words, not confusing or extravagant ones.

(5) Show Don’t Tell.

Who hasn’t heard that one before? But it’s a valid point and a useful rule for all writers. Fiction is for entertainment, so entertain your reader! Give them an excuse to escape into the reality that you have created. Let them see, hear, feel, smell, laugh, cry, love and hate. Show your reader the world that you’ve created, don’t just tell them about it.

(6) Check your Commas

While commas can be effective many inexperienced writers tend to sprinkle their sentences with them. When placed incorrectly, commas can chop up your sentences and sometimes even alter the meaning. Brush up on your high-school grammar; your work will improve with that alone.

(7) Grab their Attention from the Start

Opening lines are often referred to as ‘the hook’ because that’s exactly what you want them to be. You get the reader’s attention and reel them in for the rest of the story. Try something powerful to kick-start your story. For example: ‘Mark’s back broke with an audible crack’ or ‘Eliza didn’t realize that she was going blind’ or ‘The bullet that pierced Henry’s back and left him paralyzed was meant for a homeless man’. Each of these lines makes the reader ask ‘why?’ and once they ask that question, the reader will keep on reading until they find the answer.

(8) Give Your Reader a Satisfactory Ending

You can leave the reader speculating or wondering why at the end of your story, but try to resolve as much as you can. If your reader finishes the last sentence and is still asking questions about what happened to who and why, then you still need to tie up the loose ends.

(9) Sober up

Think of writing as going out to a bar: you go out, the lighting is dim, it’s noisy, maybe you drink too much but you meet a person who’s attractive, witty, shares the same interests as you and you’re smitten by them. A few days later you meet for coffee: are they as good looking or charming as you remember?

This can happen with writing. You become intoxicated with the feeling of success and think that you have written an award-winning piece. The question is, once you’ve sobered up, is it as good as you thought it was? Put your manuscript away and try not to think about it for a couple days. Then take it out and read it with a clear, open mind. Read it through once from beginning to end, then break it up into sections, then read it sentence by sentence. Is it as good as you remembered? If so, then well done! But the odds are that if you were too excited about finally wrapping it up, then you’ll find some points to revise.

(10) Challenge Yourself

Are you trying too hard to write in a specific genre or style? Do you only write short stories or novels or poems or movie scripts? Give that creative muscle a workout and try something different. It will be a refreshing exercise for your mind and you might be surprised by the result. If you don’t succeed then you have still learnt a valuable lesson.

About the Author:

Photo Credit: Flickr.com_gudmd.haralds

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How to Become a Better Writer: 32 Proven Tips

Whether you’re a beginner or have been at it for decades, writing well is flat hard work.

I’ve written and published nearly 200 books, including 21 New York Times bestsellers, and I still take daily steps to improve my writing.

One doesn’t arrive at good writing. It’s a lifelong pursuit.

Maybe you write daily but feel your writing is still lacking. Or it’s as if you’ve hit a brick wall.

Many struggling writers would’ve given up by now, but you genuinely believe that with help, you could become the writer you want to be and see your message reach the masses.

Let’s see if you’re right.

I can’t turn you into a bestselling author overnight, and I’d caution you to look with suspicion on anyone who says they can.

But I do believe I can help improve your writing immediately.

• How to Become a Better Writer: My Best Advice

1. Don’t aim to write a bestseller.

That’s the last thing I think about when I start a new book .

I have no control over the market, sales, reviews, and all the rest. All I can control is how much of myself I give to a writing project.

To have any chance at success, my writing must come from my passions, the overflow of what drives me.

What’s your passion? Your strength? What drives you ?

Write about that. 

Your passion will keep you at the keyboard and motivate you when the writing gets tough —and if you’re doing it right, it always gets tough.

2. Always think reader-first.

Write Think Reader First on a sticky note and place it on your screen or somewhere you can see it while you’re writing.

Your sole job is to tell a story so compelling , so memorable your reader gets lost in it from the get-go.

Treat your readers the way you want to be treated and write what you would want to read.

That’s the Golden Rule of Writing .

Never let up, never bore. Always put your reader first.

3. Establish a strict writing routine.

Writing a book takes time, and lots of it. If you write only when you feel inspired, you’ll never finish. You need the discipline of a regular habit .

Schedule your writing time in your calendar and make it non-negotiable.

Track your progress: Your words or pages per day, or writing for a certain amount of time.

Set a deadline. Determine the number of words or pages you need to write every day to make your deadline. Just make sure your per-day production goals are realistic so you don’t get discouraged and quit.

Finally, even if you have to occasionally adjust the number of pages you finish per day, keep your deadline sacred at all cost.

4. Eliminate distractions.

Create a dedicated space for writing. It doesn’t have to be perfect — a writer should be able to write anywhere. 

Buy the best chair you can afford. You can’t be productive if you’re uncomfortable.

Keep on hand and close by all the supplies you’ll need.

Ruthlessly protect your writing time. Don’t let meetings, interruptions, household chores, or the Internet get in the way. Turn off your email and social media, block notifications, and hang a Do Not Disturb sign outside your door.

5. Start writing.

Good prep work will help you write with less frustration.

You need at least a basic structure — even if you’re not an outliner — whether writing fiction or nonfiction .

Preparation requires research (see #25), but even that can become a contributor to procrastination . Decide when you have enough information to begin writing, and get to it. 

If you’re writing fiction, study the best ways to start a story .

6. Avoid throat-clearing.

That’s a term we in the writing business use for any writing that stalls a story or chapter by beginning with anything but the good stuff.

Cut the setup, the description, the setting, the philosophizing, and get on with the story.

7. Show, don’t tell.

Telling spoon feeds your reader information rather than allowing her to deduce what’s going on.

Showing triggers the theater of her mind (see #10).

Telling: It was late fall.

Showing: Leaves crunched beneath his feet.

Telling: It was cold.

Showing: He tightened his collar and turned his face from the biting wind.

“Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” — Anton Chekhov

Click here to read more about this concept .

8. Avoid telling what’s not happening.

“He didn’t respond.”

“She didn’t say anything.”

“The room never got quiet.”

If you don’t say it happened, we won’t assume it did.

9. Introduce your main character early, by name.

The biggest mistake new writers make is introducing their main character too late.

As a rule, he should be the first person on stage and the reader should be able to associate his name with how they see him.

10. Trigger the theater of your reader’s mind.

Ever wonder why the book is usually better than the movie?

Not even Hollywood, with all its creativity and high tech CGI capability, can compete with the theater of our imagination.

My mind conjures images of everything an author implies.

Give your readers just enough information to engage their imagination, making them partners in the experience, not just audience members.

11. Cut dialogue to the bone.

Unless you’re revealing a character as a brainiac or a blowhard, omit unnecessary words from dialogue .

Obviously, you wouldn’t render a conversation the way a court transcript includes repetition and even um, ah, uh, etc.

See how much you can chop while virtually communicating the same point.

“ What do you w Want to do this Sunday? I thought we could go to the amusement park Sunday.”

“I was thinking about renting a rowboat,” Vladimir said. “On one of the lakes.”

“ Oh, Vladimir, that sounds w Wonderful! I’ve never gone rowing before .”

This doesn’t mean your dialogue has to be choppy — just cut the dead wood.

You’ll be surprised by how much power cutting adds.

12. Omit needless words.

Less is more.

Tighten, tighten, tighten.

Again, you’ll find cutting almost always adds power to your prose .

13. Choose the normal word over the fancy one.

By showing off your vocabulary or flowery turns of phrase, you draw attention to the writing itself rather than the content.

That’s the very definition of author intrusion.

Get out of the way of your art.

14. Use active voice vs. passive voice.

The easiest way to spot passive voice is to look for state-of-being verbs and often the word by .

Passive: A good time was had by all.

Active: Everybody had a good time.

Passive: The party was planned by Jill.

Active: Jill planned the party.

Passive: The book was read to the children by the teacher.

Active: The teacher read the book to the children.

Avoiding passive voice will set you apart from much of your competition. Even better, it adds clarity.

15. Avoid mannerisms of attribution.

Have people say things, not wheeze, gasp, laugh, grunt, snort, reply, retort, exclaim, or declare them.

Sometimes people whisper or shout or mumble , but let your choice of words imply whether they are grumbling, etc.

If it’s important that they sigh or laugh, separate the action from the dialogue:

Jim sighed. “I just can’t take it anymore.”

16. Avoid began to …

…laugh, or cry, or shout, or run. People don’t just begin to do these things. They do them.

Just say it: He laughed, she cried, Fred shouted, Traci ran…

17. Eliminate clichés.

And not just words and phrases.

Also, root out situational clichés , like:

• Starting your story with the main character waking up
• Having a character describe himself while standing before a mirror
• Having future love interests literally bump into each other when they first meet
• Having a shot ring out, only to have the shooter be a surprise third party who kills the one who had the drop on the hero
• Having the seemingly dead or unconscious or incapacitated villain spring back to life just when we thought the hero had finally saved the day

Avoid the dream cliché .

It’s okay to have people dream, but eliminate the dreadful cliché of spelling out an entire harrowing scene and then surprising the reader by having the character wake up.

That’s been used to death and lets the air out of the balloon of your story.

Also, avoid heart and breathing clichés: pounded, raced, thudded, hammered, gasped, sucked wind, etc . 

If you render the scary situation compellingly enough, you need not tell the reader anything about your character’s heartbeat or breath. The reader should experience those himself.

18. Avoid on-the-nose writing.

A Hollywood term for writing that mirrors real life without advancing the story, on-the-nose writing is the most common mistake I see in otherwise good writing. Click that link and master this, and you’ll be miles ahead of your competition.

19. Use adjectives sparingly.

Good writing is a thing of strong nouns and verbs, not adjectives.

20. Avoid the words up and down —unless they’re really needed.

He rigged [up] the device.

She sat [down] on the couch.

21. Read The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White

This short paperback is recommended by every writing teacher I know and should be at the top of your list if you want to improve your writing skills .

I’ve read it at least once a year for more than 40 years. Its simple truths cover everything you need to know about style and grammar.

Click here to get the book .

22. Give your readers credit.

They understand more than you think.

Example: “They walked through the open door and sat down across from each other in chairs.”

If they walked in and sat, we can assume the door was open, the direction was down, and — unless told otherwise — there were chairs.

So you can write: “They walked in and sat across from each other.”

23. Use powerful verbs.

Ever wonder why an otherwise grammatically correct sentence lies there like a dead fish?

Your sentence might be full of those adjectives and adverbs your teachers and loved ones so admired in your writing when you were a kid. But the sentence doesn’t work.

Something I learned from The Elements of Style years ago changed the way I write and added verve to my prose:  “Focus on nouns and verbs, not adjectives and adverbs.”

To learn how, read my post 249 Strong Verbs That’ll Instantly Supercharge Your Writing .

A couple of things to watch for:

• Avoid hedging verbs like: smiled slightly , almost laughed , frowned a bit , etc. Characters either smile, laughs, frown, or they don’t.
• Avoid state-of-being verbs: is, am, are, was, etc. Not: There was a man standing on the train platform. Rather: A man stood on the train platform.

24. Resist the urge to explain (RUE).

Marian was mad. She pounded the table. “George, you’re going to drive me crazy,” she said , angrily .

“You can do it!” George encouraged .

We need not be told Marian was mad if we see her pound the table. And we know she said what she said in anger.

25. Conduct your research.

Though fiction, by definition, is made up, to succeed it must be believable. Even fantasies must make sense.

Once the reader has accepted your premise, what follows must be logical. Effective research is key to adding the specificity necessary to make this work .

Accurate details add flavor and authenticity. Get details wrong and your reader loses confidence — and interest — in your story.

The essentials:

• Consult Atlases and World Almanacs to confirm geography and cultural norms and find character names that align with the setting, period, and customs . If your Middle Eastern character flashes someone a thumbs up, be sure that means the same in his culture as it does in yours.
• Online and hard copy Encyclopedias.
• YouTube and online search engines can yield tens of thousands of results.
• A Thesaurus , not to find the most exotic word, but to find that normal word that’s on the tip of your tongue.
• In-person interviews with experts. People love to talk about their work, and often such conversations lead to more story ideas.

And remember, research detail should be used as seasoning. Don’t make it the main course—that should be your story itself.

26. Become a ferocious self-editor.

Agents and editors can tell within two pages whether a manuscript is worthy of further consideration.

That sounds unfair, and maybe it is. But it’s a reality we writers need to face.

Learn to aggressively self-edit using many of the tools I’ve given you here.

Never submit writing with which you’re not entirely happy.

27. Develop a thick skin.

Every piece of published writing is a duet between editor and writer, not a solo. Learn to take criticism, especially from professionals who are on your side and want you to succeed.

28. Finish your first draft.

Writing is rewriting, and you can’t rewrite a blank page.

If you never finish your first draft, you’ll never publish a book.

Don’t fall prey to the myth of writer’s block . No other profession is allowed such an excuse for not working.

Suffering from writer’s fear? That fear is justified. Writing is tough and competition is fierce. Embrace your fear and channel it into motivation to do your best work every time. 

Procrastinating? Embrace that too. It’s inevitable and can actually be helpful, so schedule it.

Stalling because you’re a perfectionist? Put perfectionism in its proper place — during the editing and revision stage. As Margaret Atwood says, “If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.”

29. Jump start your creative juices.

Some days you’ll struggle to write even a few sentences and may wonder if you’re a writer at all.

It happens to all of us.

That’s when it’s wise to try a few writing exercises .

30. read your writing aloud., it’s a great way to check your self-edit and see where your story may bog down., 31. vary sentence length..

Sentence structure can dramatically impact your writing. 

Run-on sentences and sentence fragments may get an essay downgraded, but they can enhance your prose if used judiciously.  

32. Become a voracious reader.

Your career as a writer can end before it starts unless you make time to read.

You won’t find the time — you have to carve it out of your busy schedule.

That might seem impossible with your busy life, but how badly do you want to become a published author?

Writers are readers. Good writers are good readers. Great writers are great readers.

• You Can Improve Your Writing Skills

I’ve dedicated most of my life to coaching writers because I love paying forward all I’ve learned and seeing you succeed.

Practicing these 32 tips won’t turn you into an overnight success — writing is hard, exhausting, time-consuming work. And if it isn’t, you’re probably not doing it right. But all that effort can be worth it.

Dreamers talk about writing. Writers write. So don’t quit.

Faith-Based Words and Phrases

What You and I Can Learn From Patricia Raybon

A Guest Blog from Stephen King—Yes, that Stephen King

Before you go, be sure to grab my FREE guide:

How to Write a Book: Everything You Need to Know in 20 Steps

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How to Be More Creative in Your Writing

by Melissa Donovan | Oct 6, 2022 | Creative Writing | 31 comments

How to be more creative when you’re writing.

Here’s an age-old question: is creative writing an art or a craft?

Artistically minded writers will say that writing is most definitely an art while those who who think more analytically will claim writing is a skill, a trade, and a business.

My answer is that writing can be either an art or a craft, and usually it’s both. You can approach writing armed with learned skills and an ability to string words together in a sensible manner, or you can approach writing as a purely creative endeavor and call it your art or your passion.

Both approaches work, and either one can lead to good, strong writing. However, the best writing is a hybrid. It’s both an art and a craft, a marriage between skill and creativity in writing.

Creativity in Writing

You read almost every day. Words appear on your computer screen, your television, on roadside signs, and product packaging. They’re everywhere, and they all make sense.

But every once in a while, you come across writing that simply dazzles you. Have you ever responded emotionally to the way a writer uses language? Have you ever put down a novel and remarked at how impressed you were with the author’s ability to create realistic characters or a riveting plot? Have you ever read a poem and felt transported to another time or place?

That’s the magic of creativity in writing. It captivates the imagination. It’s transcendent.

How to Be More Creative: Tips and Resources for Writers

There’s an old, outdated belief that creativity is talent; it’s inherent. Some of us are born right-brained (creative) and others left-brained (mechanical, analytical). That’s only partially true. Writing can be learned as a skill, but so can creativity. Sure, some people have a more natural inclination toward creative thinking. But anyone can foster and nurture creativity.

So, how do you foster creativity in writing? Below are some tips and resources to get you started. Whether you’re creative by nature and want to enhance your artistry or lack creativity but want to produce more artistic work, these resources will point you in the right direction.

• If you know where to look, you can find plenty of awesome writing ideas lurking all around you.
• Marelisa Fabrega’s How to Be More Creative — A Handbook for Alchemists is packed with tools for fostering creative and innovative thinking. It’s one of my favorite creativity resources! Don’t want to spring for the e-book? You will after you peruse the idea-packed creativity section on Marelisa’s blog .
• Find out how asking questions and encouraging curiosity can lead to creative writing ideas .
• Head over to the Creativity Portal , where you’ll find tons (and by tons, I mean TONS) of creativity articles, resources, and project ideas.
• Nothing gets a writer’s creativity flowing like poetry. If you think poetry is relegated to tweens, academics, and literary elites, think again. Poetry can be raw and brazen, and it will open your mind to new creative insight and strengthen your language skills. Read it, watch it, listen to it, and then try some poetry writing exercises .
• Has your muse taken a vacation and left you fresh out of ideas? No worries! Writing inspiration can be found, even when your muse cannot.

Where do you go to turn up the volume on creativity in your writing? Do you have a favorite book or website, a quiet place in the woods or a quaint coffee shop in the city that you like to visit? Do you have any favorite creativity resources? Share your tips and ideas for how to be more creative by leaving a comment.

31 Comments

Hi Melissa: There is definitely a difference between a sentence that conveys a sensible idea and is grammatically correct, and a sentence that makes you feel and makes you want to get up and act. There are many skillful writers out there, but there are not that many who can infuse their writing with passion, feeling, pixie dust, or whatever you want to call it. So I agree with you that it’s about both skill and creativity.

Thanks, Marelisa! My philosophy is that clear, compelling communication outshines grammar every time. In practice, successfully breaking the rules of grammar requires creativity and a willingness to color outside the lines.

Absolutely, Marelisa. It’s not only about putting words together in the correct order and with correct grammar, but choosing the best words to express what you want the reader to feel, and see. I recently read 2 books. Both told good stories. Both were grammatically correct, but one author wrote beautiful prose that made me see the scenes in detail, and to feel what the protagonist felt. The other–well, the scenes I could visualise, but not as beautifully, and the characters did not affect me as much as the first. That’s what I would say is the difference between an author who is a ‘tradesperson’ and one who is an artist.

Who’s to say that creative writing can’t be both? Or, for that matter, that all writing shouldn’t be creative? I mean, sure, it’s hard to get creative when you’re writing certain, fact-based things (turn left at the traffic light), or grocery lists, but otherwise? Creativity drives the writing process, doesn’t it? Except, it has a stronger sway in some writing than in others.

Or, you know, something like that.

I agree completely. Many forms of writing should be both. I think we see the same dilemma in music, because one can study music theory, which is highly mathematical (left-brained), yet we see music as an art (right-brained). In actuality, it is both! Writing is similar in that sense. I believe the best writing is a hybrid of technical skill and artistic creativity!

Thanks for sharing these great resources relating to creativity. Being creative is one of the greatest tools a writer can have and these are awesome places to sharpen that tool. Thanks, Melissa!

I actually find simply going out in public is a good way to get the juices going. Being out and about, people watching…overheard dialogue is often a good starting point!

I find that whenever I step away from my workspace or desk, the ideas start to flow. I can go in the garage, the laundry room, outside, anywhere but where it’s supposed to happen! I’m exaggerating, of course. Still, creativity is a mystery. You can sit there for hours trying to write a poem, and then as soon as you get in your car and start the engine, it comes to you.

I agree that the best are a hybrid. One of my nano buddies posted a question on FB about whether we wanted her most enjoyed 2009 reading list first or her quality writing list because very few made both lists nor in the same order. Unfortunately this happens far too often.

Oh yes, I know what you mean. There’s compelling reading and then there’s quality reading. Not always the same thing. But if you can find a novel that is both compelling and extremely well written, well, that’s the best.

Hi Melissa,

I’ve been reading your posts for a while now and I’ve gotten alot out of it, including the gumption to FINALLY start my own blog!

When I’m feeling particularly uninspired I like to journal melodramatically – it makes me laugh and keeps me going. Otherwise I like to make paper mache bowls out of pages of my worst writing – something about ripping the pages into tiny little pieces is very freeing…

I think that if you have the desire to create and the discipline to get on with it, creative ideas will come:)

Hi zz, and welcome! Congrats on starting your own blog. You’ll find it’s a lot of work but oh so rewarding. You make paper mache bowls out of your worst writing pages…I LOVE that! What a way to embrace what you’ve created while letting it go. I wish I knew how to paper mache. Of course, I do most of my writing on the computer now, so I think that would pose a problem. Still, that rocks.

Hi Melissa – I responded to this a couple of days ago and I forgot to hit the submit button. I think creative writing is definitely a combination of art and craft.

I use lots of creativity tools. Morning Pages is probably one of my favourite ones and I do activities from creative writing books. I like writing the same scene from the perspective of each character – it really helps with characterization.

Also, I like writing in my head, while I’m in the bath – kind of like watching a movie. The only trouble is, sometimes my head is more full of the character than me.

Hi Cath! I’ve been in and out of morning pages over the years. For a while, I kept a gratitude journal and always wrote first thing in the morning. As for writing in my head — geez — sometimes I write more in my head than I do on paper or computer. Hehee!

I am a mix. I know the rules and won’t even flinch at breaking them if I think there is a way of writing that brings more emotion or truth to what I want to say. So if I err on one side it would have to be creativity I think.

As far as the elusive muse, mine must be a water baby. She loves to whisper in my ear when I am washing dishes, taking a shower or soaking in the tub or jacuzzi.

Further more, I do believe she gets bored by computers. That seems to be the LAST place I feel creative!

Hi Wendi! I do believe that creativity and successful rule-breaking are related. I know what you mean about the muse. I always get my best ideas in the shower, which is the one place where I cannot jot down or record my thoughts! Grr.

One of the best books I’ve ever read on creativity is “THINKERTOYS.” It’s authored by a former Disney imagineer. It’s a catalog of creative techniques.

I think the book is a great example of blending art + science (or right-brain + left-brain in action.)

Every time I hear the word imagineer , I think about how as a child, I wanted to grow up and spend my college years working at Disneyland. Thanks for this recommendation, J.D.

Few years back I dreamed of being a writer. I have this itching that I want to express my thoughts through words. In my first attempt I realized that I cannot write comprehensively and so I gave up. But recently I gave it another shot, but this time I made an effort. Now, I can say that writing can truly be developed. The creativity part thought is difficult for me to learn. 🙂

The most successful writers do not reach their accomplishments through talent or even creativity. It almost always boils down to a willingness to do the work. I’ve read about extremely gifted writers who never (or rarely) get published and mediocre or hard-working writers who get published frequently and even win awards. The point is, if you’re willing to try, there’s no reason you can’t succeed. I’m glad you’re giving it another go, Walter.

i so agree with the need for combination of technique and creativity. i don’t think creativity is good if it isn’t brought in a way that is comprehendible though not nescisarily correct. i’ve heard many apply the terms quality and “well made” about things that are dull but have high language. i think good (and it is incredibly subjective) is something you ENJOY. if you “appreciate” a work for being “good” while struggling to stand it, then it is not good for you. i have a problem concentrating for too long which makes writing and reading difficult for long. for me, a book must be exceptionally interesting for me to read it through. however i think for everyone, a book should draw you in and not make you force yourself to get through it.

i’ve had a passion for writing for over a decade now, since grade school. i find it cathasic pouring my feelings, ideas and imagination into words. i was terrible at first but i came a long way since even though i’ve barely wrote at all. it’s only these past seven months that i started more seriously writing (though i still can’t manage to sit my a** down and write, and even when i do no ideas come to me) i find that ideas come from everywhere and anywhere. you see a sign on the street, you watch a movie, you go to the money machine, and an idea pops in your head. for me, i never know when lightning may strike. as for writing in my head, Cath, i used to do that a lot and try to remember them but i’m quite forgetful especially when one good idea dissapears as another takes it’s place so no i carry a minuscule pen and a pad everywhere i go so that i can jot down anything that comes to mind. i admit that the shower is problematic in this case but if a good idea pops in while in the shower, i pop out, jot it down and go back… what’s a few wet tracks on the floor compared with losing a good idea right? i think NaNoWriMo was mentioned here. i only learned about this a few months back and though i’ve never yet succeeded in writing a full novel i’m planning on trying it out. i’ve never actually finished a story until this april when i wrote my first script for script frenzy. it is also the last so far but i am hopeful. p.s. (i diverged a bit from the topic, my appologies)

When we talk about “good writing,” it can mean many things. It could indicate work that is grammatically correct, a story that is compelling or original, characters that are realistic. It could mean the language is tantalizing or it could mean the story itself is just plain entertaining. Whatever makes it good, many other elements may be lacking. Or maybe it’s all good. Each reader has his or her own criterion for what makes a piece of writing good, great, or intolerable. Ultimately, it’s about finding the audience. What one audience detests, another will stand in line for. And that’s about as good as it gets.

I’d say creativity is a mix of both an art and a craft. I couldn’t agree more. Sometimes, while in the creative process, one might be in one domain more than the other, but it’s still a mix of both and it varies from one individual to another.

I find listening to music helps a lot with the creative process.

Thank you for sharing the resources!

Yes, the best writing, in my opinion, is both artistic and skilled. I’ve seen good ideas executed poorly (bad grammar, mostly) and weak ideas executed beautifully (through poetic language). A good balance of art and skill usually renders the best, most readable results.

I like Cathy Altman Noquet’s “Writing Outside the Lines, a Creativity Catapult”, childlike, simple, funny with no cant or attitude.

Thanks for the recommendation. I’m going to add that one to my wish list!

It seams like there are times that it’s almost impossible to find the story and other times I can’t seem to get it out through my slow fingers fast enough. Thank you so much for all the tips.

You’re welcome!

Great resources, Melissa! Something I’ve found that has worked for me is talking over my ideas with someone else. Usually they have a thing or two to say, and we get the ball rolling and come up with a ton of stuff. I write it down and may not use all of it, but it gets the creativity juices flowing.

I do the same thing, and it can be immensely helpful. It’s like having another set of eyes on your manuscript, but instead, they’re looking at your ideas and helping you find the gaps or making suggestions for improvements. Thanks for adding this!

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26+ Creative Writing Tips for Young Writers

So you want to be a writer? And not just any writer, you want to be a creative writer. The road to being a legendary storyteller won’t be easy, but with our creative writing tips for kids, you’ll be on the right track! Creative writing isn’t just about writing stories. You could write poems, graphic novels, song lyrics and even movie scripts. But there is one thing you’ll need and that is good creative writing skills. 

Here are over 26 tips to improve your creative writing skills :

Read a wide range of books

When it comes to creative writing, reading is essential. Reading allows you to explore the styles of other writers and gain inspiration to improve your own writing. But don’t just limit yourself to reading only popular books or your favourites. Read all sorts of books, everything from fairytales to scary stories. Take a look at comics, short stories, novels and poetry. Just fill your heads with the knowledge and wisdom of other writers and soon you’ll be just like them!

Write about real-life events

The hardest thing about creative writing is connecting emotionally with your audience. By focusing your writing on real-life events, you know that in some way or another your readers will be able to relate. And with creative writing you don’t need to use real names or details – There are certain things you can keep private while writing about the rare details. Using real-life events is also a good way to find inspiration for your stories. 

Be imaginative

Be as crazy and wild as you like with your imagination. Create your world, your own monsters , or even your own language! The more imaginative your story, the more exciting it will be to read. Remember that there are no rules on what makes a good idea in creative writing. So don’t be afraid to make stuff up!

Find your writing style

Thes best writers have a particular style about them. When you think of Roald Dahl , you know his books are going to have a sense of humour. While with Dr Seuss , you’re prepared to read some funny new words . Alternatively, when you look at R.L.Stine, you know that he is all about the horror. Think about your own writing style. Do you want to be a horror writer? Maybe someone who always writes in the first person? Will always focus your books on your culture or a particular character?

Stick to a routine

Routine is extremely important to writers. If you just write some stuff here and there, it’s likely that you’ll soon give up on writing altogether! A strict routine means that every day at a certain time you will make time to write about something, anything. Even if you’re bored or can’t think of anything, you’ll still pick up that pencil and write. Soon enough you’ll get into the habit of writing good stuff daily and this is definitely important for anyone who wants to be a professional creative writer!

Know your audience

Writing isn’t just about thinking about your own interests, it’s also about thinking about the interests of your audience. If you want to excite fellow classmates, know what they like. Do they like football , monsters or a particular video game? With that knowledge, you can create the most popular book for your target audience. A book that they can’t stop reading and will recommend to others! 

Daily Exercises

To keep your creative writing skills up to scratch it is important to keep practising every day. Even if you have no inspiration. At times when your mind is blank, you should try to use tools like writing prompts , video prompts or other ways of coming up with ideas . You could even take a look at these daily writing exercises as an example. We even created a whole list of over 100 creative writing exercises to try out when you need some inspiration or ideas. 

Work together with others

Everyone needs a little help now and then. We recommend joining a writing club or finding other classmates who are also interested in writing to improve your own creative writing skills. Together you can share ideas, tips and even write a story together! A good storytelling game to play in a group is the “ finish the story” game . 

Get feedback

Without feedback, you’ll never be able to improve your writing. Feedback, whether good or bad is important to all writers. Good feedback gives you the motivation to carry on. While bad feedback just gives you areas to improve and adapt your writing, so you can be the best! After every piece of writing always try to get feedback from it, whether it is from friends, family, teachers or an online writing community .

Enter writing competitions

The best way to improve your creative writing is by entering all sorts of writing competitions . Whether it’s a poetry competition or short story competition, competitions let you compete against other writers and even help you get useful feedback on your writing. Most competitions even have rules to structure your writing, these rules can help you prepare for the real world of writing and getting your work published. And not only that you might even win some cool prizes!

Keep a notebook

Every writer’s best friend is their notebook. Wherever you go make sure you have a notebook handy to jot down any ideas you get on the go. Inspiration can come from anywhere , so the next time you get an idea instead of forgetting about it, write it down. You never know, this idea could become a best-selling novel in the future. 

Research your ideas

So, you got a couple of ideas for short stories. The next step is to research these ideas deeper. 

Researching your ideas could involve reading books similar to your ideas or going online to learn more about a particular topic. For example, if you wanted to write a book on dragons, you would want to know everything about them in history to come up with a good, relatable storyline for your book.

Create Writing Goals

How do you know if your writing is improving over time? Simple – Just create writing goals for yourself. Examples of writing goals might include, to write 100 words every day or to write 600 words by the end of next week. Whatever your goals make sure you can measure them easily. That way you’ll know if you met them or not. You might want to take a look at these bullet journal layouts for writers to help you track the progress of your writing.

Follow your passions

Writing can be tedious and many people even give up after writing a few words. The only way you can keep that fire burning is by writing about your true passions. Whatever it is you enjoy doing or love, you could just write about those things. These are the types of things you’ll enjoy researching and already know so much about, making writing a whole lot more fun!

Don’t Settle for the first draft

You finally wrote your first story. But the writing process isn’t complete yet! Now it’s time to read your story and make the all-important edits. Editing your story is more than just fixing spelling or grammar mistakes. It’s also about criticising your own work and looking for areas of improvement. For example, is the conflict strong enough? Is your opening line exciting? How can you improve your ending?

Plan before writing

Never just jump into writing your story. Always plan first! Whether this means listing down the key scenes in your story or using a storyboard template to map out these scenes. You should have an outline of your story somewhere, which you can refer to when actually writing your story. This way you won’t make basic mistakes like not having a climax in your story which builds up to your main conflict or missing crucial characters out.

It’s strange the difference it makes to read your writing out aloud compared to reading it in your head. When reading aloud you tend to notice more mistakes in your sentences or discover paragraphs which make no sense at all. You might even want to read your story aloud to your family or a group of friends to get feedback on how your story sounds. 

Pace your story

Pacing is important. You don’t want to just start and then quickly jump into the main conflict because this will take all the excitement away from your conflict. And at the same time, you don’t want to give the solution away too early and this will make your conflict too easy for your characters to solve. The key is to gradually build up to your conflict by describing your characters and the many events that lead up to the main conflict. Then you might want to make the conflict more difficult for your characters by including more than one issue in your story to solve. 

Think about themes

Every story has a theme or moral. Some stories are about friendship, others are about the dangers of trusting strangers. And a story can even have more than one theme. The point of a theme is to give something valuable to your readers once they have finished reading your book. In other words, to give them a life lesson, they’ll never forget!

Use dialogue carefully

Dialogue is a tricky thing to get right. Your whole story should not be made up of dialogue unless you’re writing a script. Alternatively, it can be strange to include no dialogue at all in your story. The purpose of dialogue should be to move your story forward. It should also help your readers learn more about a particular character’s personality and their relationship with other characters in your book. 

One thing to avoid with dialogue is… small talk! There’s no point in writing dialogue, such as “How’s the weather?”, if your story has nothing to do with the weather. This is because it doesn’t move your story along.  For more information check out this guide on how to write dialogue in a story .

Write now, edit later

Writing is a magical process. Don’t lose that magic by focusing on editing your sentences while you’re still writing your story up. Not only could this make your story sound fragmented, but you might also forget some key ideas to include in your story or take away the imagination from your writing. When it comes to creative writing, just write and come back to editing your story later.

Ask yourself questions

Always question your writing. Once done, think about any holes in your story. Is there something the reader won’t understand or needs further describing? What if your character finds another solution to solving the conflict? How about adding a new character or removing a character from your story? There are so many questions to ask and keep asking them until you feel confident about your final piece.

Create a dedicated writing space

Some kids like writing on their beds, others at the kitchen table. While this is good for beginners, going pro with your writing might require having a dedicated writing space. Some of the basics you’ll need is a desk and comfy chair, along with writing materials like pens, pencils and notebooks. But to really create an inspiring place, you could also stick some beautiful pictures, some inspiring quotes from writers and anything else that will keep you motivated and prepared. 

Beware of flowery words

Vocabulary is good. It’s always exciting when you learn a new word that you have never heard before. But don’t go around plotting in complicated words into your story, unless it’s necessary to show a character’s personality. Most long words are not natural sounding, meaning your audience will have a hard time relating to your story if it’s full of complicated words from the dictionary like Xenophobia or Xylograph .

Create believable characters

Nobody’s perfect. And why should your story characters be any different? To create believable characters, you’ll need to give them some common flaws as well as some really cool strengths. Your character’s flaws can be used as a setback to why they can’t achieve their goals, while their strengths are the things that will help win over adversity. Just think about your own strengths and weaknesses and use them as inspirations for your storybook characters. You can use the Imagine Forest character creator to plan out your story characters. 

Show, don’t tell

You can say that someone is nice or you can show them how that person is nice. Take the following as an example, “Katie was a nice girl.” Now compare that sentence to this, “Katie spent her weekends at the retirement home, singing to the seniors and making them laugh.”. The difference between the two sentences is huge. The first one sounds boring and you don’t really know why Katie is nice. While in the second sentence, you get the sense that Katie is nice from her actions without even using the word nice in the sentence!

Make the conflict impossible

Imagine the following scenario, you are a championship boxer who has won many medals over the year and the conflict is…Well, you got a boxing match coming up. Now that doesn’t sound so exciting! In fact, most readers won’t even care about the boxer winning the match or not! 

Now imagine this scenario: You’re a poor kid from New Jersey, you barely have enough money to pay the bills. You never did any professional boxing, but you want to enter a boxing competition, so you can win and use the money to pay your bills. 

The second scenario has a bigger mountain to climb. In other words, a much harder challenge to face compared to the character in the first scenario. Giving your characters an almost impossible task or conflict is essential in good story-telling.

Write powerful scenes

Scenes help build a picture in your reader’s mind without even including any actual pictures in your story. Creating powerful scenes involves more than describing the appearance of a setting, it’s also about thinking about the smell, the sounds and what your characters are feeling while they are in a particular setting. By being descriptive with your scenes, your audience can imagine themselves being right there with characters through the hard times and good times!

There’s nothing worse than an ending which leaves the reader feeling underwhelmed. You read all the way through and then it just ends in the most typical, obvious way ever! Strong endings don’t always end on a happy ending. They can end with a sad ending or a cliff-hanger.  In fact, most stories actually leave the reader with more questions in their head, as they wonder what happens next. This then gives you the opportunity to create even more books to continue the story and keep your readers hooked for life (or at least for a very long time)! 

Over 25 creative writing tips later and you should now be ready to master the art of creative writing! The most important tip for all you creative writers out there is to be imaginative! Without a good imagination, you’ll struggle to wow your audience with your writing skills. Do you have any more creative writing tips to share? Let us know in the comments!

Marty the wizard is the master of Imagine Forest. When he's not reading a ton of books or writing some of his own tales, he loves to be surrounded by the magical creatures that live in Imagine Forest. While living in his tree house he has devoted his time to helping children around the world with their writing skills and creativity.

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How to Write Creatively

Last Updated: August 18, 2024 Approved

This article was co-authored by Lucy V. Hay . Lucy V. Hay is a Professional Writer based in London, England. With over 20 years of industry experience, Lucy is an author, script editor, and award-winning blogger who helps other writers through writing workshops, courses, and her blog Bang2Write. Lucy is the producer of two British thrillers, and Bang2Write has appeared in the Top 100 round-ups for Writer’s Digest & The Write Life and is a UK Blog Awards Finalist and Feedspot’s #1 Screenwriting blog in the UK. She received a B.A. in Scriptwriting for Film & Television from Bournemouth University. There are 9 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, several readers have written to tell us that this article was helpful to them, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 163,258 times.

Creative writing can be challenging but rewarding. You can use it as an escape or just to write something to call your own. Whatever the reason, creative writing is something that you can be proud of. Whether you want to write a short story, a novel, or jot down some poetry, creative writing is much more about sitting down and writing, learning as you go, than waiting for the perfect idea to strike.

Brainstorming Creative Writing Ideas

• You can also use your phone to keep track of your ideas! You could type them in your notes, email them to yourself, or use an app, such as Google Docs.

• House was a brilliant, but simple combination of medical dramas with one-off "murder mystery" type shows, swapping medical diagnosis for detective work.
• Star Wars is a typical hero's quest, with the plot ripped straight from the oldest known Greek stories. George Lucas's genius? Simply setting it in space.
• The collected works of William Shakespeare are full of "artistic theft," as almost every one of his plays was a brilliant amalgamation of other plays, books, and historical records.
• Try to read every day, even if it's just a few pages.
• Reading books in the genre you write is an excellent idea, but it's also helpful to read books in other genres. This can help you broaden your understanding of the writing craft and gain new ideas for your own work.

• Try writing from the perspective of the people you see on the news. You understand the facts of a war or struggle, but try to actually imagine living it.
• Creative writing doesn't have to be fiction. Use stories from your life that speak out to you as potentially exciting or compelling stories.

• Almost all writers enjoy having at least one person to bounce ideas off. Frequently, just vocalizing your plots or ideas can make them much clearer and easier to write.

• Look online at collections of "free writing prompts." There are thousands of ideas out there to spark your creative juices and get the writing flowing, even if only for a few minutes.
• Rewrite passages from your favorite books -- many famous authors, from Billy Collins to Cormac McCarthy, literally re-wrote favorite chapters to learn from the best. [1] X Research source

Writing Effectively and Creatively

• There is no "right" way to start writing. Some people plan, storyboard, and plot, and others plow right into it and deal with the rest in revision. Experiment for what works for you.

• Well-rounded. Good characters are multi-dimensional, with both strengths and weaknesses. They are not just the "strong hero," "damsel in distress," or a million other simplified character types. They are people and have nuance and complexity
• Desiring something, and fearing something else: Plots are driven by character's wants -- what do they need or desire to be happy or safe? Some characters are driven by fear, or the desire not to be something. But all characters are pushed by some desire, a desire that drives their plot. [2] X Research source This is your character's motivation.
• Aware self-agents Good characters make decisions, for better or for worse, that they think will help them. Always ask yourself -- if I were in the same situation as the character, would I see that as a good decision? Sometimes, only one decision catapults the whole story, as the character deals with the fallout. Other times characters make decisions every minute. Just make sure they fit the character. [3] X Research source

• Setting writing timers -- 1 hour of straight writing, 10-15 minutes of relaxing, then repeat.
• Deciding on a daily writing time and place, building the habit.
• Getting a writing buddy -- someone you trade 10 pages with each week at the same time.

Put in the time to build your writing skills. "You become a writer by writing. There is no other way. So do it. Do it more. Do it again. Do it better. Fail. Fail better."

• Consider each scene, chapter, or segment a short story. How can you make it compelling if it was published all on its own?
• Make sure you establish the setting, appealing to the reader's 5 senses. Additionally, set the mood of your scene. The reader should be able to clearly visualize your setting when they read your writing.
• Scenes should have tension and rising action -- starting with a problem, making things more difficult or introducing new challenges, and resolving everything in some way at the end. It seems overly simplistic, but these three stages are the basis of 95% of all good plots. [4] X Research source

• This isn't to say some relaxing time isn't worth it when you're stuck, just get back to writing after you're done walking, reading, meditating, or enjoying a cup of writer's block coffee.
• Never tell yourself that, "I can't write right now." All you have to do is sit down -- the words will flow if you give them the time and energy to do so.

Editing Your Work for Publication

• Looking for inspiration that you're not alone? Check out Raymond Chandler's writing process: “Throw up into your typewriter every morning. Clean up every noon.” [5] X Research source

• Know that you'll likely need to keep writing, filling in holes you didn't notice on your first draft. Prioritize those areas that grip you the most already, or the characters that seem the most alluring to write.
• It is not uncommon for the tone or main idea of a story to pivot at this point -- don't be afraid to forge a bold new direction if it is clearly more enjoyable than the original plot or perspective. [6] X Research source

• Make sure your dialogue actually adds something and doesn't simply regurgitate information for the audience. Reading dialogue out loud, with a friend, is the best way to make sure it is natural sounding and worth keeping. [7] X Research source
• Save new copies of your work every day you open it up, allowing you to still keep copies of everything you erase in case you later change your mind.
• Hemingway said it best in a letter to his friend F. Scott Fitzgerald: “I write one page of masterpiece to ninety-one pages of s--t. I try to put the s--t in the wastebasket.” [8] X Research source

• Pick your people wisely-- friends who love to read, and you know will be honest with you, are often the best picks.
• Let your friends know that you're looking for constructive criticism. While being nice is great, it won't help you write any better. [9] X Research source

Writing Help

Expert Q&A

• Set aside a specific time each day to write and treat it like a commitment. Thanks Helpful 15 Not Helpful 9
• If you become frustrated, try to take advantage of that emotion; let the frustration seep into the writing. Thanks Helpful 13 Not Helpful 9
• Confidence comes with a great idea. Ideas are easy to come by, there is a slush of them in your head this moment. When you sort through that slush, you will find an idea the brings you to life. You know that its the right idea when you think of it, and then can't wait to start writing. And when you start writing, you can't stop. Thanks Helpful 6 Not Helpful 3

• Always think that you are not writing it for others but for yourself to make you even more confident. Thanks Helpful 14 Not Helpful 2
• Ignore "yes" people, those who will tell you that your writing is amazing even if it's not. Sure, the ego boost feels good, but it will not make your writing better. Instead, seek out that blunt friend everyone hates. It might hurt at first, but if it helps improve your writing, it is well worth it. Thanks Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0
• Stay focused! After you write for a while, you may start to think about other things and write less and less. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ http://thewritepractice.com/why-you-should-copy-other-writers/
• ↑ https://www.writingclasses.com/toolbox/tips-masters/kurt-vonnegut-8-basics-of-creative-writing
• ↑ http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2014/01/13/25-things-a-great-character-needs/
• ↑ http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/grammar-rules-and-tips/writing-advice-and-tips-on-how-to-engage-the-reader.html
• ↑ http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/revision
• ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2013/feb/01/teaching-creative-writing-ideas-activities-primary-literacy
• ↑ http://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/creative1/shortstory/
• ↑ http://www.copyblogger.com/ernest-hemingway-top-5-tips-for-writing-well/

About This Article

If you want to write creatively but you aren’t sure how to start, try “free writing” anything that comes to mind for 5 minutes to get your creative juices flowing. Also, since inspiration comes in many places, keep a small notebook with you to record ideas and lines you overhear that make you laugh. To generate unique ideas, try mixing and matching two unrelated concepts to come up with something new. For example, George Lucas took the typical hero’s quest but set it in space to create Star Wars. For more advice from our Writer reviewer, including how to edit for publishing, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Blog • Perfecting your Craft

Posted on Sep 26, 2019

20 Writing Tips to Improve Your Craft

About the author.

Reedsy's editorial team is a diverse group of industry experts devoted to helping authors write and publish beautiful books.

About Savannah Cordova

Savannah is a senior editor with Reedsy and a published writer whose work has appeared on Slate, Kirkus, and BookTrib. Her short fiction has appeared in the Owl Canyon Press anthology, "No Bars and a Dead Battery". 

“The pen is mightier than the sword.” Writer Edgar Bulwer-Lytton made this keen observation nearly 200 years ago, but it remains just as true today. Writing is one of the most powerful forms in existence, and a simple story can change countless lives — which is why so many of us choose to be writers in the first place.

But sometimes it can be difficult to find the right words, to tell the story the way you want, or to start writing in the first place . That’s why we’ve compiled these 20 essential writing tips for writers like you: artists who want to hone their craft to perfection, so they can tell their stories effectively to the world.

Some of these tips are narrative-related, while others are more about the mentality and setting you need in order to write. But all have one crucial thing in common: if you take them to heart, they’ll help you improve your craft — and maybe even pen the book of your dreams .

If you prefer your tips in watchable form, check out this video on great writing tips that no one else will tell you.

1. Even pantsers need to plan

Let’s begin with an age-old question : are you a plotter or a pantser?

If you’ve never heard these terms before, allow us to explain. Pantsers are writers who “fly by the seat of their pants,” i.e. start writing without preparing too much and simply trust that everything will work out. At the other end of the spectrum are plotters , who plan and outline extensively before they begin to write.

Which is the better way forward? Well, it’s different for everyone — what works for you may not necessarily work for another writer you know.

However, experience has taught us that a little bit of planning goes a long way. That’s why we always advise some form of preparation, even if it’s just a few nuggets of your plot, before you dive into writing. So create an outline today , if you haven't already!

2. Keep your outline in mind

Once you’ve prepared that outline, it’s important to actually use it. This may seem obvious, but it's seemingly one of the hardest-to-remember writing tips out there!

Many writers find themselves led astray by subplots and secondary characters, wandering into rambling chapters that don’t really go anywhere. Then when they try to get back to the main plot, they find they’re already too far gone.

Keeping your outline in mind at all times will help you avoid these disastrous detours. Even if you stray a little , you should be able to look at your outline and articulate exactly how you’ll get back to what you planned.

This is especially crucial late in the writing process, when it can be hard to remember your original vision — so if you have doubts about your ability to remember your outline, definitely write it down.

3. Introduce conflict early

Of all the core elements in your story, conflict is perhaps the most important to emphasize. Conflict lies at the heart of every good narrative, so make sure readers know what your conflict is within the first few chapters!

The best way to do this is through an early inciting incident to kick off your story , wherein the main character has a revelation and/or becomes involved in something big. For example, in  The Hunger Games , the inciting incident is Katniss volunteering for the Games — which kicks off her personal and political conflict with the Capitol.

Finally, remember that there are many different types of conflict . So if you have no idea what your conflict, it’s probably just unconventional. For instance, your conflict might be one that unfolds within your narrator (character vs. self), or against some larger force (like character vs. technology). Once you do figure it out, try to introduce it early!

4. Control the pacing

Nothing ruins a good book like poor pacing. So make sure you control the pacing in your story, lest readers lose interest and put down your book in frustration!

In order to combat slow pacing , you’ll need to increase the tempo by:

A) Cutting down lengthy sentences and descriptions, and B) Increasing action and dialogue.

The first strategy works for one simple reason: it gets rid of filler and fluff. In extreme cases, you may have to cut a great deal of exposition in order to get to the beating heart of your story. (See writing tip #18 to help you with this.)

As for the latter, it might seem like adding more content is counterintuitive to a quicker pace. But because action and dialogue move the story forward in a concrete manner, you can always rely on them to improve slow pacing.

5. Fine-tune your dialogue

Speaking of dialogue , it's pretty critical to most stories, both in terms of plot and drawing in readers. Indeed, a conversation between characters is usually much more impactful than a narrator relaying similar information.

But dialogue loses its impact if the conversation goes on for too long — so for better, sharper dialogue, be concise . Say you’re writing a story in which two characters have an argument. You might be tempted to go on for paragraphs to convey emotion, tension, and meaning, but all this can fit into just a few sentences. Like so:

“Nice of you to show up. What were you doing, if not getting groceries?” “Thanks for the warm reception. I had a meeting. Kind of an important one.”

For more dialogue-specific writing tips, check out this post — or the video below!

6. Show, don’t tell

In a similar vein, while you may have already heard this advice , it bears repeating: show, don’t tell as often as possible. For those who aren’t really sure what that means, it’s easiest for us to, well, show you! Here’s a passage from Sally Rooney’s Normal People that exemplifies this rule:

He wakes up just after eight. It’s bright outside the window and the carriage is warming up, a heavy warmth of breath and sweat. Minor train stations with unreadable names flash past… Connell rubs his left eye with his knuckles and sits up. Elaine is reading the one novel she has brought with her on the journey, a novel with a glossy cover and the words "Now a Major Motion Picture" along the top.

As you can see, it’s pretty hard to completely eliminate telling from your prose — in fact, the first sentence in this passage could qualify as “telling.” But the rest is “showing,” as it paints an evocative picture of the scene: the bright, warm carriage in the train that's rushing past other stations, the girl reading the glossy novel in the opposite seat.

If you can use all five senses to convey the scene, all the better. Tell us not just what the central character sees, but also what they hear, smell, taste, and feel in order to truly immerse the reader in the scene.

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7. But don’t reveal TOO much

While you want your scene-by-scene descriptions to be as “showy” as possible, don’t reveal too much to readers about your plot and characters. This is the idea behind Hemingway's  “Iceberg Theory,” which posits that you should only provide readers with “the tip of the iceberg” — the most essential part of the story.

Many writers create elaborate histories for their characters, or have long-reaching plans for them beyond their current works. But readers only need to know the “here and now,” so to speak. Giving them too much information will overwhelm them, and likely cause them to put your book down in favor of something simpler.

So while you might include a bit of backstory or foreshadowing every so often, it’s best to keep most of this info to yourself. This also works on another level, in that you can reveal tantalizing drips of information as the story progresses, which will pique readers’ interest rather than lose it. (Two writing tips for the price of one!)

8. Consider your themes

On a related note, the underwater part of the “Hemingway iceberg” not only consists of backstory, but also important themes. This is another aspect to contemplate during the writing process: what are you trying to say about society and/or the human condition? And how can you convey those themes in a subtle yet effective way?

Common literary themes include love, loss, and the importance of doing the right thing. Your themes will depend on your genre and subject material, but they may also relate closely to your personal beliefs and experiences. Try to embrace this, as writing what you know is a great way to infuse your story with genuine emotion.

9. Be careful with POV

Your narrator is your reader’s gateway into the story, so be careful with point of view. Don’t make your narrator’s voice too specific, as they need to speak in an accessible and relatable way for readers — and a non-stereotypical way if they happen to speak in a certain dialect. (For help with this, you might consider getting a sensitivity reader .)

Also remember that, while omniscient narration is the most flexible way to tell your story, it also requires the most discipline as an author. An omniscient narrator can easily move too rapidly among storylines, causing mental whiplash for readers.

To avoid this , remember our tip about having your outline in mind at all times! That way, even if you have an omniscient narrator, they shouldn’t get too far off track.

10. Write as often as you can

Now we’re getting into the more process-based writing tips. Write as much as possible is one of those tips you’re surely tired of hearing, but the reason it’s so common is because it works!

The only way you’re ever going to finish writing a book is by sitting down and writing it , so work on your story as often as you can. Write whenever and wherever you have a bit of downtime — on the bus, in a long line at the grocery store, waiting for your laundry, etc. It might feel strange to write on your phone rather than on a laptop at your desk, but you’ll get accustomed if you do it often enough.

If you can't figure out what to write, we have some awesome writing prompts to give you creative inspiration , writing exercises to flex those writing muscles , and even writing scholarships (if you're a student) to help you out! You can also check out these great opening lines , our guide to getting started with creative writing or watch the video below to inspire you.

11. Ask yourself questions

One way to ensure you’re doing your best, most creative writing is to question yourself constantly . It’s easy to get complacent with your writing, even if you’re technically meeting your word count goals . But if you’re always challenging yourself, you’ll see every bit of potential in your story and fulfill it as you progress.

A few good questions to ask yourself might be:

• Have I given my characters realistic goals and motivations that manifest throughout the story?
• How does each scene contribute to either the plot or our understanding of the characters ?
• Is there a big reveal , and if so, am I building toward it sufficiently?
• Does the perspective /narration style feel true to the story I’m telling?

12. Write now, edit later

That said, don’t challenge yourself so much you become too paralyzed to write. When in doubt, just skip over it, or write a crappy version of it for now. Write now, edit later is the approach of countless authors, and if it works for them, it can work for you too!

We won’t really touch on editing here, since this is a list of writing tips, not editing tips. But if you’re interested in the “later” part, you can check out this guide on how to edit a book. And remember: you don't have to go it alone — the Internet is chock full of writing groups willing to give you constructive criticism , not to mention great tools to edit and get the job done.

13. Read your work out loud

Many of the best writers' and editors' writing tips include reading aloud what you write in order to check it for inconsistencies and awkward phrasing. This tactic particularly helps weed out long, unwieldy sentences, and it's a godsend when you're working out how to write speech that sounds true to your characters..

For bonus points, you might even stage a reading with a group of friends (or fellow writers) where each person reads the dialogue of a different character. This will give your writing more “distance” and help you see its flaws more easily. If you do stage a reading, remember to take notes, so you can remember what to fix afterward!

14. Make it short and sweet

As Polonius said, brevity is the soul of wit, so keep your writing as short and sweet as you can. This will both entice readers and help you avoid flowery prose , which tends to be a dealbreaker for readers and agents alike.

Of course, if you’re writing literary fiction, you do want your writing to sound intelligent. How can you do this without going on for paragraphs at a time? The answer is by making strong word choices, especially when it comes to verbs . Don’t dilute your story with adverb-y sentences — get down to business and tell us what the characters are doing.

15. Get rid of distractions

Yes, this is probably one of the hardest writing tips to follow — especially for those of us who enjoy working from noisy coffee shops and taking frequent Netflix breaks . But the more you eliminate distractions, the better your writing will become. Here are some ideas on how to enter deep focus mode:

• Write on a computer with no WiFi
• Use the Pomodoro technique
• Set your phone to airplane mode or put it in a different room
• Work in a quiet space, like your local library
• Avoid working alongside friends, unless they really do increase your accountability (but be honest with yourself about this!)

16. Work through crises of confidence

In every writer’s life, there comes a point where they second-guess their entire endeavor. This will no doubt happen to you, too — maybe you’ll notice a major plot hole halfway through, a theme you have no idea how to incorporate, or you'll simply hit a creative wall .

Fear not: every writer who’s ever completed a book has gotten through this. But how can you work through such writerly crises without bashing your head against the wall?

If you ask us, the best solution is to return to your early notes and original outline. Look back to see if there’s anything there that can help you — you may have forgotten about some critical component, or it may help you see things in a new light.

And if that doesn’t work, you might just need some time away from this particular project. Take a break for a day or two, then come back to it with fresh eyes. But whatever you do, don’t give up! Remember, every writer’s been through this same thing. Think of it as your initiation, and refuse to let it break you.

17. Listen to feedback

Now for another one of those writing tips that we all struggle with. Throughout the process of writing, and definitely after you’re finished, you should share your work with other people: your friends, family, writers’ groups (both in person and on the Internet ), and your editor(s).

Accepting and actioning critical feedback is one of the most difficult parts of being a writer. Yet it’s also one of the most important skills to have. Because the feedback you receive from friends and second readers is the only window you have into other people’s views — until you publish and it's too late.

So try not to view criticism as harsh, but as helpful. It might just save you from literary infamy later! On that note…

18. Kill your darlings

Sometimes you’ll pen a passage that’s so beautiful, so nuanced, so masterfully constructed that you want to frame it — but it doesn’t really contribute anything to the larger work. It’s a distraction, and you know in your heart that your book would be better off without it.

What to do now? You probably know the answer, even if you don’t want to admit it: you have to kill your darlings. This most often refers to removing an irrelevant or otherwise distracting passage, but it may also be your title , an element of your narration, or even an entire character.

In any case, if it doesn’t add to the story, consider dropping it. Of all our writing tips, this one is perhaps the most important for writers of short stories and flash fiction , since you don’t have any room to waste! Remember, you can always save it to re-use later.

19. Just keep writing

How do prolific, successful authors manage to turn out so many books? Basically, by keeping calm and carrying on. Stephen King writes 2,000 words every single day, even on holidays. Jane Austen wrote each day just after breakfast without fail. Kafka wrote in the wee hours of the morning, barely sleeping as a result.

Now, Jane Austen never had a smartphone distracting her, so that was kind of an unfair advantage. But you do still need to at least  attempt  a similar lifestyle, and keep writing with as much consistency and focus as possible!

This is one of the best writing tips we can give any author, fiction or non-fiction, short-form or long. Remember that it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and keep your head down until you hit that final blessed page.

20. Keep publishing in mind

Last but certainly not least on this list of writing tips, we’ll cover the potential of publishing your book once it’s finally finished. Though it's the final step in the process, thinking about it as you write can really motivate you! Not to mention it's good to have some idea of your plan when you cross that finish line.

For example, if you go the traditional publishing route , you should consider how you might pitch your book to agents. What makes your story unique, and why would they want to represent it? If you start writing with the aim to publish, you can consciously highlight these elements in the story.

On the other hand, if you’re thinking about self-publishing , the adventure truly does begin once you’ve finished the manuscript ! After a round or two of editing and getting a book cover, you should be set to put your book up on Amazon and start selling.

There are pros and cons to both these sides. Luckily, if you’ve gotten to this point, the hard part is over; you’ve managed to write the book of your dreams, and now what you do with it is up to you!

And if you haven't quite gotten there yet, know that it's never too late. Writing is a lifelong challenge, but it's also one of the most rewarding things you can pursue. So go forth and tell the story you've always wanted to tell — we believe in you. ✍

Did we miss anything? Tell us your best writing tips in the comments below!

3 responses

Kalyan Panja says:

03/08/2019 – 07:19

Thanks for sharing this inspiring article which can help many to decide on the choices they make to write better and engaging articles.

Lost-Identification says:

13/08/2019 – 12:16

Do you have any recommendations for a book to help improve writing? I've been reading books like, "The Anatomy of Story" by John Truby, "Dialogue: The art of verbal action for the page, stage, and screen" by Robert Mckee, and just reading a wide genre of books.

↪️ Phil Slattery replied:

16/10/2019 – 04:32

Read The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. It has been a Bible for some great writers since the 1930's. It's updated periodically. It is short, concise, and clear; exactly what writing should be. It helped me immensely. A very concise guide that helped me immensely with punctuation is Webster"s New World Guide to Punctuation. Wonderfully concise and clear work. This won't cover every debatable nuance of punctuation, but it will cover everything you need to write well.

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Stanford Creative Writing Program

The Stanford Creative Writing Program, founded in 1946 by Wallace Stegner, has become one of the nation’s most distinguished creative writing institutions. After almost 80 years, the program continues to evolve while also respecting its original vision of recruiting and supporting talented writers, offering exceptional creative writing instruction and mentorship, and inspiring undergraduates to develop their own unique creative written expression.

In the 1940s, E. H. Jones generously created the Wallace Stegner Fellowship, now considered the most prestigious creative writing fellowship in the U.S. for emerging writers. Dr. Jones also made possible the Jones Lectureships, which are limited, fixed-year teaching appointments, allowing exceptional Stegner Fellows some time and support to prepare a manuscript for publication, hone their teaching skills, and transition to a longer-term teaching career elsewhere.

The original framework of term-limited appointments allowed for a consistent flow of selected Stegner Fellows into the Jones Lectureship. However, over time this framework of term-limited appointments was not followed.

In the past two years, the School of Humanities and Sciences leadership and the Creative Writing Academic Council faculty have been working to formulate necessary changes in the program and to identify additional resources to meet its growing needs. A Working Group of Creative Writing Academic Council faculty held listening sessions and discussions.

Now, after thoughtful deliberation, the Working Group has recommended restoring the original intent of the Jones Lectureships: one-year appointments with the possibility of renewal for a limited term, up to a total of five years. This change will again allow Stegner Fellows the opportunity to apply to be Jones Lecturers once they have completed their fellowships. In other words, the Jones Lectureships are not being eliminated; they are only being term limited, as was the original intent of the program, so that the Stegner Fellows have an opportunity to teach Creative Writing courses at Stanford. We plan for there to be as many lecturers in the Program in five years’ time as there are today, and we expect to offer more classes then than now.

The university, school, and numerous generous donors are committed to not only the excellence of the program but also its growth. This means increasing the number of Creative Writing classes to better meet high student demand as well as ensuring competitive compensation for both the lecturers and fellows. We will provide more updates in early fall quarter about the Creative Writing Program and how it will continue to be one of the preeminent programs in the nation.

We understand that these changes to the Jones Lectureships will be met with mixed reactions. However, we firmly believe that the changes advance the program’s pedagogical mission and provide promising writers with the resources to complete their books and obtain appointments at other colleges and universities.

Throughout the history of the program, the Jones Lecturers—both those who are here now and those who have been lecturers in the past—have helped make Stanford Creative Writing what it is today, and we are truly grateful to them for their significant contributions to the program’s mission.

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How to Be a More Creative Person: Strategies for Everyday Creativity

Boost your creativity in everyday life with these practical strategies.

Have you ever wondered how to be creative in your everyday life and spark new ideas effortlessly? Anyone can develop creative skills daily. Whether you want to solve problems more effectively, have a creative mind at work, or enrich your personal life, nurturing creativity is essential. 

This article will discuss practical strategies to unlock your creative potential, enabling you to bring fresh, creative ideas and innovative solutions to everything you do. By incorporating these techniques into your daily routine, you will realize that the creative process is not an occasional spark but a way of life.

Understanding creativity

The whole world around us can be viewed from different points of view. Creative work can be an idea you express, a solution you propose, or an opportunity you find. It is the ability to combine the incompatible, try new perspectives, leave your comfort zone, and embrace the risk of failure.

In his book, ’ Steal Like an Artist , ’ Austin Kleon says:

"Creativity is about taking risks, and doing things that make you uncomfortable."

Today, there is much evidence that companies value creativity — experts have found a strong connection between creativity and financial performance. According to a 2023 Lytho study, 89% of professionals believe creative work is vital to achieving business goals.

There are several basic psychological features of a person that characterize their creativity:

High level of intelligence: Make sure to distinguish this from the level of education since some great inventors didn’t have a high level of education. Let's remember Edison, for example.

Flexibility of thinking: Logical and analytical thinking are needed for problem-solving, and we have already encountered this. The need for flexible thinking arises when circumstances change, and you are dealing with something new.

The creator’s life position: This is confidence in your choices, rejection of stereotyped thinking, excellent imagination, and a great need for freedom of self-expression. Also, it is the ability to see a new essence in a long-known subject and generate creative juices for its transformation.

Common barriers to creativity

The use of template approaches is a severe barrier to the development of creativity. To overcome it, it is necessary to decide on at least minor changes in everyday behavior, habits, and daily routine.

Stereotypes, including age, profession, gender, status

Excessive focus on approval, including the desire to do right and a neurotic need for approval

Low self-esteem

Stress factors of the current situation

Overcoming the fear of failure

Often, people are unaware of their desires but are simply afraid of not meeting the commonly imposed standards or scenarios of a "successful life." A person can depend on public opinion, and if they don’t meet specific standards or live up to other people's expectations, this can lead to intensely negative experiences and the perception of failure as a personal defeat.

Overcoming the fear of failure helps develop analytical abilities and an understanding of your needs. Desire is formed in a conditional place in the human mind. Learning to look at yourself from the outside is essential to understanding its origin and controlling the fears associated with failure.

"The only way to find your voice is to use it." – ’ Steal Like an Artist ’ by Austin Kleon 

​​"You don’t need to take a lot of time, or wait until you’re in the right mood. You just need to get started." – ’ Steal Like an Artist’ by Austin Kleon 

Actionable tips to boost creativity

Creative thinking requires practicing, improving , and experimenting with original ideas. Ultimately, different tactics work for each of us. Here are three simple things you can start doing to awaken your inner creative potential.

Daily practices

Creativity can be a ritual added to your daily routine , such as exercise or healthy eating. Find time each day or week to engage in creative activities you enjoy. Allowing your brain to enjoy and explore creative space will help strengthen it when you need to "turn on" creativity in other areas of life. 

Freewriting is considered writing everything that comes to mind without the rules and standards of conventional writing. It is unnecessary to edit such a text. Most often, it needs to make more sense. But rereading it with a "fresh mind" in search of creative thoughts can be helpful. 

Freewriting is not about excessive mental stress but about expressing thoughts on paper in an accessible format. Allow the flow of thoughts, and refrain from limiting yourself to lexical or grammatical norms. This will only slow down the process. The faster you write, the less chance you give analytical thinking to criticize the text. It's a great way to look at a situation differently and give your brain the green light for the most creative, unique, and daring decisions. 

"The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them." – ’Big Magic’ by Elizabeth Gilbert

Doodling not only relieves stress but also helps people understand new information better. During a meeting or a phone conversation, we often pick up a pen and scribble something on paper, such as an unconscious drawing. This is not because of boredom but because it is easier for the brain to maintain concentration and remember information. There are no rules in doodling. Patterns can be both abstract and thematic. You can apply and combine classic drawing techniques. In this technique, neither the paper nor what the drawing is applied to is essential. You can use colored or simple pencils, pens, markers, felt-tip pens, or liners. Listen to favorite podcasts or book summaries in the Headway app , take a beautiful sketchbook, and start your creative endeavors, combining the pleasant with the useful.

For years, people have used journaling as a way to relieve stress. In-depth research by American professor Joshua Smith has shown that written emotional expressions can significantly improve a person's physical health, psychological well-being, physiological functioning, and overall functioning. You might have seen stylish and beautiful diaries on social media, but that doesn't mean yours has to look like them. 

Ideas and inspiration can sometimes come to us at unusual times and places: in line at the store, at the bus station, or in the middle of the night. Your journal doesn't have to be just words. Do not hesitate to conduct it in a free form: draw, make diagrams, paste photos, use watercolors, and make collages. Everything depends on your imagination because sometimes words are not enough.

Mindset and lifestyle

Solitude has mental health benefits and positively influences mind wander and creativity.

It is a freedom of self-discovery and allows you to focus on your thoughts, emotions, and aspirations without external influence. It helps to define your values ​​and set priorities, considering only your inner feelings.

Researchers have found that social isolation increases activity in neural circuits associated with imagination. When the brain lacks social stimulation, it activates its capabilities to fill the void.

So, go for a walk. Imagine yourself as a tourist—plan a route, visit a place you have long dreamed of, or visit a museum. To make the walk more pleasant, turn on your favorite playlist. Use your alone time to recover and do something you enjoy. It can be drawing, self-care, dancing, or knitting. 

“A river of material flows through us. When we share our works and our ideas, they are replenished. If we block the flow by holding them all inside, the river cannot run and new ideas are slow to appear. In the abundant mindset, the river never runs dry.” ― Rick Rubin, ’ The Creative Act: A Way of Being.’

“Ideas are always coming through. And an artist is free to release them with the faith that more will arrive. If we live in a mindset of scarcity, we hoard great ideas.” ― Rick Rubin, ’ The Creative Act: A Way of Being.’

Environmental changes

It has been proven that body movement stimulates our mind. A simple walk or bike ride can spark ideas and inspire you to think creatively. 

Nature serves as a great reset. Constantly staring at your computer and phone, bombarded with information, can overwhelm your mind. Take a walk in a local park or go on a short road trip. Unplug from your phone and allow your mind to relax. Disconnecting from the rest of the world can help break free from a creative rut.

“Of all the great works that we can experience, nature is the most absolute and enduring. We can witness it change through the seasons. We can see it in the mountains, the oceans, the deserts, and the forest. We can watch the changes of the moon each night, and the relationship between the moon and the stars.” ― Rick Rubin, ’ The Creative Act: A Way of Being’

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a technique for generating many ideas in a short time, and mind mapping is a technique for visually organizing and structuring those ideas. During a brainstorming session, participants freely generate ideas without preconceived structure or order. Once the brainstorming session is complete, the ideas can be organized and structured using a mind map.

"Divergent thinking is about generating as many ideas as possible, no matter how wild or impractical they may seem." – ’Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All’ by Tom Kelley and David Kelley 

Mind mapping

Mind maps can help you organize and understand detailed knowledge, making it easier to study and learn . They can also be used to take notes and summarize information, making it easier to review and digest information.

"Visualization can be a powerful tool in the creative process, helping to clarify and organize your thoughts." – ’Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All’ by Tom Kelley and David Kelley 

Brainstorming can be used as a team-building activity to encourage collaboration and creativity. It is often used in product development and innovation to generate new ideas and concepts.

"Instead of narrowing your focus, widen it. Allow all possibilities to be on the table." – Rick Rubin , ’The Creative Act: A Way of Being’

Here are some exercises that will help stimulate your brain and train your creative side:

In one minute, write the maximum number of ways to use napkins/candles/bread, etc.

Set aside 30-45 minutes for the creative activity you liked most in childhood. This activity can be drawing, appliqué, sculpting, or writing poems.

Delusion generator: List what, for example, a webinar and a bear have in common (at least 10 points!). Or feet and pictures.

Unusually perform an ordinary task. It can be anything: do with your left hand what you usually do with your right, go to work by a different route, and change your interface settings.

How art can spark creativity

Art is a window into the past , allowing us to study and understand historical contexts and cultural changes. Through art, we can share stories and experiences, and it promotes compassion and understanding between different generations and cultures.

Art evokes emotion, challenges perception, and encourages conversation. Art allows us to express ourselves and, at the same time, find a common language with others. Self-expression, self-awareness, and the development of emotional intelligence are all facilitated by art. Creating or consuming art develops creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills.

Art therapy , in particular, is recognized as an effective way to improve mental health. Through painting, sculpture, or other art forms, people can work through their psychological trauma, find peace, and improve their emotional well-being. When we create art, we lift our spirits, improve our problem-solving abilities, and open our minds to new ideas.

Professor Semir Zeki at the University of London claimed that when we look at great art, our brains are stimulated in the same way we are stimulated when we fall in love. Art increases dopamine levels , a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain's reward and pleasure centers.

In-depth solutions to creative blocks

If you are still in a creative rut or encounter other obstacles on your way to unlocking your potential, here are some tips on how to deal with them.

Overcome your fear

" I don’t want to be afraid of bright colors, or new sounds, or big love, or risky decisions, or strange experiences, or weird endeavors, or sudden changes, or even failure. " – ’Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear ’ by Elizabeth Gilbert

In her book, ’ Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, ’ Elizabeth Gilbert suggests that fear is the first and main obstacle to a creative life, which does not necessarily have to be the life of a great writer or actor. 

Take a walk

"The best way to get over a creative block is to walk away from it." – Austin Kleon, ’Keep Going: 10 ways to stay creative in good times and bad.’

Kleon advocates the power of physical movement, like walking, to clear the mind and spark new ideas. Stepping away from work can also help reset your thinking.

Create a “bliss station”

"You need to have a place to go to be creative. A place where you can be yourself." – Austin Kleon, ’ Keep Going: 10 ways to stay creative in good times and bad.’

A “bliss station” is a dedicated space to focus entirely on your creative work. This space is free from distractions and designed to inspire you, making it easier to get unstuck.

Stay playful

"Play is the work of the child, and sometimes the work of the adult, too." – Austin Kleon, ’ Keep Going: 10 ways to stay creative in good times and bad.’

Embracing a playful mindset can help overcome creative blocks. Kleon suggests that approaching work with a playful attitude can open up new possibilities and alleviate the pressure to perform.

Further learning and resources

These books can help you boost your creativity and learn more about the comprehensive development of your personality. This book list inspired this article. Dive deeper.

’ B ig Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear ’ by Elizabeth Gilbert

Creative life is a much broader concept. It is a life driven by curiosity, not fear. Although the paths and results of a creative life differ for everyone, I can guarantee you one thing: a creative life is a fulfilled life. Life is fuller, happier, more spacious, and a lot more interesting. Living this way constantly and persistently extracts hidden gems, which is already an art. Great magic never disappears from creative life.

’ Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative ’ by Austin Kleon

“Your brain gets too comfortable in your everyday surroundings. You need to make it uncomfortable. You need to spend some time in another land, among people that do things differently than you. Travel makes the world look new, and when the world looks new, our brains work harder.”

“Read deeply. Stay open. Continue to wonder.”

The author builds the book on the theory of healthy inspiration. It's about finding ideas and tools to help you create your style. Thanks to examples, illustrations, and tips, you will learn to process and rethink other people's ideas and make your masterpieces. 

Nothing is original, so embrace influences, learn from others' work, remix, and reinvent to forge your path. Follow your interests wherever they lead you - what seems like a hobby can become your life's work. So search, imitate, create!

’Keep Going: 10 ways to stay creative in good times and bad’ by Austin Kleon

The book aims to help individuals overcome creative blocks, navigate challenges, and produce meaningful work despite obstacles. Kleon recommends establishing a daily routine or ritual to maintain a consistent creative practice. 

’ The Creative Act: A way of being’ by Rick Rubin

The Creative Act: A Way of Being offers 78 philosophical reflections on being an artist and creator. Rubin emphasizes that everyone is an artist, offers mental frameworks for creating and overcoming obstacles, and helps readers understand how to operate as an artist. He delves into the creative process and how it shapes our lives. 

Rubin draws on diverse sources such as philosophy, psychology, and spiritual practices to explore the nature of creativity, the role of intuition and inspiration, and the importance of embracing failure and uncertainty. 

"The act of creation is not about making something out of nothing, but about uncovering the hidden truth that already exists within you."

Rubin revolutionized the music industry by merging popular and underground music and creating an innovative sound. He achieved critical and commercial success, receiving numerous awards such as a Grammy , an honorary degree from New York University, and Hitmaker of the Year at Music Week's 2020 Awards.

’Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential Within Us All’ by Tom Kelley, David Kelley

This is a valuable book about design thinking, which is discussed more and more now. Design thinking means finding the middle ground between technology (feasibility), business (viability), and people (desirability). Apple, Google, General Electric, and leading companies use design thinking. However, more than one technology is needed to develop a successful product. At the center of their development, they put a person in and, at the same time, apply empathy. This helps them better understand the real needs of people and develop products that meet their needs.

The best news is that design thinking can be developed, of course. The book describes the methodology for developing innovative solutions.

’Awaken Your Genius’ by Ozan Varol 

Varol emphasizes that genius involves more than intelligence; it's about perspective and the courage to act on unique insights. His main message is to stay curious and open-minded.

"Genius isn’t about being the smartest person in the room. It’s about seeing what others don’t and acting on it."

Cultivating curiosity and openness to new experiences and ideas is crucial for unlocking your creative potential.

"Curiosity is the engine of creativity. The more curious you are, the more doors you open to innovation."

Unlock your creative potential with the Headway app

Creativity isn't a rare gift; it's a mindset and yours for the taking. You can develop your skills and deepen your knowledge with our best creativity , art , and design book list. But many may think that this is a ton of information! Yet, Headway knows how to help you.

Enjoy the Headway book summary app, and grow constantly. It is so convenient to listen to or read a book's summary and key points for just 15 minutes. You have one app and thousands of books in it. Fabulous! 

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Become a Better Writer by Reading: 5 Ways Reading Improves Writing

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Dec 1, 2021 • 5 min read

Aspiring authors who develop strong reading habits will learn a lot from the books they consume. Try “reading to write” as a way to discover creative writing strategies, word choice strategies, and syntax control that can supplement your own writing skills.

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How to Write Better Job Descriptions

Learn how to write job descriptions that attract top talent.

Table of Contents

Do you wonder why you’re not getting great job applicants? You might want to take a closer look at how you write your job descriptions. Instead of focusing on getting a large number of applications, you should concentrate on attracting the right types of employees to hire for your business . 

Your job listing will be many candidates’ first impression of your company. While you want to avoid keyword stuffing, you also don’t want to fill your listing with cliches or fluff. So how do you create a more effective job description to attract the best candidates? Business owners, recruiters, marketing managers and career experts outlined the basics.

What to include in your job description

When you are writing your job description, you want to include information about the following things:

Company culture

A good job description goes deeper than a typical list of skills, tasks and role requirements. To attract the best applicants to your position, give them a feel for your company culture so you can hire for a cultural fit , said Jean Cook, former business coach for The Alternative Board. 

Company values

Rebecca Barnes-Hogg, founder and former CEO of YOLO Insights, shared similar views, stating that quality employees will invest in businesses that reflect their own interests and values.

“They want to understand your products and what you stand for,” she said. “Your ad needs to tell them that. The first few sentences need to capture the candidate’s attention. Like any effective sales pitch, make it about them and their interests.”

Salary information

Jaynine Howard, founder and career strategist at JJ Howard & Associates, recommends being upfront about salary in a job description. Many applicants will turn down an offer at the last minute after being informed of the pay, she added. Clearing this up from the start will prevent you and your applicants from wasting time.

Call to action (CTA)

Michael Lan, senior resume consultant at Resume Writer Direct, recommends including application directions that contain a specific CTA. Whether it’s to email a specific person, leave a phone message or include a code word in their cover letter, asking applicants to do something extra can help you narrow down your interview pool quickly.

A clear CTA like this “serves as a built-in screening process as you will be able to weed out applicants who are not able to follow directions and demonstrate a clear lack of attention to detail,” Lan said.

How to present a job description

When constructing your job description, keep these tips in mind.

Watch your tone

When you write your job description, you’ll want to use a tone that represents your company’s brand, said Joseph Terach, a director at American Express. For instance, if you’re searching for creative employees, make your job post quirky and amusing. Meanwhile, detail-oriented tech employees may do better with concrete lists of necessary skills.

Make it easily digestible

Since many people are distracted and rushed, they will likely respond better to listings that are easy to read or scan, especially on mobile devices. Don’t overwhelm your candidates with useless information or lengthy paragraphs.

Steve Dempsey, Head of People at Aquent, recommends organizing key responsibilities with bullet points and separating sections with descriptive headers.

“Most job seekers are scanning,” he said. “They are on the hunt for the right job and will look at a job post and scan the details before deciding to apply or to ignore it.”

Jan Hudson, COO of Surf Search, agrees. “Most job candidates search job boards on their phones now. Keep it simple and always use bullet points.” She also suggests using the headings “Responsibilities” and “Requirements” before bulleted lists for added clarity.

Light humor can make candidates remember your listing and want to apply. Chris Mindel, copywriter at AdsIntelligence Marketing, uses subtle jokes in his job descriptions. “It makes the applicant smile when they think about your company,” he said. “They’re more likely to apply.”  

Writing your job description

For your next open position, you can write a better job description by following these two suggestions.

Make it easy to read 

Consider using this structure for your job description: a two-sentence opening pitch about your company, followed by two bulleted lists under the headings “Responsibilities” and “Requirements” and a one-sentence CTA asking the applicant to click a link to fill out an application.

Pinpoint important info

For better readability and a higher response rate, make sure to include the important information about job duties, skills, tasks and necessary experience in the “Responsibilities” and “Requirements” lists.

Job description templates

Supplier quality manager.

Hudson provided the following job description, which attracted candidates with excellent qualifications in the life sciences field:

Global medical devices leader seeks a Supplier Quality Manager to lead a supplier quality team in the development of new Class III medical devices. The Supplier Quality Manager will lead supplier quality initiatives and qualifications as well as provide mentoring and oversight of a supplier quality team. Travel is expected to be around 25 percent, both domestic and international.   

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering required; advanced degree preferred
• 8-plus years of relevant experience in medical devices, preferably Class III
• A background in medical device product development
• 5-plus years of leadership experience
• Strong management and leadership skills to ensure management, growth and development of personnel
• Previous supervisory experience
• Strong statistical and analytical skills
• A track record of accomplishment managing multiple competing projects or programs
• The ability to travel up to 25 percent, both domestic and international
• Quality certifications, such as ASQ CQA, CBA, AQA, RAB and CQE, strongly preferred
• Lead auditor certification preferred
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Visio
• Strong working knowledge of Quality System regulation (QSR/FDA regulation) and ISO 13485 standards
• Design control and validation experience is a plus

Responsibilities:

• Manage investigation nonconformance issues identified for device components
• Ensure compliance of supplier files
• Identify supplier quality engineering resource requirements and manage resources to provide quality coverage for the new product development programs
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives, including quality system and supplier qualification procedures
• Manage supplier quality team

Dustin Diehl, former director of strategy and performance at Digital Current, provided this quirky job post aimed at a creative content marketer. Notice the use of headings and humorous tone.

Content Strategist

This is probably, what, the seventh job ad you’ve seen today? 10th? Hey, if it’s your first, we feel lucky! We understand that finding a new job can be tough, so we want to make this as easy as possible.

What are you hiring for?

A content strategist!

What exactly is that?

If you have to ask, you may not be right for the job.

OK, well, what’s Digital Current’s definition of a content strategist?

Fair question! There are lots of different ways to interpret the role of a content strategist, so here’s our take:

At DC (that’s our abbreviation for Digital Current, not the comic book company, although that would be awesome ─ we’ll ask you about your favorite Justice League member during your interview, don’t worry), our content strategists:

• Are digitally savvy
• Understand the roles of content strategy and content marketing in today’s digital marketing landscape
• Have 2-4 years of experience in digital content strategy
• Understand the importance of (and how to develop) personas, buyers’ journey maps and content messaging, including voice, tone and style guidelines
• Can conduct content audits to review existing content performance and quality
• Work with SEO teams to incorporate the latest SEO best practices in their content recommendations and planning
• Are comfortable presenting and speaking with clients
• Can lead creative workshops and editorial planning sessions
• Are always looking for ways to improve and educate themselves, their peers and their clients on the latest happenings in the digital content space

Great! Where do I sign up?

Send us your resume and we’ll set up a call! Can’t wait to meet you.

Best job posting sites

Once your job description is complete, you need to get it in front of potential hires. You can do so easily through job posting sites. On these websites, people looking for new positions can search for opportunities that interest them. The hiring sites will then pull up the jobs most relevant to the query. That means you can sit back and relax as candidates come to you rather than the other way around:

• LinkedIn: The main social media website for professionals, LinkedIn naturally doubles as a popular digital space for posting and finding jobs. You can post a job on LinkedIn in two ways. The first is a traditional job listing. The second is by sharing the listing to your own personal feed for all your followers to see. Then, they can share your listing with their own followers and directly forward it to interested friends.
• Indeed: You can also post jobs to Indeed’s base of 250 million monthly users. You can hold virtual interviews directly through Indeed’s platform and add screener questions to your listings to strengthen your hiring prospects. (For a deeper look into potential hires, you can look at our list of background check types .)
• Monster: With Monster, you can post a job listing for free before buying into paid services. If you seek new employees often, you can contact Monster to arrange a custom plan for your business. Monster also provides thousands of job listing templates from which you can craft your own version.
• Google for Jobs: Through Google for Jobs, you can take steps to rank your listing more highly in job seekers’ Google searches. If you list your jobs on your business’s website, you’ll just need to alter the listing’s HTML to use Google for Jobs. If you use a third party to host your listings, that platform might be integrated with Google for Jobs. If so, you can likely replicate your post on that platform for Google. 
• ZipRecruiter: ZipRecruiter lets you instantly post the same job listing on thousands of different job sites. ZipRecruiter will then send you a list of highly qualified candidates whom you can invite to apply. The platform places a large emphasis on being mobile-friendly for both employers and job candidates.

How to make job descriptions work for you

Whether you’re hiring a senior engineer or an entry-level marketing specialist, it’s important to write concise job descriptions that showcase the most important parts of the position. Adopt good practices, such as using headings, bullet points and clear CTAs, to increase readability and response rate. Don’t be afraid to make your job listing match your company culture. This way, you’ll attract more candidates who fit your organization.

Max Freedman and Brittney Morgan contributed to this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

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