5 Quick Tricks to Improve Your Writing
Image Source: (Aaron Burden / Unsplash)
I have some quick tricks I've learned both as a writer and editor to easily improve the quality of your writing. Reading a wide variety of content and actually writing are two great ways to improve your skills. But it's also helpful to develop your writing toolbox. These tips will apply mainly to fiction but can be applied to other genres as well.
#1: Use Plain Language
Readers are pretty smart and can figure out a lot of things, but they will appreciate clear prose over flowery prose. One of my creative writing professors said to write like every word costs money. You want to clearly and concisely convey ideas—don't use five words when one will do.
You also don't want to use fancy words if you don't have to. Readers will appreciate plainer language because it doesn't pull them out of the story. They won't appreciate having to stop and look up "otiose" when you could have said "useless."
#2: Use Said
A dialogue tag tells the reader who is speaking, and their purpose is to help the reader keep track of the conversation. A lot of authors feel like it gets repetitive to use said all the time, so they use words like "demanded," "replied," or "stated." But if you stick to only necessary tags that helps. You can also use action tags to break up the language. Action tags show the reader what the character is doing or feeling. For example, instead of writing: "I don't want to!" Anna shouted. You can show the reader Anna's anger by replacing the tag with an action tag like this: "I don't want to!" Anna threw the contract at John.
#3: Be Specific
Using specific, concrete images helps the reader paint a picture for your story. For example, instead of an oak tree, tell the reader it's a weary oak tree with drooping branches. A description like this should be reserved for things that are important to the story. You don't need to tell the reader about a tree that the character walks by unless you are using it to create a mood or it's tied into the story another way.
#4: Use Sensory Details
Utilizing the senses will immerse the reader in your story and make it more impactful. Authors tend to use sound most frequently, but involving the other senses is important. Being specific here also helps, maybe the is gloomy and smells like rain. Or the air is heavy on your skin.
#5: Vary Sentence and Paragraph Lengths
Readers can get bored when there are sentences that are the same length, or the page is all 4 line paragraphs. You want to use more short sentences than long ones, but varying text flows better. Too many similar sentences begin to sound monotonous, and the reader might lose interest. Mixing it up is much better. It's more interesting and easier to read. Right?