Catégorie : Writing Tips

Ah, the famous writing tips! For the last ten-fifteen years, aspiring authors, authors and creative writing coach have been sharing writing tips online. Writing books about it. Lauching podcast about it. Nothing but the writing tips that make sense and address the fact that humans are better than computers!

Finding Your Writing Voice: The Pastiche Writing Tip

It is an exercise to help you find your OWN writing voice, not an invitation to plagiarism!!!

That one comes from the creative writing class I took way back then, some twenty years ago, oh dear oh dear.

Still, its a valid writing tip that helps me a lot, especially when I feel a writing block lurking around.

How it works

Here’s the edited definition for writers: a literary piece consisting wholly of borrowed techniques.

You copy the writing style of a other writer, in order to understand how they use words, grammar, how they described, how they develop characters.

VERY IMPORTANT: It is an exercise to help you find your OWN writing voice, not an invitation to plagiarism!!!

It works like this: you pick 3 to 5 novels, from different authors from different eras, and more importantly, different genre.

Choose a novel from Agota Kristoff, Jacques Poulin, Colette, Isaac Asimov and Alessandro Barrico, for exemple.

It will help if you read the whole book before selecting a specific scene, but you can also just select a scene.

After reading the selected scene thoroughly, you write a new story using the style and voice of the author.

Simple enough, but I found it really helps me clear my mind and narrow down my own writing voice, while picking up some great writing techniques.

Writing a pastiche of J.D. Sallinger twenty years ago left me, to this day, with a different perspective on rhythm.

I hope this writing tip will help.

Now, this wanna-be traditionally published author is going back to the mid-point of her current WIP.

Until next time!

PS.: If you liked this post, feel free to buy me a little ko-fi. Thanks a million!

1 tip and no pain to ease your way back into your writing routine

The first week back to work, I completely forgot about that good old tip of mine, which I feel like is probably everybody’s tip to ease their way back to work.

Yeah.

Summer vacations are over. Definitely over.

Work is back. Dozen of emails, yet zero prospect. Translation: oh-so-much things to do, oh-so-much queries to send.

Plus, we’re surrounded by the buzzing sound of debut novels. When I was working in the bookstore business, I was looking forward to that time of the year.

Now, I find the amount of debut novels… well, overwhelming to say the least. How on earth my novel, if it ever get traditionally published, or self-published even, will do out and about among so many new titles, so many many, goods books?

With that in mind, getting back to my writing routine was surprisingly difficult. Creative writing is my refuge, my comfort zone. And yet, words were lost and AuthorTube videos over-consumed.

Nothing that a good tip, tested many times, couldn’t fix thought!

Same spot, same time, but with a twist

I love a good work routine.

Precision: I love my work routine. I need to decide the « when’s » of my day. When to eat, when to take a break, when to query clients, etc…

Put me in any kind of desk job 9 to 5, with judgy co-workers and a snobby boss, and you’ll soon see me turned into a yelling-disgusted-with-human-kind monster, who always reads during her lunch hour, keep as much as possible to itself and always, always, always skip the Xmas party.

Nevertheless, going back to a work routine can be challenging, especially you are as lazy as I am and there’s a ton of revision, editing, re-writing to be done before being able to move on to the new exciting writing project.

Therefore, before even starting to work, I would treat myself with a « not every day because a bit expansive tea ». Or I would buy a new book before starting to work. Or I would get myself a real good Monday-doesn’t-have-to-be-horrible breakfast. Or, you get the idea!

Funny enough, the first week back to work, I completely forgot that I used to do that: rewarding myself with stuff that I love.

This Monday, my pre-reward for finishing writing an article for this blog, which I have been procrastinating with for weeks, was a big bowl of frozen yogurt, swimming in a sea of fudge and brownies bits.

Just one big bowl.

I swear.

Until next time!

PS.: A little ko-fi goes a long way. Thanks a million!

Wouh, that’s a cool writing tip. Thanks toddler!

Just wanted to share a quick, cool writing tip have been trying out this week.

It’s nothing new under the sun. In fact, I think I may have heard something similar, back in my college days.

Here’s the writing tip: stop writing while you’re still having fun writing. Even if it means stopping in the middle of a sentence!

The same principle can be applied to a toddler game: stop playing the game before the toddler gets bored with it – trust me and millions of parents on this one.

Sure, there will be some « oh, but I really want to keep going » or some « but I am so close from the word count goal of the day ».

Nevertheless, I swear, it works.

I am looking forward for the next writing session. Plus, it gives me time to brainstorm the scene I left behind or the chapter I’m about to get into.

Not saying I will do this every time, because deadlines, but I will certainly use it whenever I can.

Until next time !