Improving Your Writing Through Your Best Assets

Valerie J. Steimle

In my search to improve my writing, I like to read what other writers do and I often find myself learning from them.  Such is the case with 

Hope Clark who started the Fund For Writers website and newsletter. 

Last year, her writing of encouraging words for writers was very informative. Check this out:

Hope Clark with her dog, Roo at the beach

“When we become a writer, we often have a goal in mind. We envision the "one day" of being a successful writer, which to many means a book. To some it's a special book after several near-misses. To others it's a reputation and a long list of bylines. 

All too soon after we begin this journey, we realize that long-term goal is pretty far down the path . . . almost out of sight. Then we wonder if we are on the right path. That writing gold ring seems too distant to take seriously. Most quit.”

She points out that we can use our assets or our other talents to improve our writing skills by writing about them. What Hope says is that “we underestimate who we are and what we can do. And we greatly underestimate how those identifying factors and talents factor into who we are as writers.

 So think of and write down your top five talents or what you like to do the most besides writing. The sky is the limit as it could be gardening, exercise, reading, baking, organizing, sewing or crafts, parenting; the list can go on forever and this is a whole opportunity of topics to write about.

As Hope says, it does takes time to become a “successful” writer. Meaning earning a fair income from what we create which means others are reading our stuff. But as we are honing our craft in consistently writing day after day and week after week, what are the short term successes we can experience? We can be published online in other areas by submitting articles to magazines, online e-zines and blogs. This opportunity helps give us motivation to keep writing.

            Personally I have learned to diversify my writing.  I have been published under the topics of homeschooling children, book reviews and raising Christian children. It is amazing when you can “google” your name and find how much your writing is available for the public. We can continue to write all we want of whatever we love to do and we can improve our writing skills as we go.

As Hope suggests in what she calls “diversified writing” we can learn:

             

                        1.      how to write better

                        2.      how to find our voice

                        3.      how to develop a platform

                        4.      how to approach agents and editors

                        5.      how to be patient

                        6.      how to appreciate good writing

                        7.      how to write our dream project better

So keep your mind on your goal of writing that great American novel or romance-mystery but add on what interests you and what you have been actively doing for the past five, ten or twenty years and you will double or triple your readership.