From the King

From the King

A Lesson by Harley Sapphire
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Lets start with some lessons from Stephen King!

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Stephen King's Famous Seven Tips to Write By:

1. Get to the point.

Get to the point quickly. Of course you are going to have some amount of fluff in there to make it an interesting read and not a Wikipedia article, but don't waste your readers time by writing irrelevant information.

2. Write a draft. Then let it rest.

Once you have written that first draft, King recommends putting it away for a little while. Of course the length of that little while is up to you! Whether that's a day or a few months, even a year - giving it space can give you a whole new perspective on your piece.

3. Cut down your text.

When you go back to review it, make sure there is as little "fluff" as possible. This definitely ties back into King's first tip "get to the point."

4. Be relatable and honest.

King always has a repayable and honest voice. He is easy to read because of his diction, syntax and voice.

5. Don’t care too much what others may think.

Everybody is going to have an opinion! Don't care what they think! If they have constructive criticism, listen to it, learn from it and edit your work! But when it comes to parents, friends and other family members opinions on what you are writing about remember that you are entitled to your opinion and interests as much as they are. And more importantly you are entitled to being able to express those opinions.  

6. Read a lot.

Reading a lot can help improve your writing in so many ways. It can improve your vocabulary for one thing, but also give you more insight into grammar and sentence structure if you struggle with that. As well as inspire you! Sometimes when I am reading I come across a quote I like and write it down somewhere to remember it. When reading books on writing, such as Stephen King's memoir, I sometimes I have to put the book down and start writing because I am so inspired by his words of wisdom.

7. Write a lot.

Last but not least, write a lot. Of course this is the obvious one that all writers are going to tell you to do. Hell, if you do anything in your life that you want to get better at - do more of it.


Assignment

Comment down below on how you can listen to at least two tips and incorporate them into your writing/ life to improve your craft!


Another note I'd like to add about King, is comparing our writing skills to a tool box. This visual imagery helped me really understand the different skills and where they should be in my mind when writing. Of course the answer for all of them is that they should be in my subconscious. But I should be learning on how to improve on them every day so that they don't get rusty.



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Added on May 12, 2015
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Author

Harley Sapphire
Harley Sapphire

Seattle, WA



About
Writing has always been a part of my life. I am constantly writing stories, in my journal, blogging - anything to try and express my opinions and emotions as well as ask questions. My name is Harl..