How to Be a Better Writer
Tips, tricks, and hard-won lessons: from creating drafts to working with editors.
I have been a writer my entire adult life. I am self-taught. But I have had the pleasure of writing for some top-notch, cutting-edge magazines and dailies. I have written ten books. I’ve worked at Wired, Details, Esquire, The Baltimore Sun, Mondo 2000, and Make; I have worked with some truly impressive and inspiring editors and authors. I always try to learn from those around me, and so, over the years, I have picked up some very useful tips and tricks on the art and craft of writing. Here are some of the ideas that have changed my work life and my approach to writing. I’d love to hear some of yours.
Cultivating the Writer’s Mindset
For so many years, I read books about writing that prescribed different writing routines and ways of approaching one’s work as a professional writer. None of this worked, and the tension it caused in my life (with each new “ideal” approach vs. my reality) was significant. Eventually, I accepted my actual work style. I let my writing find its own path.
So, what’s my work style?
I procrastinate. I over-research. I compose the article in my head first, and then finally, I get it all down, often in a single burst of writing, dangerously close to the deadline. But I get it done. Usually on time. And ultimately, that’s all that counts. I’ve resigned myself that this is my system, my natural way of working.
That said, good habits free my mind and help me capture ideas before they evaporate.
Separate ‘writer’ and ‘editor’ heads
The first book on writing that I ever read was called Writing with Power. It contained one core concept that changed my early life as a writer: when writing, never try to edit as you go.
Say what you want to say — unencumbered by the constant chatter from that fussy editor in your head. Just get it down. Later, you can have at it. Keep what works, bug-zap the rest.
By separating writing and editing functions, you can convince yourself that you’re just doing the all-important “shitty first draft” (more on that below).
