Tips: Your Toolkit

I’m afraid there’s no right answer to get started as a writer. Each writer comes to fiction in their own way. Whatever draws you to a good story—a gut-wrenching plot twist, a heroic protagonist, a likable villain, a happy ending—is great because it helps keep your passion for storytelling alive. But when it comes to the actual writing, the composition, and craft, all the supposed experts in the field disagree on the right approach. What a beginner needs is good schooling in the basics, the foundations of creative writing.

6 Creative Writing Tools Every Writer Needs

1. NOVELS!
   To write fiction, you’ve got to read fiction—a whole freaking lot of it. Start by reading any and every short story and novel, you can get your hands on. Don’t worry about taking notes or thinking too much into the stories. Just read. Chances are, you’ve already done a lot of it. All writers come to writing through reading first.

Spend as much time as you can spare browsing new book stores, used book stores, and ebook stores. Free ebooks are a great resource that cost little, and they’re all over the place. There are many great free titles out there, especially some classics in the public domain.

2. Notebooks
   Carry notebooks with you as often as you can. I like the solid dependability of a large Moleskine Classic, but buy whatever kind of notebook pleases you the most. This is your happy place. Immediately make a habit out of journaling. Write every day, even if it’s just about the weather or what you had for breakfast.

This is a judgment-free zone, so don’t worry if what you write sucks or doesn’t make sense. Just fill the pages, and when you get to the end of that notebook, buy another one, and then another, and then another. When it becomes harder not to write than it is to write, you’ve accomplished your goal. You’ve made writing into a habit.

3. Software
   Journaling is fine, but it’s not very productive. Once you write stories, you’ll want to use a word processor. We’re beyond typewriters, so I don’t mean those. I mean word processing software. With the rise in ebooks, doing things digitally first makes sense and saves you extra work anyway. Don’t commit yourself to the pain of writing longhand in the 21st century. Though writing longhand has its own therapeutic benefits, typing on a keyboard is much faster.

There are several word processing software options out there, so I will go through the common ones first:
• Microsoft Word — I think they killed that chummy paperclip guy, but Microsoft Word is still the most popular word processor. It gets the job done.
• Pages — This comes with Mac OS X. Like Word, it gets the job done, but it’s not, but it’s not great.
• Open Office — Just as good as Word or Pages, but free. I can condone that.

My advice here is the same as with Notebooks above: use whatever makes you happy. You’ll be spending a lot of time here.

4. Grammar and Style Guides
   Every writer needs firm schooling in grammar do’s and don’ts early. English grammar can take a lifetime to master, which is why there are these handy style guides you can keep around and reference while you’re doing your work.
   These guides, plus a dictionary and a thesaurus (I like dictionary.com for those), are a must-have for every writer’s toolbox.
5. Study of Craft
   Now that you’ve studied grammar, read the fiction you want to write, keep a journal, find the right software, take a step back and study the craft of writing fiction by reading some nonfiction books on the subject.
6. Writing Groups
   Writing groups are my favorite tool of all. They’re a great way to meet other writers and put your skills to the test. Being a part of a writing group and workshopping your stories is the absolute fastest and most surefire way to learn how to write fiction.
   Writing groups provide:
   • Moral support. Other writers understand when you complain that writing is hard.
   • Like-minded people. Share your hopes and dreams with like-minded people.
   • Feedback. The invaluable critique that comes with workshopping manuscripts. They will give you honest feedback even when you don’t want to hear it.
   • Healthy competition. Seeing other people produce work is the best motivation for a writer, not writing.

I love writing groups and believe that every writer should have one in the early stages. However, one warning: if the writing group you find turns out to be a back-patting session, bail immediately. You’ll learn nothing if no one has the courage to tell you the truth, especially when it hurts.