I teach writing classes and one-on-one sessions, privately and through Gotham Writers’ Workshops. I’ve written before about ways I think students can get more out of their teachers. But there are other writing teachers in the world, and they have good advice for you, too. I happen to know a few of them, and I happened to ask them. So here are some of the best, most important words of wisdom they shared:
“Obviously write has much as you can, but to give yourself time and space from whatever you create. I used to use the phrase ‘let it bake.’ Write something in the morning, then go out and do something *completely different* and then look at it again the next day. You’ll see mistakes, long sentences, and find a million ways to improve it. Honestly, unless you’re in a newsroom, there is no way to unleash copy into the world the second it hits the page.
This advice can be applied to everything: edit tests, important emails, cover letters, etc. Writing is a constant work in progress. Remember that, and all your dreams will come true.” — Pauline Millard
“Be brutally, devastatingly, awkwardly, embarrassingly, unabashedly honest. Put your blood on the page.
I can always tell when someone is holding back. And if they’re not, I usually have to read their work again to actually critique it, having been so absorbed in it the first time.” — Heather Wood Rudúlph
“I don’t buy for a *second* when high profile writers say they write for 6-8 hours a day. No human being can do *anything* for 6-8 hours a day. Look at office workers, half the time they’re doing something completely unrelated to their jobs when they’re at work. Science has even found that most people can only really concentrate for about 45 minutes to an hour, and then they need a break.
When I was strictly working from home — doing freelance and contract work — I would write for a total of *maybe* 3-4 hours and was usually done with what I needed to do by 3:30 p.m. or 4:00 p.m. And then I would exercie, run errands, etc.
So, if someone is working on a novel, maybe they can tackle a draft of a chapter in a day. Maybe they get a draft of an article done in a day, or two phone interviews. But the idea that “real” writers can slog it out for 8 hours straight is actually physically impossible. And people shouldn’t be so hard on themselves in terms of output.” — Pauline
“Don’t use ‘literally.’ Literally ever. Every time you do I think you’re Rob Lowe from Parks and Recreation and I just can’t with you.” — Heather
“Read your work out loud. Not only can it help you catch grammatical errors, but also unnatural dialogue, clunky phrasing, and even unintended meaning.
I say this as both a poet and as a teacher who needs to communicate clearly—reading out loud is one of the best things you can do for writing, even if you never plan to ‘perform’ your work!” — Britt Gambino
I teach writing classes and one-on-one sessions, privately and through Gotham Writers’ Workshops. I’ve written before about ways I think students can get more out of their teachers. But there are other writing teachers in the world, and they have good advice for you, too. I happen to know a few of them, and I happened to ask them. So here are some of the best, most important words of wisdom they shared: