Much of this should sound familiar since you hear me say these things in class ad nauseum.

Six Secrets to Good Writing

1. Read, read, read. Reading is the key to good writing. The more you read, the better the writer you can be. You can never read too much.

2. Write! It’s not written until it’s on the paper. Story telling is a great art, but it is not story writing.

3. Write what you would enjoy reading. You’ll have more fun, and it will be better.

4. Rewrite! No one ever writes anything well the first time. The first draft cannot be the last draft. (I rewrite my work fifty-sixty times—or more). Here’s a tip: read your first draft, and if you think it’s good, you are in trouble. But, if you read it and you see it’s not that good, you are in great shape—to get going. The more you rewrite the better your writing will be.

5. Write for readers. Maybe you understand what you have written, but the writer’s job is to have the reader understand it. Keep in mind: writers don’t write writing, they write reading.

6. Listen. Read your work out loud (pencil in hand) and it will let you hear your own writing. It will almost improve itself.