Traditional Culture Encyclopedia - Traditional customs - How to Become a Writer 4 Ways to Become a Writer
How to Become a Writer 4 Ways to Become a Writer
Method 1: Practice your writing skills
1. Read everything you can. This may not be the beautiful writing life you want to hear about, but it is certainly a sure way to become a writer. Not only will it help you develop your writing skills, learn narrative methods, and train the patience and perseverance that writing requires, but it will also help you understand the writing market: what kind of work is circulating in this market. In addition to making sure that you read a few hours a day, try to read as widely as you can, dipping into a variety of genres and styles. Focus on the genre you want to write in later, but don't limit yourself to it. A good writer must first and foremost be a knowledgeable reader.
Cultivate the ability to recognize good subject matter from bad in your extensive reading. You want your work to be unique. If there are 10 books that are similar to your own, you need to tap into a new perspective.
If you find a favorite book, figure out what makes it special: the dystopian cast of characters, the beautiful writing, or the locale. All of these can be reasons to make your own work popular.
2. Start simple. A collection is more difficult than a complete work, and a complete novel is more difficult than a stand-alone short story, and a complete chronicle is more difficult than a short prose essay. That's not to say that short stories are inferior to novels; Alice Monroe, winner of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature, has never published a novel. Alice Munro, the 2013 Nobel Prize winner, has never published a novel. But it's true that very few writers have made a name for themselves just writing stories.
3. Get a degree in writing. If you want to publish fiction or nonfiction literature, a Master of Arts (M.A.) or Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) in creative writing is the most appropriate path. If you're only interested in more commercially oriented literature, such as science fiction and romance stories, then a degree isn't as important. But a period of study in your field still helps to develop creative thinking, meet writer friends, get helpful feedback, and equates to dedicating two or three years to writing. Many successful writers teach in writing-related master's or undergraduate programs, so if teaching is part of your career aspirations, a degree is a must.
A degree is also about the connections you make during your studies. Teachers and fellow students may all be able to help with the publication of their work at a later date.
A degree doesn't mean a higher level of creative talent, but it doesn't mean that the training is useless.
4. You can get constant feedback on your studies to guide you. In a centralized seminar, fellow teachers can give pertinent advice. Even if you don't have a degree program, it's advisable to form a communication group on your own to help each other, or even just to show your friends your work and talk about your feelings.... Other people's opinions may frustrate or even annoy you from time to time, but it makes you more able to recognize the caliber of your work.
Listen to readers who respect and understand whether this is a work that is ripe for publication or one that has a lot of room for improvement.
5. Submit your work to smaller publishers. There are a number of mature stories or essays that can be submitted to appropriate literary journals. A list of all literary journals can be found at duotrope.com, you just need to organize your manuscript, write a short motivation letter to the editor of the journal, and wait patiently. You may get a lot of rejection letters, and the vast majority of novice writers experience this frustration; don't get frustrated, think of it as training your mind.
Some journals may also charge contributors a fee, but of course this is a necessary price to pay, and magazines may be facing tight budgets; they're not knocking it out of the park.
Method 2: Write just one book
1. Find a theme. Pick a theme that you think will appeal to your readers, and you may need to put pen to paper before it materializes, discovering the meaning of the story as you write. But you need a basic framework before you put pen to paper, for example, the story of a girl growing up in the Ukraine during the Bolshevik Revolution, or a documentary work that reflects the growing importance of commissioned sex schools in the United States. You may not want to think about whether the piece will sell until you've completed the entire book. But proper research can make choosing a topic twice as easy. Perhaps you'll find that the topic you want to write about has been preempted by someone else, and you may need to adjust your thinking.
2. Choose a genre. While hybrid genres are becoming increasingly popular, such as Margaret? Atwood's novels are a blend of literary fiction and science fiction, genre identification helps the writing move forward. Once you're clear on the genre, you can consider whether you want to adhere to the genre's inherent patterns or break out of them. The following are popular genres to consider: Nonfiction Literary
Science Fiction
Microfiction
Action Stories
Horror Fiction
Suspense Fiction
Romance Fiction
Adventure Fiction
Metaphysical Fiction
Political Satire
Limited Word 55 Fiction
Young Adult Fiction (ages 12-25)
Middle Grade Fiction (ages 8-12)
3. Sort out the basic points. These points are the cornerstones of writing: Who: protagonist, supporting characters, antagonist characters.
Narrative point of view: first person, second person, or third person.
Where: the time and place in which the story takes place, the movement of scenes.
What: the main point or plot of the story.
Why: the purpose of the character's actions.
How: the means by which the character achieves his or her purpose.
4. Drafting. Anne? "Shit first drafts," writes Lamott in her classic book, Bird by Bird. Don't shy away from writing a disastrously shoddy and messy first draft that will provide the initial core of your gorgeous final draft. Write one a day without having to show those words to anyone else, but track your progress and slowly refine and improve your ideas one step at a time. Keep improving on the first draft. If you're talented and lucky enough, it may be that the second and third drafts will no longer be difficult to get to, but it may also be that it will take five drafts back and forth, months, a year, or even years, just to straighten out the story, it's hard to say.
5. Once you're ready, seek out some feedback. Too much feedback too soon can kill your creativity and lead you to believe you're going in the wrong direction. But after accumulating enough drafts, other people's opinions will help see where the work stands. You can ask trusted friends, seasoned readers, run a writing workshop, or if you're writing a chronicle, ask an expert in the field to gatekeep advice. If writing fiction, send some chapters to a publisher and get some feedback.
After you get solid feedback, revise a draft or two, then put out an updated version.
6. Proofread your work. One typo on the title page is enough to eliminate interest in reading. You think your work is really mature, then print it out, search for and correct any possible typos, grammatical errors, repetitive wording, etc. You can also read aloud to find solutions to any strange wording or misplaced commas. Proofreading is the final step before your novel takes shape for publication. Don't put too much effort into finding language errors on the first few drafts, both because it's a lot of work and because it's likely to be a wasted effort due to rewriting.
Method 3: Publishing the Book
1. There are three publishing paths to consider: Traditional method. Find an agent who will deliver the book manuscript to the publisher.
Go directly to the publisher with the work. Skip the agent and go straight to the publisher with the manuscript, but getting a publisher directly interested in an unsolicited submission can be difficult.
Self-publishing. Self-publishing is easy to do when you just want to get your work out there. Open online platforms, self-publishing houses, or creating a model altogether are all ways to accomplish this. However, this is difficult to bring money and reputation to the author, and is not recommended for those who want to make a career out of writing.
2. Prepare to submit your manuscript. Whether you want to submit your book to a publisher or agent, there are some basic conventions you should follow: double spacing, an easy-to-read font such as Song, a proper cover page, page numbering, your last name, and the title of your work. You can also look up more information about formatting online. Each publisher may have different requirements for manuscripts.
3. Submit your work to an agent. Don't submit blindly; look for agents from guidebooks and AgentQuery.com who are actively accepting new clients and interested in the genre of your work, and most importantly, find out if they respond positively to unsolicited submissions. It's best to choose agents who accept multiple submissions, so you can submit your book to five agents at the same time instead of spending six months waiting for an agent who nobly never answers to authors. Submit your work to agents. Send a concise, polite query letter that explains a little about your book's genre, its general plot, its fit with the current market, and a brief explanation of your biographical information.
Check each agent's application guidelines. Some may only want to read the query letter and will only ask to read the first two chapters of the book.
Don't send your manuscript to 20 agents at once. You'll get duplicate feedback, and the agent who rejected you may not agree to read your work again unless he's made specific requests for changes. Cherish every opportunity to submit your manuscript.
The most important thing this process requires is patience. It can take months for an agent to respond; don't go crazy checking your e-mail every three seconds.
4. Signing. Finally, someone announces that they like your work and makes an offer. Do you sign a contract with him as soon as possible? Nope. Do enough communication first to find out what he thinks of your book, to confirm his legitimacy, and to confirm that he'll work hard to sell your book. Remember, a legitimate agent will never ask for money up front and will only take a cut of the profit he gets from selling your book "if he can sell your book." After getting a signing offer, it's perfectly fine to let other agents know about it, and some of them may quickly realize your value and reach out to you.
Talk to the agent on the phone, or in person, to get to know more about him as a person and see if the two of you are a good fit.
And the agent does not have to be a good friend of the relationship, but at least there must be *** with the same idea.
An agent who sells books must have some belligerent qualities.
A good agent should also have a lot of social resources, a good sales record, and know where to go to sell your book.
5. Approach publishers. Once you've signed with an agent, you'll spend the next year or two revising it over and over again at the agent's behest until he thinks it's sellable. Then, with a pile of material ready, the agent will take the book and bounce it around from publisher to publisher, and if things go well, get at least one publisher's eyeballs on it. After an anxious wait, a new book would go on sale! If you're lucky enough to get responses from multiple publishers, you and the agent will **** together to decide who to work with.
6. Work with a publisher's editor. And editors on board? Will I see the book on the shelves next week? NO. There's more editing work waiting for you. The editor will make a plan for the look of the book and take care of printing, which lasts about 1 year. There are other details to take care of, such as the front cover, the waistband, the back cover, and a message written at the beginning or end of the book, among others.
7. On the shelves. Everything is in place, you'll be told a release date, and you can't wait for the daily countdown until your book is finally on store shelves and Amazon's virtual shelves. Take a physical copy of your book, weigh it in your hands, and celebrate! Tell yourself it's just getting started.
Method 4: Live a Writer's Life
1. Don't quit your old job. Unless you're already a bestselling author, selling books isn't going to earn you a house or a Ferrari; it's probably just a supplement to your regular income. If you must quit your job, get a part-time job outside of writing, or if you have a degree and your work is good enough, get a teaching job in creative writing. The best way to pursue a pure writer's life is to teach others to write. But such opportunities are rare, and the demands on pre-existing work are particularly high.
Be a teacher at a summer seminar. It pays well, and you often get to teach at a particularly great place.
2. Proper internet marketing. A successful writer probably needs a bit of online exposure. Make your own Facebook fan page and market your book on your Facebook profile. A Twitter account tweets events related to your book. In short, make sure there's a website that links to all the information about you. Start and maintain a blog so that readers can keep track of what you're up to.
Don't be ashamed of self-promotion. Even if you already have a publicist, you still have to get used to dividing your time half writing and half marketing.
3. Host a book tour. If you have a publicist and a book that sells well, then you can go on a book tour to various cities, whether it's in a small bookstore or a big, glamorous auditorium, which is the most direct channel of communication for listening to readers, talking to them, and getting them to buy the book. Publicize the book tour on radio stations and other media.
4. Participate in the Writers Guild socialization. A writer cannot be an island. Attend other writers' events, participate in workshops, build relationships with other writers, and make yourself known to others. Talk to other writers in your field; their expert opinions will help you improve.
5. "Write a second book, then a third?" You can't be complacent and set in your ways just because you've already published a book and had a few well-received speaking tours. In fact, when you sell your first book, you have often already told your editor about the progress of writing your second book, and if not, you need to talk to your agent as soon as possible to figure out what you are planning for your next book. A writer's work is never finished, and if you really want to be a writer, then you always have to be thinking about the next book. Don't panic if you don't have any clue about the second book. Stick to writing snippets every day and soon you'll have new ideas.
TipWhen you don't know how to start writing, read the work of other writers and learn from their wording, paragraphs and descriptions.
Don't give up on a piece of work in the middle of it; temporary difficulties don't prevent it from becoming a masterpiece.
If it helps, draw your own characters or some scenes from the story, this will give you a better idea of the characters and the plot.
Write a short story for the novel you will be writing.
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