There are only a couple pieces of writing advice I see people consistently agree on:
Write something consistently, even when you don’t want to. If you’re a full time writer, that might be at least one page a day. If it’s just a hobby, it could be less. The important thing is to keep what you are writing somewhere in your head to keep the creative juices flowing eventually.
Read. Read good books/stories to give you an idea of what to do and what’s been done when writing. Read mediocre or even bad books/stories to give you an idea of what not to do and what’s been overdone in writing.
Learn about or experience some stuff to help spark ideas for writing.
To point 3, I heard some author point out, and I think it makes a lot of sense, that reading bad writing can maybe tell you what not to do, but there’s so much good writing out there, more than you could read in a lifetime, that it just doesn’t make sense not to read all the best books. If you read in a world of excellent writing your standards are that high and you can still take lessons from the worst of the best.
Maybe 3a. If you can afford, go someplace new and see if the new environment, new food, new people, if it sparks something in you. Best cure for a writing rut is a new rut
There are only a couple pieces of writing advice I see people consistently agree on:
Write something consistently, even when you don’t want to. If you’re a full time writer, that might be at least one page a day. If it’s just a hobby, it could be less. The important thing is to keep what you are writing somewhere in your head to keep the creative juices flowing eventually.
Read. Read good books/stories to give you an idea of what to do and what’s been done when writing. Read mediocre or even bad books/stories to give you an idea of what not to do and what’s been overdone in writing.
Learn about or experience some stuff to help spark ideas for writing.
To point 3, I heard some author point out, and I think it makes a lot of sense, that reading bad writing can maybe tell you what not to do, but there’s so much good writing out there, more than you could read in a lifetime, that it just doesn’t make sense not to read all the best books. If you read in a world of excellent writing your standards are that high and you can still take lessons from the worst of the best.