5 Common Mistakes New Writers Make, & How to Fix Them

 

All experts were once beginners. Mistakes are unavoidable and simply part of the process. It would be foolish to give up learning piano because you can’t play La Campanella after your first few weeks of training. Don’t stop writing because your first polished story doesn’t yet seem “publish worthy.”

In all things, you won’t start at the top, but you can certainly work your way there. Here are 5 things you can work on to correct mistakes that beginner writers (all of us at one point) make.

FAILURE TO HAVE A CORE IN STORY-TELLING

Have you ever asked the simple question, “What’s your story about?” only to have the writer sit you down for 15 minutes to try and get you to understand the plot? This is because new writers often try to jam so much information and concepts into their story that it becomes cluttered. There are twenty lessons to their main character learns in their story. Fifteen different objectives they have to complete. Ten different antagonists to battle. Complexity can be great when crafted well. But when you are new to writing, complexity can easily become clutter and confusion. If you can’t explain your story in one sentence, such as (Romeo & Juliet is about two young lovers from feuding families who hate one another), you may need to understand your story better. Don’t underestimate the beauty of simplicity.

HOW TO FIX IT:

• Take more time to learn about your story.

• Don’t be afraid to simplify things. Simplifying doesn’t mean dumbing down. The story can still be intricate, but there must be a focus.

• Try telling yourself the story out loud in one sentence. Make alterations and narrow the focus down until you can do this.

TOO MUCH EXPLAINING, NOT ENOUGH DESCRIBING

In other words, new writers don't use the “show don't tell” principle in their writing. As a beginner, it can be hard to remember that readers can't visualize scenes the way you do. Readers need descriptions for your story to become real in their minds. Don’t just tell me the main character is upset and move on. Take the time to show me that he’s angry. Are his eyebrows pulled down so far that wrinkles folded his forehead? Taking the time to show what is going on allows readers to see the world as your character and feel what they are feeling. Don’t give us the truth, give us the evidence. The truth is blunt and doesn’t allow the reader to make their own inferences. The evidence is detailed and visual. It isn’t the ending that gives the story life, it's the details along the way.

Don't give us the truth, give us the evidence. Click to tweet.

HOW TO FIX IT:

• Be more descriptive (Don’t give us the truth, give us the evidence).

• Get rid of sensory or filler words (I heard, I felt). Don’t tell me that, show me it. (The crunch of dead and hardened leaves under my feet filled my ears. The cool breeze stung my open wound.) Describe the events as they happen.

• Use strong verbs to describe the situation. If someone is exhausted, they won’t just “sit down on the couch,” they’ll likely “flop onto the couch.”

IMPATIENCE IN THE REVISING PROCESS

Even successful authors have confessed to rushing to publish their first novel and later regretting it. JK Rowling said that she rewrote the opening chapter of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone fifteen times.

Don't rush yourself. You may write a compelling scene on page 200 that may require you to rewrite the bulk of page 23. Don’t shrug this off for the sake of finishing sooner. Constantly be looking for ways to polish your work so that it flows. Your readers will thank you, and hopefully, so will your bank account.

Furthermore, the first book you sell will say a lot about you. It could build your credibility, or instantly wreck it. If your goal is to be the best writer you can possibly be, it is worth the months or even years it may take to revise and edit your work.

HOW TO FIX IT:

• Be patient. Writing a book is a marathon, not a race.

• Make revising a serious focus of your writing process.

• Seek feedback from several people, including strangers. 

UNRELEASITIC EXPECTATIONS

You might get rich after publishing your book. But you probably won’t. And you have to be okay with that. George R.R. Martin shared that he knew he wanted to be a writer when he was getting rejected, didn’t think he’d make money from it, but still wrote anyway.

How many of us would keep writing if we found out our novel wouldn’t make us rich or turn into a movie? If you fall into this category, your expectations are unrealistic and writing may not be for you. Do it because you love it, and good things will come. After all, some of the most famous authors didn’t get famous until after years of publishing several books.

Most people don’t learn to play piano because they expect to be selling out theater halls. And most people don’t learn to play golf because they expect to go pro. Writing is a unique beauty. You don’t need a degree, inside connections, or a strong resume. You just need to put pen to paper and know how to tell a story. Along the way, it may change your life, or better, the life of others.

HOW TO FIX IT:

• Set realistic expectations

• Fall in love with writing and not the potential monetary benefits.

• Stay motivated even when you get negative feedback or rejections. Understand that this is part of the process. Rejection places you in a category with some of the best authors and books ever created. Keep your head up and keep writing.

INFO DUMPING

New writers feel the need to explain everything within the first few pages to catch readers up. It results in large chunks of text explaining (too much tell not enough show), which isn’t fun to read. Readers don't need to know everything about your character's appearance, their entire background, or their world’s history in the first chapter. Stories should be told gradually. There is beauty in learning more about characters and the plot itself as we read on. Share things through dialogue. This will help with the pace of the story to feel natural instead of forced.

HOW TO FIX IT:

• Learn proper pace. Let information and insights gradually come to the reader.

• Create moments or scenes when the character can hear or learn things for the first time with the reader. That way, you don’t have to force-feed information to your reader. Let them learn things on their own.