Top Tips

This was the handout Annie gave out at Greenbelt 03, and was used again as part of the workshops run by Annie and Penny at Greenbelt 04/05:

1] Read a lot! Read everything you can get your paws on - books (fiction and non-fiction) poetry,
song lyrics, articles, magazines/newspapers, posters, flyers... everything! Concentrate on the type
of writing you are most into, but don’t neglect the other genres. Concentrate on quality writing -
“What makes this good? How can I achieve this in MY writing?” Give some time to trashy writing
also - “What makes this so trashy/boring/hard to read, etc? How can I avoid making these
mistakes?”

2] Write a lot! Call yourself a writer?...then get writing! Write a diary, contribute
articles/reviews/short stories to your local paper or church mag/newsletter (your church doesn’t
HAVE a newsletter? Then DO one)! Again, concentrate mainly on the style of writing you most enjoy
and want to ‘get into’, but don’t limit yourself - experiment with all genres... go crazy!

3] Talk a lot! Chat with people who write, and have stuff already published. If you get the
chance, chat with editors and publishers... they know the stuff that matters!

4] Listen to God a lot! - What’s HIS plan for your life? To write for a living... to write as a
hobby?... to write for the Christian market... for the secular market (or both)? Does HE want you to
address particular issues in your article/book/poem/play/film etc?

Recommended books:
Teach Yourself - Writing a novel (Hodder and Stoughton)
Teach Yourself - Correct English (Hodder and Stoughton)
The Penguin Writer’s Manual
On Writing (by Stephen King)
Writing and Selling the Christian Novel (Penelope Stokes, published by Writer’s Digest Books)
Eats, Shoots and Leaves (by Lynne Truss)

Recommended web sites:
writersdigest.com
christianwriters.org.uk
(just stick ‘writing’ in a Google search... and off you go!)