I usually pride myself on the organization of my writing. My mind typically flies all over the place, and writing is where I sort out those thoughts into coherency. But for this blog I wanted to share a sort of messy array of various writing tips. They all pertain to writing and they are all (in my opinion) very useful, though other than that they share no unifying quality to make an articulate blog post.

So please join me in embracing the random:

Read a Diverse Set of Authors: While the publishing industry is making progress in the way of celebrating texts from a diverse set of authors, there is still a long way to go. Making a point to read texts by authors of colour, authors who are members of the LGBTQ+ community, or authors of other minority groups that you may or may not be a part of, is so beneficial. Not only does it help them succeed in a society that stacks the odds against them, but it broadens your understanding of people who are different from you. And understanding people is a great foundation for writing.
Read Your Work Aloud: This is a pretty popular editing tip, and for a good reason. Reading aloud helps you catch errors in your writing that are easily glossed over while reading in your head. I want to expand on this tip by encouraging you to read your text out loud after the editing is done as well. I started reading my finished stories out loud to my boyfriend as he is a very slow reader on his own. While doing this, I realized that reading my completed stories out loud helped me solidify them as an actual story, and not just something I threw together on my keyboard.
Write What You Feel: I’m actively exercising this tip while writing this blog. I don’t feel like organizing one cohesive thought, so I’m writing this miscellaneous list. But this tip goes beyond my personal blog posts. Writing what you feel can mean writing a story that conveys a particular emotion, or it can mean writing something that you just think would be fun to write. Your writing will be better when you are excited about it than if you try to force something that you’re not feeling.
Ask for Help: Asking for help is not something I really like to do. Taking that first step is pretty difficult, whether it’s asking about a job, asking for someone to edit your work, or asking to run your ideas by someone. Despite the fact that each instance of asking for help makes me nervous and reluctant, I’m always grateful that I did in the end. I’m confident that the same will be true for you.

I hope you were able to get something out of my various writing tips, unified only by their mutual disunity.