What I wish I knew. (as a writer)

Every person starts somewhere. No one starts out a trade or hobby at their best. This is mostly an opinion, because there are people who are naturally talented at things. But I believe that no one starts out a trade or skill at their best.

Improvement can always be made. Skills can always be sharpened. I learned this over the past ten or so years of being a writer. I’ve made no effort to hide the fact that I am not perfect as a writer. I also am very open about the growth process that I have had to go through in my journey as a writer.

Obviously, I am still learning and growing. But I do feel like I have some kind of wisdom when it comes to offering advice to other people (specifically when it comes to writing.) So, if you’d like some helpful writing tips, here are a few things I wish I knew back when I first started writing.

Always go over your work until you are comfy with what you have written.

From personal experience, I can confidently say that your first draft is probably not going to be your best work. (Unless you’re a perfect writer. In which case, “You’re perfect! You’re beautiful. You write like Mary Shelley. Everything about you is perfect! Valentina! Your writing is beautiful” Aja was robbed.) Spelling errors, punctuation errors, plot holes. The second you finish a manuscript’s first draft is always an amazing thing. And a lot of times, when you finish a story, you just want to get it published as soon as possible. But patience is always the best practice here. Read your story. Read it like you just bought it and are looking to leisurely indulge in some good fiction. You will be surprised about the things you’ll find in a simple read through, even if editing is not your main intention. Reading your work not only helps you possibly improve your writing, but it’s also a really good way to gain more appreciation for your writing.

You can never reach absolute perfection.

Back in my early days as a member of the Furry Writer’s Guild, I used to be a more active participant in the coffeehouse chats, back when Dwale used to be in charge of the discussions. There was always one concept that Dwalewould refer to in these discussions that I cannot for the life of me cannot remember the name of and I am just racking my brain to remember the right name. The principle was that nothing is going to ever be one hundred percent perfect. You can always improve. You can always get better. It’s always stuck with me, and I feel awful that I forgot what the principle was called.

Feel pride in your writing! Even if it’s not your best!

It’s pretty self-explanatory. I haven’t kept secrets about how I used to feel about my debut novel (Phantom Janitor) and the many issues that it had. It took me a lot longer than it should have for me to look at it through a lens of… I wrote a whole fucking book at nineteen years old. It doesn’t matter how long ago it was, or how shitty the quality of my writing skills were. You can have whatever feelings you want about any of your older works. But as someone who spent years feeling so much shame about their debut work, it’s not worth the anxiety. Because if you’ve ever published something, it’s a symbol of a successful endeavor that you were able to accomplish. (Big words.)

Read.

Consume as many stories as you can afford to! Read books by your favorite authors! Read books written by your friends! Read books by your favorite authors who are also your friends. Bonus points if they’re queer! Sadly, outside of editing for Fenris and beta-reading, I haven’t had much time to do any pleasure reading. (No seriously, my to-be-read pile is so so SO very big.) But reading is important, especially in a time where book banning is a real and present threat looming. Depending on the genres you read, reading can come with different benefits. Entertainment, information, pleasure, and even emotion. It’s great to draw inspiration, but it’s also just so nice to indulge in a good story.

You have control of the changes you make.

Beta-readers are amazing. Having people who know the craft who can give constructive advice during your editing process is amazing. I have a few friends who I one hundred percent trust when it comes to beta-reading. Usually whenever there are suggestions about grammar, spelling, or placement of certain bits of exposition and dialogue, it’s always a good idea to fix them. So this advice has nothing to do with that end of editing.

Sometimes, there will be suggestions about the content about your story that are meant to help the story grow a bit. I used to try to incorporate every one of these suggestions no matter what. And while this doesn’t hurt, it’s also helpful to remember that you don’t have to incorporate everything. Everyone is going to read your story differently, and you may have duelling perspectives from different beta-readers. Or you may be advised to cut something that you feel is essential to your story. It’s your story and your discretion. I offer my thoughts on stories by other authors often, and even though I may feel a certain way about the dialogue or writing style, I am not going to be offended if someone doesn’t take my advice when it comes to story content.

These are standard things. I could list off others I think could be beneficial to writing as well. But they’re less serious and should probably be taken with a grain of salt.

• Play DnD. If you want some good practice in forming a story, play a TTRPG. It’s so fun and a good way to just be ccreative and have fun with your friends.
• Always have something to write with/on nearby. I am one of those imaginative people who has to write things down otherwise I lose them forever.
• Don’t box yourself into one genre. Try as many as you feel comfortable with. I have written furry work, human work, horror, comedy, supernatural, romance, erotica, and even some fantasy. 19-year-old me would be mortified.
• AI is not your friend. Convenience should not come at the expense of other authors’ material. I have never used it for writing stories, and I don’t ever want to. If I wanted to read confusing writing generated by something that doesn’t understand what it’s doing, I’d go read my own work. (I am kidding… My work is better than AI.)
• Support other writers! Support them. Befriend them. Praise them. Buy their books! Review their work as often as you can! We love getting feedback.

There is no wrong way to create work you’re excited about, just as long as it’s actually you creating it. Advice is nice, but the cool thing about being a creative is that you can choose how you use your brilliant mind. You may be better at writing some things than you are at others. I have friends who are more confident with writing music. And that’s super valid. Some people are better at writing short stories than they are at writing novels. Writing is so versatile to where you can succeed as a writer in so many different ways. Script writing, blogging, journalism, novel-writing, public speaking. As long as you are using your own words and thoughts in your writing, you can succeed in making your own path as a writer.

So, what kind of writing do you succeed in? What are some lessons you’ve learned as a writer? What are some things you like to see in other people’s writing? Did I miss the mark on any of my suggestions? Let me know!