Writing is a rollercoaster; there is the struggle of staying focused and energized while spending hours at a desk and the excitement of seeing your ideas transform into words on the page. Despite the rewarding nature of the craft, the demands of juggling multiple projects, overcoming writer’s block, and maintaining a consistent creative flow can be challenging. That’s why taking care of your mind and body is essential to enhance productivity and maintain a creative flow. One way to achieve this is by incorporating dietary supplements into your routine. In this guide, we’ll explore some of the best supplements you need to give your body and brain a little extra boost. These supplements can help to enhance your focus, creativity, and overall well-being as a writer. Keep reading to discover how to take your writing to the next level. What are dietary supplements? Dietary supplements are products that bridge the nutritional gaps in your diet. This means they provide extra nutrients like vitamins, minerals, amino acids, etc, that may be lacking or insufficient in your regular diet. The most common forms of dietary supplements are liquids, powders, capsules, and tablets. The general idea for taking dietary supplements is to complement and enhance your overall nutritional intake and not replace a healthy diet. Can supplements help me write better? Dietary supplements contain essential nutrients and compounds that may support cognitive function and mental clarity. While the direct benefits of these supplements are not specific to writing, maintaining optimal levels in your body can help your writing journey. Contrary to popular belief, popping a pill is not a magic solution for becoming a better writer. The most effective “supplement” for any writer remains disciplined and consistent writing practice coupled with a healthy lifestyle that promotes mental clarity and creativity. Supplements only complement… read more →
Do you struggle to start a project or can’t express your thoughts effectively on a page or screen? If the answer is yes, then you are not alone. This experience is familiar to even the most accomplished authors and seasoned writers. Luckily, a few tips can help you overcome this obstacle and start writing again. This article answers your questions about writer’s block and provides practical tips to overcome it and get back on track with your writing. So whether you’re a new writer or an experienced writer, read on for insights that will help you regain your creative flow. What is writer’s block? Writer’s block is the feeling of being stuck and unable to craft words you desire to write. It generally involves a mental or emotional blockage that impedes ideas and word flow. Struggling with writer’s block is like being frozen in front of a blank page or screen. Your mind races with questions like “What should I write about?” and “Where do I begin?” but the answers never seem to come. A frustrating experience like this affects your progress, level of consistency, and quality of writing. Despite these effects, writer’s block is a normal part of the creative process and a valuable opportunity for self-reflection and growth when approached with a positive mindset. What are the symptoms of writer’s block? Several symptoms can indicate writer’s block. Here are just a few: Difficulty beginning or completing a project Inability to concentrate or focus on what you’re writing Lack of inspiration Physical symptoms such as feelings of fatigue or depression, headaches, and restlessness Difficulty coming up with ideas Difficulty organizing your thoughts While the experience is unique for every writer, it is noteworthy that writer’s block is not a pathology, and you can overcome it. What causes writer’s block?… read more →
Which apps are best for creative writing? Writing is an essential skill, but it can be tough. When it comes to creative writing, there are many tools and apps available today that can help you create compelling content and improve your writing. But what’s really out there and which is the best for you? We’ve put together a list of some of the most popular apps for creative writers. From outlining to editing and everything in between, these apps can help you improve your writing skills, make your work process a lot more efficient, and transform you into a fantastic writer. So if you’re looking to be more productive and organized in your writing, keep reading. ProWritingAid (Mac, Windows) ProWritingAid is a great option for writers of all levels. It is more affordable and the best alternative to Grammarly. It offers a variety of features that are tailored specifically for creative writers, such as revision tracking, word count estimation, and detailed analysis of a writer’s strengths and weaknesses. The app also has a “learn mode” that helps novice writers improve their vocabulary and grammar skills incrementally. Plus, it’s easy to use and can be accessed on any device and the customer support team is available 24/7 to help you get the most out of the app. Key benefits of ProWritingAid: detailed feedback on your grammar and spelling, which can help you to iron out any mistakes and improve your writing style a range of helpful exercises to help you improve your writing skills, and it is perfect for both beginners and experienced writers a wide variety of resources, including tips on how to write essays, articles, business letters, and more an integrated plagiarism checker ensures your work is free of plagiarism Learn more about ProWritingAid on their website. Sudowrite (Web)… read more →
When most people hear that someone is a writer, the first idea that pops into their heads would the image of a person which is tortured by their personal demons, but which turn that pain into a literary masterpiece, or at the very least the image of a struggling wordsmith who is working some dead-end job, waiting for a call from one of the publishers. So, basically, it’s either Dostoevsky, or Bradley Cooper’s characters in “Limitless”. However, the reality doesn’t have to be as grim if you are a writer or aspiring to be one. In this day and age, there are plenty of jobs which allow you to make use of your writing talents, and which, according to key industry figures, pay really well. Let’s take a look at some best and most lucrative jobs for people who love writing. Technical Writer According to Matthew Childs, who works as writer for Essay Writing Lab, when it comes to technical writing, you need to be able to turn complex technical concepts and terminology into simple and understandable language. For example, technical writers are usually required to put together software user guides, manuals, complex technical documentation, and specifications, among other things. Also, if you are interested in this sort of gig, your soft skills will need to be on point, since you will be working closely with other professionals, such as developers, engineers, and designer, just to name a few. Not only is technical writing a fast-growing profession, but it also pays upwards of $70,000 per year. Proofreader Proofreading is especially important nowadays, since the demand for online content is bigger than ever. Content gets produced fast, but it still needs to be flawless, which is where proofreaders come in. Whether it’s books, novels, columns, articles, or blog post, it doesn’t… read more →
What is a writing competition? A writing competition (or contest) is an event that you enter with a piece of your own writing. The prize is usually money, but sometimes it is just the pride of being chosen as winner. The winning piece will usually get published somewhere. Sometimes there’s an entry fee, and sometimes the competition is directed towards something – some publishers or magazines run competitions for the first chapter of a story, or a book proposal. However, there are a very wide variety of competitions – from poetry inspired by Shakespeare, to themed short stories, to flash fiction, to novel extracts. What are the pros and cons of writing competitions? Pros: Winning gets you fame and fortune! You get noticed, get money (or other prizes), and you can put the win on your writing CV. A deadline and word count are often good motivators to write. You’re often in with a chance to be published. The competitive element can be inspirational; you’ve got to be good to win! It’s an immediate satisfaction – or at least, better than six months of silence from an agent or publisher. There’s a wide variety of competitions to suit all levels of experience. You can write what you want, in your style – although if you want a theme, there are competitions with prompts and themes. Cons: You don’t get paid unless you win. You often have to pay to enter. Not all writers like the competition element, or see winning as a worthwhile prize. The lack of a theme or direction (as opposed to submission calls) can be off-putting. You don’t get feedback, so it can be hard to know why your work didn’t win or how close it did get to winning. Why do I have to pay to… read more →
You’ve written a book, and it’s the best thing ever! So, now you want people to read it. How do you get it to them? In our current publishing world, there’s three major options. You can contact a traditional big publisher, who – if everything goes well – will buy the rights to your book, edit it, put a cover on it, market it and send you money when it sells. You can contact a smaller independent (indie) press, who have the flexibility to take chances on unusual work, and who are more likely to involve you in the details of publishing – but who don’t have the same marketing reach as the big publishers, and won’t sell quite as many as the big traditionals. Avoid anyone who asks you for money to publish (known as ‘vanity press’) with the promise of royalties in the future – it’s very likely that you’ll pay a lot and not get nearly as much back. A publisher should always cover things like editing and cover art for you, even if that means your royalty share is smaller. Or you can self-publish. This means you’re the one responsible for everything – editing, cover art, formatting, releasing, marketing, selling – so you’re putting the book out under your name, and you keep the profits from it. You can sub some of the work out (eg. hire a proofreader, purchase cover-art) but it’s down to you to sell your book to the world. And the great thing is that there are plenty of ways to do that! In this article, we’re going to briefly cover some alternative methods of getting your writing out there to your readers. While we tend to think of self-publishing as being a hard copy or ebook version of a book, that’s… read more →
What is Self-Publishing? You’ve written a book, and it’s the best thing ever! So, now you want people to read it. How do you get it to them? In our current publishing world, there’s three major options. You can contact a traditional big publisher, who – if everything goes well – will buy the rights to your book, edit it, put a cover on it, market it and send you money when it sells. You can contact a smaller independent (indie) press, who have the flexibility to take chances on unusual work, and who are more likely to involve you in the details of publishing – but who don’t have the same marketing reach as the big publishers, and won’t sell quite as many as the big traditionals. Avoid anyone who asks you for money to publish (known as ‘vanity press’) with the promise of royalties in the future – it’s very likely that you’ll pay a lot and not get nearly as much back. A publisher should always cover things like editing and cover art for you, even if that means your royalty share is smaller. Or you can self-publish. This means you’re the one responsible for everything – editing, cover art, formatting, releasing, marketing, selling – so you’re putting the book out under your name, and you keep the profits from it. You can sub some of the work out (eg. hire a proofreader, purchase cover-art) but it’s down to you to sell your book to the world. And the great thing is that there are plenty of ways to do that! Over the next couple of articles, we’re going to look at options for printing, ebook and online self-publishing. But first…. Things to think about if you’re considering self-publishing Have you written the best book that you… read more →
Character agency is basically about giving your characters choices. It’s also tied in to the idea of making relatable, rounded characters – so characters with aims and flaws, who make good and bad decisions. Character agency is the decision-making bit of that; it’s letting the characters drive the events in your stories. Character agency is about how the characters accomplish the plot Ok, so you’ve got your basic plot. Hero rescues Princess from Dragon. Simple, right? But if you pick three different characters, they’ll go about that in three different ways, and you’d end up with three different outcomes. The Dark Lord. Turns up on his own Fearsome Dragon and has them fight while he leans on the wall and has a quick smoke. Hang on…his dragon lost?! Well, depending on your Dark Lord, he can either haul out the Sword Of Doom for a quick bout of hand-to-hand, or produce the cannon he so thoughtfully hauled along…either way, you’re likely to end up with a dead dragon and a suitably rescued princess, who might be rather charmed by a thin moustache and fashionable black armour. The Thoughtful Farm Boy. He brings along a cow, strolls past the dragon while it’s otherwise occupied with that snack, and then talks both Princess and Dragon into leaving with him, because who wants to be stuck in a crumbling old castle? They then all decide that any King who shuts his daughter up in a tower and kills off her suitors probably isn’t a very good King, and go off to rescue the Kingdom as well. Adventure time! The Cynical Assassin. She doesn’t bother fighting the dragon – she scales the back wall, sneaks into the tower and…love at first sight, with a passionate kiss to go with it? Well, why not? What… read more →
There’s two hard parts of being a writer…sitting down to write, and actually writing! How do you find time to ensure that you write? And how do you make sure you use that time effectively? When do you work best? For me, it’s mornings and evenings, with a slump in the afternoon. I know that if I schedule writing time in for an afternoon I’ll most likely end up on Facebook…so I’m much better off accepting that my brain wants an afternoon nap (even if it can’t have one) and scheduling writing time in for a morning or evening when I’m more likely to focus. When do you have time available? Not everyone has the luxury of being able to pick a time. If you’re struggling to carve out time, can you make use of the small spaces between other things? Even half an hour a day is more than nothing, and will slowly build up. Can you wake up an hour earlier? (Horrible, I know, but it does add uninterrupted time to your day). Can you find a spare half-hour at lunch? Can you use a dictaphone on your commute, or take a notepad? How do you work best? I need multiple projects at various stages; if I get stuck on one, I’ll move on and work on another so that I’m never unproductive. But I know authors who focus on one project at a time and push that through to completion before starting another. What’s going to work best for you? Where do you work best? Most authors have a ‘place’ that is only for writing; the idea is that when you’re there, you associate it with writing rather than browsing FB or talking to someone, and it helps you to focus. Potentially you could also do ‘writing… read more →
I was asked recently how to make characters more individual; how to make them unique, colourful and distinctive. How do you get the different quirks of humans into a piece of writing? Major characters Sometimes it feels as if you could have robots as your main characters and it wouldn’t make a bit of difference. They all speak and act in the same way, and you could replace them without anyone batting an eyelid. How can you make them individual? List six character traits for each of your major characters, and use these when you’re writing. How would these traits affect their reactions to events? How would they speak? How would they react to other characters? It works particularly well if you’ve got two traits that play off each other; what would happen if you get two stubborn and angry characters disagreeing with each other? Think about their background. Where have they come from? What happened to them? What adventures have they had? What events have made them who they are? List three priorities for that character at various points during the plot. While at the start, their First Priority might be getting back to their family, as time goes on Priority Two: Saving The World may come to the fore, or occasionally be superseded by Priority Three: Get A Good Night’s Sleep. At each plot point, think about what that character’s priority is likely to be at that point, and how it would affect their actions. Even minor priorities get quite big at certain points – if you’ve ever been wet and tired, getting to shelter or sleep is usually more important at that point than whatever your day’s aim was. Minor characters Cardboard cut-outs in the background. How to give these walk-on parts some personality? Give minor characters… read more →
