How to Quickly Get Better at Writing

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

FEEL FREE TO JOIN OUR DISCORD COMMUNITY HERE: discord.gg/c6gZS2p

[@chaplinfan6369]

Chatting, exchanging work, and running weekly/monthly writing challenges (prompts for microfiction, short stories, and random scenes) would be really awesome!

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Phaolan Class that sounds great! All good suggestions for sure ☺️ I’d really like to make it a useful, active place like that.

[@chaplinfan6369]

Edited because of a typo

[@IndianOutlaw1870]

I started writing short stories back in April. I noticed that my writing improved during story #2, so much so that I went back and improved story #1. I am now in the midst of story #3, and I can already tell that my writing is better than it was in story #2. :)

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

That's the way to do it! 🙂 Congrats! It's amazing how quickly you can improve when you're focussed on doing it.

[@opollitico]

so excited for your channel!

[@MeredithPhillipsWrites]

Yes yes yes!! I'd absolutely be interested in an off-KZbin group for more writing chats and such. Discord can be a great platform for that. I'm on the same page with you on the 'why I write' question. I hope my stories and writing can do the same for someone else that other books have done for me: give them a bright spot during their day, pull them into another world for just a bit of an escape, and (yes, hello, romance writer here) love really can conquer all. There are truths in books that can truly make your real life better. One of my big weaknesses is underwriting and not giving enough setting details. It's probably because I find those parts "boring" (or at least not usually noteworthy) while I'm reading, so I tend to find descriptions of places or characters boring when I write them. It feels like it slows the story down. But it's necessary! So I'm trying to get better at adding in those types of details without completely stopping the story.

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Brilliant! Thank you! Hopefully I'll get a few more yes's too! I shall update. I couldn't agree more with you on both those points. Having the power and the opportunity to makes someone's day better with something I've written would be really rewarding. That's happened to me on many different occasions from reading other writer's work, I'd love to be able to pay it forward in that way. And describing setting especially is something I rarely do either. A quick mention is all I'll typically do. Getting better at that is a good goal I think. I feel like a lot of people need it and enjoy it, so it'd be good to hit a middle ground. I also like to remind myself that just because I don't enjoy something, doesn't give me a free pass to not have a clue about it! 😂 Which I have a tendency to do!

[@ZachSmacks7]

I haven't watched the video yet and I'm positive that it'll be the most helpful 9 minutes 11 seconds of my day!

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

ZachSmacks7 That’s super nice, thank you! ☺️ 🙏🏻

[@bignose3639]

Good stuff 😁

[@hannahk8620]

Thank you as always for the inspiration! yesss, that is a great idea, a writing group would be awesome 👏👏

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Hannah Klobas Thanks for watching as always! ☺️ will update on the group very soon!

[@GetWriteOnIn]

Great video, man! Practice, practice, practice. I feel like a lot of times newer writers overlook the simple fact that a sentence is still a sentence, even if it's the only thing you write for the day. Those sentences add up over time. I also agree with targeting weaknesses, because I feel like a lot of times it's so easy to get caught up in your strengths, and then weaknesses can feel really overwhelming, but I agree that targeting the weaknesses to bring them up to the same levels as the strengths is one of the best things a writer can do. The self-reflection and self-editing is important. Finding a healthy balance between "this is awful" and "this is great," I think, is really beneficial. #2020. Glad I found your channel, man. One thing, too, I think with reading back on your own work, is another thing you said, to read it like a reader would. To detach yourself from the fact it's your creation and to look at the work with a subjective enough opinion to say "would I read this, why or why not?"

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Absolutely. Looking things straight in the eye is scary and kind of unpleasant, but if you really want to be as good a writer as you can, it's the way to get there. Difficult questions like 'would I read this?' as you said, often have really harsh answers, but you have to be realistic and get past that point. Reading like a reader is always a good idea, because that's what it's all for, when it all boils down :) Accepting that there will always be something you can be better at and something you can learn is a good outlook I think!

[@allenltate]

An off-youtube group would definitely be interesting. My biggest weakness is just getting started. I haven't written anything before so I've been trying to learn about outling, and I have some ideas for a story, and a nice fresh notebook to put them in... I just can't seem to make myself actually write them down. Like once they're out of my head they won't be as good or something.

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Allen Tate I’ve been there too for sure, I still get stuck on this when I’m approaching something new. Sometimes my own expectations can subconsciously hold me back. One exercise I try is to just write what’s going to happen in the part I’m stuck on just point by point, without trying to write it well or even properly. A bullet point list is fine. Then I’ll try to tackle the list and write each part ‘properly’ and it feels more manageable somehow. Just getting the shape of the thing out of my head and onto paper/screen can make me feel less encumbered. I’ll update very soon on the writing group ☺️ Thanks so much for watching!

[@ZachSmacks7]

Yes, of course! It would be great to be a part of a group where I can chat with other writers and share my works. (Btw, great video, as always 😉)

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

ZachSmacks7 fantastic, would be great to have you ☺️ I’ll update what’s happening with it in my next video most likely!

[@ShawnWeekly]

Another great video, I am glad I came across this channel. I am brand new to writing, and feel like a fish swimming upstream. I recently starting reading fiction consistently. I've always been more of a nonfiction reader. Thanks for putting the channel together. (new subscriber & fan)

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Thanks so much, and thanks for joining the discord too! Writers of all experience levels are welcome, hopefully it can be useful for you but welcome to the world of writing! ☺️

[@andreannelavoie660]

I would definitely be interested! I like discord, even though it's been a while since I've used it. I'm curious about what ideas you have with this community. Are you thinking of making it a place to chat about writing? Or mostly a place to find critique partners? (Or both?)

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Andréanne Lavoie oh great! 😃 Both ideally! As well as being open for any suggestions from everyone. Every part would be optional of course, if people only fancy chatting and not work swapping or vice versa then that’d be fine ☺️

[@JoeyPaulOnline]

I would be interested in a group on writing! It took me a long time to get to the point where I was happy with what i was writing but I think if I'd written more I'd have gotten there sooner!

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Joey Paul great! ☺️ I’ll update on it as soon as I’ve sorted out the ins and outs. Totally agree, I’m the same, writing widely as well as and having someone to read it and talk about helps me progress so much quicker!

[@opollitico]

i'm all for a meeting group, but i tried to download Discord and it's a bit clunky on my phone. is WhatsApp alright? with this said, i woulnd't want to put a spanner in the works for everyone else. hey Kieren, we could get to a point where everyone chats - Discord, WhatsApp, whatever - and you could organise KZbin lives, and we could ask questions, submit bits of writing on the live chat and workshop everyone's work together. omg, that'd be so cool 🥳🥳🥳🥳

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

opollitico I’d love to do that, even if people wanted to submit anonymously that’d be fine, the idea of doing something live like that scares me a bit, and usually stuff that scares me is a sign it’s a good idea 😂 The reason I went for Discord is just because it’s quite varied. I can set up different rooms for different things and give people different permissions and stuff. You can also privately livestream there with just your group. No luck at all with it? 😣 there’s a browser version too that might work on a phone’s browser? I’m not having you not be able to be involved in this, that simply cannot stand! 😂

[@opollitico]

@@KierenWestwoodWriting 👍👍👍👍

[@AwakeArise]

Thanks for the video Kieren. I’m interested in the writers group you talked about. Would be nice to share some work and read others.

[@KierenWestwoodWriting]

Fantastic, thank you 🙂 If it goes ahead, I'll absolutely want a place there for swapping work, it's hard to find opportunities to do that even online sometimes. Talking to other writers is the thing that's helped my writing the most in the past year.

[@achristinaportillo3548]

I can't get anyone to read my stuff