The Top 3 Worst Writing Tips I've Heard
Writers are good at writing. Sometimes. What they’re bad at is giving advice. Sometimes.
As I work through the final edits on my latest manuscript (tentative release date of May 2023), I’m reminded of some pieces of writing advice that were less than stellar to guide me on my writing journey. While all advice is essentially useful because either way it helped me develop my writing voice and style despite the misguidance, here are the top three pieces of writing advice I’ve received in my career that I probably could’ve done without. Or, at the very least, here is my perspective on what I learned from following this bad advice for too long and why I think it’s bad advice.
#1: Be specific about what fingers are being used in an action
This one was picked up from a randomized peer editing roundtable organized from Twitter, which might just be an example of the importance of screening your editors. I really honestly do not remember who offered this advice, but all I remember is that any time I wrote “pointed” or “pinched” as an action, the peer author helpfully offered the critique “specify which finger is pointing or pinching” as advice. For some reason, this advice stuck with me and I used it almost religiously until an actual editor looked at my work and just went “.....wtf why are you doing this, obviously you can only point with the index finger. Don’t tell me they’re pointing with the index finger.”
Some actions speak for themselves and adding that extra level of detail can really remove a reader from the story as it changes the pacing of the syntax. Unless it’s vitally important to the plot for a character to pinch something with their index and middle finger (such as they’re hiding the extra thumb that reveals them as the six fingered man who killed the main character’s father), just assume most readers will default to the traditional “index and thumb” pinch when reading. If they want to imagine every character pinching or pointing with alternative digits, then good for them. You’re still writing for their reality then and it shouldn’t remove them completely from the story.
A better piece of writing advice would likely be “diversify your actions” or “provide more details”. In my earlier works, my characters did point a lot so a diversity of actions such as “gesture” or “shook a fist” would likely improve that scene so that we’re not dealing with the murder mystery party scene from The Office in every single scene. Providing more details such as the emotion shown when pointing (like are they pointing accusingly, is the finger shaking with fury, etc) also makes the scene more dynamic and more involved for the reader.
#2: Use anything but “said”
I’m pretty sure this has been repeated to every writer ever since they first picked up a pen. This is both the top most circulated piece of advice and the top most retracted piece of writing advice I’ve heard in my personal experience. I’m very guilty of both following it too devotedly and not enough in various writing projects, but I think I’m at a point where I’m a proud soldier on the “said is not that bad of a word to use more often than not” front. If all else fails, “said” is going to be the most reliable word choice for dialogue scenes.
The nice thing about “said” too is that it’s an easy thing for readers’ brains to jump over. As it is the default word to show that a conversation is occurring, most readers will automatically skim over it as a word to allow the story to flow better. A story isn’t always contingent on how a line of dialogue is conveyed and in that situation that’s where it’s okay to use “said” to keep the story moving along without forcing a pause to imagine each and every action. However, exclusively using “said” can make a story stagnant. That’s where the varied options such as “screamed”, “shouted”, “whispered”, “snapped”, etc. does in fact help to provide that depth to a conversation between characters and really help convey the emotions of the scene without directly saying “this character was mad.”
But the important part I want to stress is that the dialogue options are varied. For the same reason why it’s not advised to exclusively use “said”, it’s not advised to exclusively use any word that’s not said. As a writer, it’s important to find that balance that not only remains true to the heart of what you’re trying to say but also to the reader. If that means exclusively using said, great go for it. If that also means exclusively using words that are not said, then great go for that too. As long as it matches your artistic vision and keeps your writing genuine, then do whatever you want. But, in general, the best advice to keep your uses of said and not-said varied to allow a more dynamic understanding of your story and provide more depth to your writing.
#3: Write every day or you’re a bad writer
This is only bad if you insist on “writing” to be the act in which new words are written. If you look at “writing” as the act in which you engage with words, ideas, and concepts in any capacity, then by all means you should definitely write every day. Dr. Seuss infamously dedicated eight hours every day to “writing” which, according to his biography, mostly involved groaning in misery over writer’s blocks on his office couch or doodling creatures that never made it onto a real book, instead finding their fate in his “bone pile” in his desk where all discarded ideas went to die. (It’s a great biography by the way. Brian Jay Jones is by far my favorite biographer for his ability to turn a person’s life into a compelling piece of literature while also remaining true to the good and the bad of a person’s life. I highly recommend Dr. Seuss’s biography for all creatives or anyone interested in an absolute roller coaster of a no-cares-given lifestyle.)
There’s potential and worth in boredom. Science even supports the concept that being bored allows you to be more creative to even, ultimately, move past that writer’s block that’s been stumping you for weeks. Ever wondered why you get your best ideas in the shower too? Forcing yourself to write as in putting text down on paper doesn’t always contribute to a productive writing session. As the self-proclaimed queen of creative burnout, I can attest that a break is a good thing for creativity and growing as a writer. I feel more revitalized after a day’s break than I do on day fifteen of NanoWriMo where I’m forcing myself to barf up whatever 2,000 words I need for the day to meet my writing goal. A day’s break allows me to barf those 2,000 words easier if still needed to meet my deadlines.
Plus, as a writer, you owe it to yourself to live your life outside of words. Words may be your passion, your driving force to continue living, but if you’re going to write about the world then you need to go live in it for a bit. Fall in love, break some hearts, trip down some stairs, laugh with your friends, chase the kids around the house trying to get them to their respective activities on time - whatever you need to do to live life, do it! This is also writing. As Dr. Seuss was able to lay on his couch and groan for eight hours a day and call it “writing”, you’re allowed to live your life however you want and call it “writing” too.
After all, don’t those lived experiences, no matter how mundane, add depth to your written words too?