help

Maybe you just need to put a little more thought into it before you start writing. Slow down, gather your thoughts and then start. Or you could take up meditation. Now there's a great way to learn how to unwind, relax and focus.

Definitely worth a try.

Writing is both a craft and an art... In art you put your feelings into the work, but if you don't know enough about the craft it makes it hard to give 100% of your passion to it.

I recommend you try reading some grammar and writing books. Does anyone here have a recommendation for good books on the craft of writing?

Dave

There's also something to be said for rewriting. Write the art part, the passion, then stop and think it over. Revise for grammar and other errors. Look for and identify the parts of your plot (where is your climax, is it exciting enough, etc.) Question what you have written-- take what people say and decide as objectively as possible if every line, character, scene accomplishes what they have said you missed.

For example: IF you are told your character is unlikable, look at each of their actions. Think about why they have chosen each of those actions. Is it what most people would do in that situation or not? Why or why not? What do most people do when they feel like your character does, can your character do that to provide a bond? (Like eating a pint of ice cream when dumped, or something.)

Sure, writing can be fun and passionate, but there is also, as dfallon said, the craft side where the fun gives way to craft. In order to go further in writing, you have to be able to step back and look analytically and perhaps semi-objectively at what you have written to see if you've met the checklist of what your particular story requires.

Mandy-Jane said:

Maybe you just need to put a little more thought into it before you start writing. Slow down, gather your thoughts and then start. Or you could take up meditation. Now there's a great way to learn how to unwind, relax and focus.

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I agree and disagree there--I think she should keep doing what she's doing to get a draft down, AND THEN, when it's written, take the approach you're suggesting for her revision.

It's totally normal for things to be all over the place, scattered and not artful, in the first draft. There's nothing wrong with that at all--that's how it is for everyone. The polishing comes in at the revision stage. And that's where your recommendation of putting thought into it, gathering her thoughts, taking her time and so on come in, too.

Celeste_2sweet said:

Whenever I write I feel such passion, but I find it hard to put that "passion" into my writing. I always fall short, I am listening to what people are saying but I can't seem to understand what I am doing wrong. I know that I type way too fast and make tons of mistakes but I am so stumped...

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Relax. Just don't worry. You don't actually have a problem--what you have is completely normal: you write a first draft with passion, but then when you re-read it, you find mistakes and you feel like the writing doesn't convey the passion you were feeling. That's normal--that's how first drafts are, for everyone.

All you need to do is develop one extra practice: in addition to what you're doing, start doing revisions. Get your drafts down--but then go one step further: a few days later or whenever, take your draft out and start polishing it.

That's how writing works. Have you read Anne Lamott's Bird By Bird? It's a really excellent book about writing, and it has some tips about the difference between writing first drafts and working on revisions that I think could help you.

Celeste. Think about it. This post of yours didn't have spelling and grammar problems all over it. Why not?

You simply have to slow down and stop posting stories as soon as you've written them.

It's that simple, my dear.

Read more, check your work carefully, and resist the temptation to look for instant praise.

Celeste_2sweet said:

When it comes to writing, my fingers dance over the keyboard and all my thoughts get scrambled up. What I am trying to say is that my love for writing is really just a love. When I see people comment I light up, because as far as my writing goes, no one at my school really cared. I wrote a song for my bf and a song for a friend but that was it. I am so confused at the moment. I guess what I am trying to say is..
Whenever I write I feel such passion, but I find it hard to put that "passion" into my writing. I always fall short, I am listening to what people are saying but I can't seem to understand what I am doing wrong. I know that I type way too fast and make tons of mistakes but I am so stumped...
Help, please
xx Celeste

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When I'm writing, I write very fast and make a lot of typos. When I'm done writing, I go back, reread and make corrections. Then I go through what I've written and rewrite. I usually rewrite at least a half-dozen times before I decide I'm done.

Writing is more than putting your thoughts and feelings on paper. It's a skill. It's an art. Think of writing as you might think about playing a musical instrument. You can't simply take a musical instrument and begin to play it until you put in hours of practice; you run scales, you play simple pieces. After a while, you become a better musician.

So, go practice, go write and rewrite. Oh, and read a lot. Learn the styles you like. After a while, you'll find your own voice and own style.

Mandy-Jane said:

Maybe you just need to put a little more thought into it before you start writing.

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More likely you need to put more time and thought into it after you finish writing. Virtually all really good, effective writing is rewritten, often many times. Rewriting and editing are skills and arts as crucial as writing the initial rough draft, and you need to be able to do those things as well.

There must be a couple thousand threads and discussions relevant to this issue in several of the other forums here, such as "Novel Writing". Particularly useful is the long "Learn Writing with Uncle Jim" thread.

caw

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6710

It's in the Writing Novels Forum, Celeste.

Above is a link to page 1 of the UJ thread and you'll also find an Index to the thread at the top of the Threads listed in the main Writing Novel's Thread List.

No need to stop posting or asking questions, my dear. All I meant was for you to slow down, to stop writing bits and pieces and immediately posting them in SYW without thinking carefully as to whether the piece was a) worth posting, or b) as good as you could make it. In other words, get accustomed to checking what you write before posting.

That's enough teacher finger-wagging from the old duffer. Have fun.

Good luck.

Celeste_2sweet said:

where is the learning writing article I can't find it. I have re read everyone's comments and I still can't find it. At the moment I am writing a new book and I won't be posting it until I have finished so, I will have to resist posting like Bufty said above... anyway, I need to find that article!

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I would also suggest reading the pieces posted by others in Share Your Work and the critiques associated with them. I personally find (don't know if this is true of everyone) that
1) learning what others find needs improvement and/or is working in a piece, and
2) learning to be a better critter myself
has dramatically improved my own writing.

You'll find that, in most crits, people discuss things like plot points (working or not), point of view, pacing, characterization, voice/tone, language, genre, etc. And when you start thinking about those things in relation to other people's work, then when you're writing your own stuff, it becomes almost impossible not to think about it (or at least, it does for me).

My two cents.

Everyone else has already said all the things that need to be said here (I especially agree with ideagirl's response), but I just wanted to add, feel fortunate for your passion! I know all about the feeling of loving writing so much, and grasping onto every little comment. It's a good thing to love writing so much because it means you'll surely eventually figure out what you need to know.

Celeste_2sweet said:

When it comes to writing, my fingers dance over the keyboard and all my thoughts get scrambled up. What I am trying to say is that my love for writing is really just a love. When I see people comment I light up, because as far as my writing goes, no one at my school really cared. I wrote a song for my bf and a song for a friend but that was it. I am so confused at the moment. I guess what I am trying to say is..
Whenever I write I feel such passion, but I find it hard to put that "passion" into my writing. I always fall short, I am listening to what people are saying but I can't seem to understand what I am doing wrong. I know that I type way too fast and make tons of mistakes but I am so stumped...
Help, please
xx Celeste

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Frenetic energy is actually a good thing for writing, IMO. I think it is great you are so enthusiastic about it (trust me, that isnt the case with all writers). When the moment strikes you, then write away and dont worry about it, for now.
Now will come the hard part...... editing/revision.
Take all those passionate thoughts you scribbled down and put them aside for a while. A day, week, maybe even a month. Then go back and read what you have. You might find that the things others are telling you are lacking could very well jump out at you when you are not in the "moment" of writing. This is the hard part of writing (IMO). The going back over something after the thrill of getting it on paper the first time has diminished. Editing is where you turn a 'good idea' into a good story. Its all about polishing, revising, and making it just right.
This doesnt mean you dont have the freedom to keep writing your emotion driven stuff, far from it. Just take time to go back and edit the other. Whatever mix works for you. Eventually you will find that you are in the habit of editing, and that is the key to good writing.

Just a few cents worth, more or less
Good Luck