I suck at writing

Just write. Just put it down on paper (computer). Then read it and critique it. The more you do this, the better you get. None of us were expert writers when we started. Like anything else, it requires work, reflection, revision, etc.

musafir421 said:

Dear all,
I have so many stories that are in my head but I can't put them on a paper. I don't have the confidence or the knowledge of how to write.

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While some are born with the confidence, none are born with the knowledge. You've just got to do it.

Also... you... can't write an email? It's basically just a letter. On a computer. Pretend you're writing to your granny or your penpal in Australia or something. Writing books is different. Unless it's a book about emails.

Until you actually start writing something, nobody can help you. All we can do is tell you to write, and read (a lot) and maybe look at some "how to write" books, whilst keeping in mind that writing is a personal preference and doesn't come with an instruction manual.

Good luck, and welcome!

Writing is a skill that can be learned. Not every writer is born gifted. Like most things, you have to put time and effort into learning.

Practice makes perfect. As long as you're doing the best that you can now, then you're certainly not 'sucking'. Keep doing that, and you'll get better and better before you know it. Everyone starts somewhere, so don't be too hard on yourself.

If you go to the thread of the person announcing they are from Alaska (New Members forum), I added two links for Brandon Sanderson videos. If you watch enough of them (like 30+ hours of them), you will learn the craft of novel writing. If you have grammar flaws, that is another issue.

Congratulations!

Seriously, the biggest problem I had when I began writing was I thought everything I put on the paper was absolutely F@*#ing awesome. Admitting there's a problem is the first step in being able to take steps to fix it.

You've got ideas, hopefully you have time to sit down and put those ideas on paper/digital medium. Doesn't have to be pretty, everyone starts with shitty first drafts, sure maybe some aren't as shitty as others, but EVERYONE'S* writing process includes some form of revision. And the great news is you already know that you're at the bottom of the hill and can only get better from here, take the critiques in the spirit of the lessons they are meant to be. Keep working, keep writing, and keep learning and you'll do just fine.

Also, goals. Do you just want to tell your story or is your hope to sell it someday? Knowing what you want to get out of this will help us help you. If you just want to tell a coherent story, you will get different advice than if you're hoping to send it off for publication.


Also,
Come on over to one the genre lounges and meet your peers.


*Everyone in this instance refers to published authors. There's lot of folks that don't revise, but they're mainly stuck in the slush pile.

I'm still amazed I turned to writing fiction over two years ago. I never, ever imagined I'd do that, after my time as trying to be a Computer Science major in college. I'm not amazing, but I'm not bad - I have skills I know I can strengthen and skills to learn.

I'd just add, writers always start by reading. Read books in the area where you want to write -- science fiction, mysteries, romance, whatever it is. Not to imitate anybody, but just to let it soak in. Even the very best writers owe a lot to the writers who came before them, and so on, going back to the first time somebody put a stylus to a clay tablet.

And it takes courage to admit you suck. We all suck, at least at first. I've been writing a long time, and still suck pretty often! You've got to write a lot of sentences that suck to get to the sentences that shine. Don't be afraid of sucking. Have fun with it, keep trying different ways of saying what's in your head. It'll get better.

And whatever kind of problem you might be having in the middle of a story -- somebody on this site has probably had a similar problem, and would be willing to chew the fat about it, bat around some ideas. Yep.

Welcome. We all suck, it's just the level of suckiness that matters LOL

konstantineblacke said:

Welcome. We all suck, it's just the level of suckiness that matters LOL

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Joe Walsh (Eagles band) said something to this effect (as it pertains to guitar playing). He did an episode of Daryl's House (of Hall and Oats). He noted he still plays bad, just not as bad as he used to.

Welcome to AW!

Enlightened said:

Joe Walsh (Eagles band) said something to this effect (as it pertains to guitar playing). He did an episode of Daryl's House (of Hall and Oats). He noted he still plays bad, just not as bad as he used to.

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Reminds me of a quote of Bono's that goes something like "I wanted to play guitar very badly. Now, I DO play guitar very badly."

The fun of of starting something new is that we all suck at first, unless you happen to be the one in a billion that is a prodigy, you get to learn. AW provides a nice sharp learning curve if you really delve into the advice and get your fingers on keyboards, ink on paper, voice activated software turned on and talking, etc.

Justobuddies said:

AW provides a nice sharp learning curve if you really delve into the advice and get your fingers on keyboards, ink on paper, voice activated software turned on and talking, etc.

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Don't forget helper monkey, á la Mr. Burns. Those simians can really churn out novels.

Justobuddies said:

Reminds me of a quote of Bono's that goes something like "I wanted to play guitar very badly. Now, I DO play guitar very badly."

The fun of of starting something new is that we all suck at first, unless you happen to be the one in a billion that is a prodigy, you get to learn. AW provides a nice sharp learning curve if you really delve into the advice and get your fingers on keyboards, ink on paper, voice activated software turned on and talking, etc.

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Be careful what one asks for. Looks like Bono got it.

I'm new as well. I have a brain full of stories as well. I feel you pain. YOU CAN DO IT!

Start reading A TON! You'll start to catch onto sentence structure and paragraph organization and stuff like that. Also, read a ton of writing books! "Writing Tools" by Peter Clarke is a good one to start with. Practice those tools and you've got a lot to work with from there. Don't worry about your writing level right now. It'll get better the more you write and read. And letting people critique it will help you too! I'm sure you'll get those stories on paper a lot sooner than you think. Just keep it up and don't give up when the writing seems daunting (and it definitely can be). I'm a writing tutor so if you need anything looked over, I can maybe give you some helpful tips and see where your strengths and weaknesses are. Knowing that would help a lot, too. Just PM me if you ever want my help! If not me, I'm sure there are plenty of other awesome people on this site that you'll find who can help more. You can do it!

For me, I was always a reader but didn't feel like I had a creative writing bone in my body. I could whip out essays and other non-fiction stuff as a kid but remember agonizing over anything creative. So I never had the idea to become a writer...until one day. And that day I woke up with a story in my mind that "needed" to be written; I felt it burning in my mind. So, I started writing. My writing was terrible and stiff at first but slowly improved with time. There are days I still feel like that, but mostly it's so FUN now that I'm loving the challenge, the rewriting, and the feeling of finally nailing it the thoughts in my head to written words. So, my advice is to get writing; only practice can get those ideas out there for the world to see! All my best wishes for you.

I'm pretty new at this but the one thing I'm noticing is the more I write the better I get and it and the easier those words flow onto the page. I think it's literally something you just have to start doing and keep practicing at.

If you see the stories as films in your head maybe it's better to write them as screenplays and there's several free courses like https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/screenwriting to learn the craft. If not you could try writing small pieces first and build up your confidence.