Worst Writing Advice I've Ever Received

I feel like there's no shortage of writing advice out there, and not all of it is create equal. While it's true that advice isn't, and can never be, one-size-fits-all, there is also some genuinely bad advice, or badly understood advice, floating around.

With that in mind, today I'm sharing some of the worst writing advice I received, the issues I had with it, and better ways to handle it.

Terrible Tip No. 1: "Said is dead"

The Problem: There are three issues with this one:

1) the word "said" like a handful of other words, is invisible to the reader. It blends into the background while still conveying the information of what dialogue was spoken by which character.

2) it's misunderstood/oversimplified to mean "never use said" and that you have to use a fancier/more descriptive dialogue tag, which can throw off the flow of a scene if characters are whispering, screaming, muttering, griping, etc. throughout a conversation.

3) Some dialogue tags tell the reader how the character feels rather than letting the dialogue itself or the character's actions, show them. If a character is saying "how dare you accuse me of killing my wife", then being told they shouted it falls flatter than either no dialogue tag at all or describing the physical reaction to the accusation.

The Solution: Use said most of the time, and use more complicated dialogue tags as needed. No every line needs a dialogue tag. Sprinkle in some character actions, body language, etc. to depict emotions.

Terrible Tip No. 2: "You need to plan the whole book our before you start."

The Problem: Stories evolve as they're being written and sticking too stubbornly to the outline can force a book not to reach its full potential. Midway into writing my first draft, after seeing how the story was coming together, some later parts didn't fit what I'd put in my outline.

The Solution: I planned out the character arcs and some thematic beats, and allowed the rest of the plot to grow and develop naturally from what I was writing.

Terrible Tip No. 3: "Write only when you feel inspired"

The Problem: Finding motivation to write comes easier for some people than for others. Some writers dive head first into a story, while the idea still excites them, and then stall out once the "newness" of the idea wears off.

The Solution: Create a routine, whatever that looks like for you, whether it's writing for an hour every day during your lunch break or blocking off several hours over the weekend to knock out a few thousand words. Commit to only writing in that time and you might need to force yourself to write. If you start writing, and you find yourself building momentum, keep going while the ideas are flowing.

Terrible Tip No. 4: "Write the parts you're the most excited about first"

The Problem: Things about the story will change while you're writing. If you write the climax first, before you figure out the tone of the story, or workshop the plot beats, you'll wind up with a climax that feels disjointed from everything else tonally. You may also end up with an exciting and dynamic battle scene, but no idea how to get the characters to that point.

The Solution: Get the idea down, maybe create a list of bullet points for what happens, but start writing at the beginning. Let yourself build out the story organically rather than trying to connect a few disparate scenes that you wrote first.

Terrible Tip No. 5: "Don't revise your first draft, just have an editor tell you what to fix"

The Problem: As the saying goes "the first draft is you telling yourself the story" so your first draft won't make much sense. There will be all kinds of inconsistencies, plot holes, dropped plot lines, foreshadowing that doesn't quite work, and so on. Your characters may not be fully fleshed out, and the pacing will probably be heavily skewed.

The Solution: Do not do this. It wastes the editor's time, and does a disservice to the story you're trying to tell. Your story is worth investing in, so invest time into it. Editors will offer suggestions for problems, but it's not their job or responsibility to tell you exactly how to write a "good" story. An editor will not say "fix this, change that" unless it's a technical issue, such as using "there" instead or "their". Do at least one self-edit and a rewrite before you even think about involving an editor. I suggest multiple, so that you can focus on different aspects each time.

What's some terrible writing advice you've received?

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