Re:Ask HN: What is your take on being a better writer?
by veddox on Sunday May 28, 2017 @06:23PM
(#14436349)
Excellent comment, I couldn't agree more! Just two things to add:
For general language skills, find authors who have good style and read as much of their work as you can. They might be well-known book authors (I personally enjoy CS Lewis and EO Wilson, amongst others) or a newspaper with a high standard of penmanship (to German readers I recommend Die Zeit, I'm not sure what an English equivalent would be).
You should read a bit of everything, but emphasize the type of writing that you are going to be doing yourself. For example, scientific papers require a very different style of writing to, say, newspaper essays. You need to be thoroughly acquainted with the type that is relevant to you. (Finding your voice comes later, first you need to master the basics.)
1. Read. Read everything. Read omnivorously. Read fiction and non-fiction, books and newspapers and magazines and Web sites. Read works by live authors and dead ones. Read stuff you wouldn't normally read. Part of developing your own voice is learning to hear the music in other peoples'.
2. Write. Write constantly. Write little notes and long essays. Write stories. Write a journal. Write down what happened to you today and what you dreamed last night. Write for an audience (even if it doesn't exist yet) and write for yourself. Writing is the process of trying on new voices until you find the one that fits you best. The only way to find the one that fits is to try on a lot that don't.