Top 5 story writing tips from bestselling authors

There are many elements that can make your writing stand out. These could be your ideas, underlying themes, your writing style/tone, usage of words,etc. Story writing however involves a more natural flow that expresses your true writing style. Stories are also written in a comprehensive manner so as to be understood by most people. Every story has five basic elements: character, setting, plot, conflict, and theme. But what really makes or breaks a story is beyond these five elements. We will walk you through some of the best tips from best-selling book authors on how to empower your writing style. 

1. Train your cognitive thinking

Cal Newport wrote the Deep Work, A Wall Street Journal bestseller where he says that the ability to focus and concentrate for long durations is a key to being a successful writer. He says training yourself for cognitive thinking before one starts with a writing project is essential. When you sit to write your first draft make sure that you do it in a consistent amount of time. Your first draft is like a discovery project. Avoid planning too much, gather your thoughts and simply get down to writing!

2. Put the story first

Stephen King in his novel On Writing, says that writers should not rely heavily on the research part of their project. He says that “You may be entranced with what you’re learning about flesh-eating bacteria, the sewer system of New York, or the IQ potential of Collie pups, but your readers are probably going to care a lot more about your characters and your story.” In other words, story writing is authentic only when it is the sole priority when you write.

3. Let real people inspire your story

One of the most popular fantasy authors of all time J.R.R Tolkien (author of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy) shared a passage from his personal writings on how to write characters that feel alive. He says “there was a curious local character, an old man who used to go about sweeping gossip and weather-wisdom and such like. To amuse my boys I named him Gaffer Gamgee, and the name became part of family lore to fix on old chaps of the kind. At that time I was beginning on The Hobbit.”

4. Writing is much like filmaking

According to Keith Stuart, author of A Boy Made of Blocks, writing is similar to filmmaking. The writer must create an environment that carries the reader from their seat and puts them right in the scene. Just as filmmakers pay attention to the details of a scene and add elements that make it more adaptable and realistic, writers must follow the same pattern. They should strive to add details to the scenario to keep the reader engaged. He also stated that he is pretty sure that most of the best bits of Boy Made of Blocks were written by his unconscious mind because that part of him was able to paint a convincing picture.

5. Success has layers

Todd Henry, author of “The Accidental Creative, Louder than Words, and Herding Tigers,” said that a writer must understand that success comes in layers. There will be times when the writer thinks to themselves that they have everything they’ve been hoping for in terms of financial reward, but they shouldn’t just write it to the point where it serves that purpose. Writers who are truly committed to the art of writing will develop passion and deeper meaning through their work, as they change the lives of many people and their own with the power of words.

Last thoughts

The most important fact about writing a good story is keeping it authentic and honest. Bernardine Evaristo also says that she pushes all her ambition out of her head and focuses only on the story she wants to tell. Because at the end what you write and how well you paint a picture is what really matters.

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All the best!