10 Extremely Helpful Tips for Writing

I spent last Saturday at the Mumsnet Blogfest listening to some great people talking about how & why they write....it was absolutely fascinating.

Between them they write newspaper columns, magazines, books & blogs....

They're journalists & authors.

I learnt a huge amount & wanted to share some of the best advice & tips from the day :

1. Think about what you are trying to say. Really think about it. 

And when you have finished your piece of writing, read it through to check that what you started out wanting to say is actually in there.

2. Don't always feel you have to have an opinion.

"Be a conduit not a roadblock" - Caitlin Moran

Sometimes you can simply put a thought out there, it doesn't have to be a strong opinion or even any opinion. And your writing does not always have to have a conclusion.

3. Set your own personal guidelines for what you will & won't say on your blog or in print.

Don't ever think that something won't be read - once written, it's out there.

Know what your personal boundaries are - be comfortable with them. 

Stick within them.

Don't overshare if you are not comfortable with that. 

4. "The End Of "Snark" ....as predicted by Caitlin Moran

Humour is funny, sarcasm can be entertaining, being a funny writer is very clever.

Being nasty, b*tchy, condescending & mean is not.

5. Have your own personal writing code.

If you're writing about your family, agree with them how much they are happy to have revealed  about themselves.

Maybe not so important when you have toddlers but definitely essential when you have teenagers - or a husband!

6. Believe in what you are writing. 

You can write about different topics every day on your blog, but it's your voice that keeps readers coming back...continuity, integrity & honesty are essential.

7. Dealing with trolls & abusive comments.

There will always be haters - one solution is to not allow "anonymous" comments 

(at least if someone leaves hideous or hateful comments, you can respond or, in extreme circumstances, you have evidence)

You can also do what The Bloggess (who joined us live from the US at 4am by videolink) does which is publish the commenter's name....with their comment changed to "I love you & I want to wear your skin" or publish grammatical errors and all!

8. Sometimes we all have nothing to say - call it writer's block or whatever you will.

Caitlin Moran suggested the following....

"Scrap your first idea because someone else will have thought of that.

Scrap your second idea because the clever people will have thought of it.

What you need to do is think of the third thing - and that's your idea."

9. Write with someone in mind 

Pick a person/friend/relative & write your blog as if you were talking to them.

10.  Don't Over-Edit

Sometimes you just need to re-read, press publish and walk away.

Such a lot of useful tips & information came out of the day, but the information above is what I found to be most useful.

I wrote about the Blogfest on Sunday here and would like to thank everyone who sent me the kindest, most supportive, understanding, empathetic emails, tweets & comments.

It was totally overwhelming.

As I said in my post, I have only ever experienced blogging to be a totally positive thing and the response I've had since Sunday from all corners - even from other journalists & panellists who were present Saturday - was unbelievable. 

And absolutely lovely.  

I do appreciate that journalists a) have to make a living and b) write things sometimes just to get a reaction but there is never any need for meanness & belittling other people's choices - 

particularly other women's choices.

Leslie - a fellow blogger & reader of my blog - wrote this fabulous piece of writing after she read my post on Saturday.
Thank you Leslie.