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/lit/ - Literature

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17645105 No.17645105 [Reply] [Original]

I believe I've plateaued.

I write as a hobby. I write a lot. I write f*ction mostly, stuff that doesn't have much depths, and is just indulgent bullshit, but I enjoy it quite a bit.

My issue is that I feel that I've peaked in terms of prose. This isn't me saying that what I write is anything special, or even 'good', but more that I simply cannot find myself improving.

Day after day, I'm at my keyboard, typing out sentence after sentence, and my stuff is serviceable, but I want it to be great.

What I'm worried about, and this legitimately terrifies me, is if I've stopped improving.

I'm aware that the number one rule to improve as a writer is, obviously, to write. The second rule's to read. I do both of these things, but notice no improvement with my own work; My peers blow me out of the water, and it makes me feel inadequate.

That last bit's a me problem. I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, I know that, but are there any genuine, proven exercises to become a more proficient writer? I want to improve in all regards.

>> No.17645113

>>17645105
>but I enjoy it quite a bit.
Here, you already have all you need and more than most.

>> No.17645128

Believe me anon, no artist ever plateaus. One can always always improve their craft, but it's always a battle. And remember even if you don't think you're improving, you more than likely are, just like you don't notice yourself growing taller. You have to wait a while before you can step back and admire your progress. You're doing what you can, keep it up, and don't give up.

>> No.17645137

>>17645105
Perhaps you’ll be able to grow your skills by writing in the style of someone else.

Have you considered editing?
If you speak other languages, there’s also translation.

>> No.17645151

>>17645105
Share the best thing you think you've wrote.

>> No.17645163

>>17645105
Experiment. Shit some experiments out until you hit on a technique you enjoy, then note that technique and craft it into a coherent piece. Also just edit with more purpose.

>> No.17645179

>>17645151
I'll need to give this one some thought. I don't exactly have much of what I've written over the years catalogued. Maybe that would be a good habit to break into.

>>17645128
>>17645113
Thanks, anons.

>>17645137
>>17645163
I'm going to follow both of your advice, especially in regards to experimentation. I sort of auto-pilot through a lot of my writing. I'll try and break out of my shell.

>> No.17645208

>>17634848
Show us what you got

>> No.17645217

>>17645105
maybe you need to do things, or go slightly crazy, as in fully commit to something that isnt so shortsighted as writing

>> No.17645220

>>17645179
Absolutely. I found challenging myself really helped me. I'd shift perspectives and psychic distance a ton between pieces. I did some with 90% internal monologue, others 0% internal monologue, others completely tagless dialogue (as a challenge to construct different voices and compelling characters), flash fiction, adherence to story structures, parodies, changes in emotion, but those are decent ideas to me, you'll probably do different stuff.
This goes without saying but you fail so many more than you succeed, but they make you a better, more dynamic writer.

>> No.17645225

>>17645105
See rule number one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzQLt0X4aX8

>> No.17645266

>>17645225
>6 seconds in
>experience realization
Huh.
Thanks, anon.

>> No.17645280

>>17645105
number one, read more, and read more stuff that challenges you. number two, force yourself to thoroughly consider each word rather than just hammering out your drivel.

post excerpt please

>> No.17645305

>>17645266
You're welcome. He's making a lot of good points. So don't be a fag chill the fuck out, enjoy and experience life in all its forms and write whenever you feel like it.

>> No.17645337

>>17645280
I mentioned earlier in the thread I've never archived stuff. Stupid of me, I know.

I'm going to start, though.

>> No.17645353 [DELETED] 

>>17645113
Reading and writing simply isn’t enough, not for you or I anyways. You need to breakdown the writing of yourself, your peers, your favourite authors. Try to see what the differences are. Try to mimic them all, and through the mimicking you will learn things that you never knew before. You just need the right inspiration to further your development. Writing is not magic.

>> No.17645364

Reading and writing simply isn’t enough, not for you or I anyways. You need to breakdown the writing of yourself, your peers, your favourite authors. Try to see what the differences are. Try to mimic them all, and through the mimicking you will learn things that you never knew before. You just need the right inspiration to further your development. Writing is not magic.

>> No.17645379

Fuck improving. Dont get better, get different

>> No.17645397

>>17645353
Absolutely. Reread your favorite scenes many times to understand how they are constructed and how that construction elicits whatever reaction in you it elicits.
Every time i read a book i note the title and write 1-3 things i could learn to do better from it.

>> No.17645490

>>17645225
This video seems to be a strange mix of decent advice and a madman’s raving

I got to “7. Take a shit in your own hands” and realized this guy was either way beyond me or way beneath me.

The image some dude ranting into a camera isn’t unusual...but the idea of him days later, editing these clips and adding the cuts and the text is pure art. That time I just dreamed for 5 seconds? I guess I’ll keep it in, but hard-cut at the end for comedic effect.

Also, I want to live in that room!

>> No.17645501

>>17645490
*screamed

>> No.17645580

>>17645490
Dude i take a shit in my hands every night but all it does is burn my chewed fingernails so i never end up writing

>> No.17645582

>>17645490
>>>17645225
>I got to “7. Take a shit in your own hands” and realized this guy was either way beyond me or way beneath me.
I honestly believe this is one of the most valuable advices for an artist.

>> No.17645609

>>17645580
>>>17645490
>Dude i take a shit in my hands every night but all it does is burn my chewed fingernails so i never end up writing
Eat more bananas, more meat and drink less water for a harder stool. Don't give up, consistency is key.

>> No.17645615

>>17645225
I didn't click on the link and I can tell that it's Quentin.

>> No.17645629

>>17645609
Thanks poppa

>> No.17645643

>>17645105
>I write as a hobby. I write a lot. I write f*ction mostly, stuff that doesn't have much depths, and is just indulgent bullshit, but I enjoy it quite a bit.
God, anon, what the heck are you doing. You should write in order to be remembered as a great writer, not for your own enjoyment. In fact, you should HATE what you do.

>> No.17645673

>>17645580
I see your mistake.
You’re supposed to chew your fingernails AFTER you shit in your hand.

Stick with it, kid!

>> No.17645737

>>17645673
Bro thats why they're chewed to the fucking bone. He does this 2x/day like a growing boy should

>> No.17645899

old advice I got from my creative writing class was to "pick your favorite books, the ones you want to learn most from and write them out into a document word for word. It will force you to consider each word and sentence structure more"

>> No.17645980

>>17645105
you improve generally in the same manner across the board. you need a plan. just reading and writing at random isn't enough. you need to have different writing exercises as this anon mentioned:>>17645364

You need to read books that are just slightly out of your comfort zone so you can improve and you have to not just go through them but study them and think what the writer is doing. It's a lot of not all that entertaining work if you want to improve.

I come from a music background and I've spent 10 years stuck in the basics of pop/rock/blues because I didn't have a plan. Sure I could play those tunes and even write some that were decent but it gets boring being stuck in those boxes and not really knowing what you're doing. I only started improving to the next level when I started writing music "seriously", as soon as you do you run into problems (I have a cool hook but I can't write a B part to the tune, or I have these notes that sound good which chords would fit those, which key is this in, ok but now I have another part in a different key how do I smoothly transition to a different key etc. etc.). All of these questions have answers and you improve by doing the thing and researching the answers and finding solutions. I also started to really LISTEN to the music ie what is actually going on interval-wise, chord-wise, progression-wise, structure-wise and so on, so that you can actually figure out WHY things work not that they just do. I recommend that you try to write and be critical about your writing and then identify the problems (is my vocabulary too limited, do my characters not feel right, does my dialogue feel forced, do i struggle to connect parts or move the plot etc.) and then research the solutions for them and then while you read try to keep the problems you've found in your writing in mind and look for how other great writers solved them. I think this is how you will improve.