Ten basic tips (warning) for amateur story-writers from a reader.

For those who feel like your story sucks, fret not, because it doesn't. Your story simply lacks something and has to be crafted enough yet. No ideas are bad ideas when it comes to writing a story. The trick for a good story lies not in the ideas, but in the way they are executed. 

A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people

                                                                                                                        -Thomas Mann

True to this quote, writing is hard, and we have no choice but to learn it the hard way. Even if you aren't any good at writing, there's always room for improvement to those who desire writing. The following basic tips may help you in some way close to achieve it (considering they're from a reader's point of view).

1. No matter how bad your English is, make sure that your story is free of mistakes. It’s not easy to write without errors, but you can always correct them after your first draft. I don’t care how good your story is; if it is not error free, I’ll be done with your story. It’s rude but true.

E.g.: I lie down on the couch is correct (in present tense).

If you ACCIDENTALLY write “lay” instead of “lie”, I will crack up the moment when I read it. You don’t want your hard work to be laughed at, do you?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Do not bombard your reader with complex words. Not all your readers will be native speakers of English, so keep it simple. Some of those who have English as their second language will most likely hate you if you do that. And I’m certain I’ll be one of them. Complex words are good only when their usage is limited. If you construct a sentence with many complex words, it will lead to poor comprehension.

 E.g. I wonder how far his inherited dexterity can transcend without counter-balancing his indecipherability of it.

You see that?. Yeah, it does interfere with your understanding. So it's better to settle with simple and creative writing rather than fluffy and empty writing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.  Refrain yourself from using clichés often. Clichés polish your writing but have a bad habit of stealing spotlights. It may be difficult for you to stay away from clichés but, if you use them again and again, it may ruin the mood flow. The problem with clichés is they may act as a barricade or affect the real meaning of a sentence unless you use them wise. So never forget to double-think before you use them. 

      

     Some clichés which are begging to be stopped from their usage are:

•       Avoid someone or something like the plague,
•       At the end of the day,
•       Cat on the wall,
•       My mind goes blank etc.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4. Try to be reasonable with your protagonist’s actions. Remember that your readers are grownups, and not some naive kids awaiting their bedtime stories.

For example: if your male protagonist walks alone to a haunted house to take a peep at midnight just because of his curiosity, I’ll be done with him and curse him to go to hell. In real life, no human will go there alone unless he’s empty in head. Be rational for god sake!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5. Never let your characters grow too strong or too weak. Over-powered characters can make your story boring. But, weak characters can do that much easier. If your character becomes a crybaby, a fusser, a whiner or a grumpy brat, revive them to their original self as soon as you can.

A soap opera is the last thing a reader wants from a book he/she intends to finish.

When your character is too cool to show fear or express emotions at all cost; when your character becomes a mess every time something happens; and when your character gets knocked out in each chapter, the readers will lose their interest.

Most certainly I will.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6. Be imaginative, but do not let your imagination go waste by describing every flora and fauna of the background in your story.

Trust me when I say: no one wants to know about the colour or size of the table fan or bed cover your character has in his/her room (unless the scene demands it).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7. Beware of melodrama. It’s better to keep it down. As writers (especially neophytes) tend to resort to write about intense emotional and physical violence or pain, it’s quite normal for you to bring many melodramas in your story. But make sure to work on its pace, time and importance. People easily grow tired of lengthy dramatic scenarios. At least I do.

For example, if your character takes two whole chapters to recover from his/her heightened emotional state, the chances are high that I lose my enthusiasm to complete your story by 30%.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8. Keep your character original by lending him distinct traits. But that doesn’t mean you have to work your arse off to make them unique. If you try too much in making your character different, then it may turn out to be simply weird.

The easiest way to do that will be:  Surround your character with people having similar traits and make his own to contradict with those of others.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 9. Have strong conflicts in your story. Without a quality conflict, the story will not be very interesting regardless of your plot. A conflict can be anything or anyone against your character. The more your characters struggle, the more strong your story grows. (However, too much of anything is good for nothing).

E.g.: If your story is about a journey of young boy, then create a conflict that would hurdle his journey. Throw a tragedy at him and let the readers watch how he gets through it.

It's more interesting that way rather than letting your story to be linear till the end.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

10. Stick with your genre while writing but don’t be too strict in doing so.  A story like that will bore your readers to death. If your plot is extremely typical, make it spicy with subplots.

E.g. If your genre is romance, then you can add elements of suspense, thriller, mystery, slice of life or whatever your story needs.