Anyone can write a bad book, right?

This is a strategy for one who is stuck or fearful of starting.

It’s a mental game about expectations.

If you are worried you can’t write something long and good, change the narrative.

Set out to write something short and bad.

And then maybe, with a bit of editing help, you can have a finished product that’s short and ok. Or even, short and good.

Better than nothing.

I would rather be an “ok writer” than “not a writer.”

Just start writing.

At some point I personally got over this hangup. I am not even sure how.

See, I know most of what I write is not that great.

I just finally got to a point that I didn’t much care care what other people thought.

One of my dearest friends began her last novel—one that went on to become a prizewinning best-seller—by telling herself that she was going to write a short, bad book. For a long time, she talked about the short, bad book she was writing. And she believed it. It released her from her fear of failure. It’s a beautiful strategy. Anyone can write a short, bad book, right?

-Dani Shapiro, Still Writing

I stumbled across these 12 writing tips and thought them worth sharing.

Also, make sure you read: Bird By Bird and On Writing.

Don’t forget Still Writing.

Read Olasky’s entire post here.

But here are the 12:

1. The world suffers from overwriting more than under-writing.
2. Write in the active voice: no passivity, please.
3. Remember: No one has to read what we write.
4. Avoid particular phrases that are short on energy or evidence.
5. Avoid using often-abused words.
6. Pay particular attention to words that convey worldviews or beliefs.
7. Avoid common grammatical errors.
8. Avoid dangling participles.
9. Learn a publication’s editing shorthand.
10. Seek out teachers and editors willing to tell the truth, even if it hurts.
11. Keep your cool.
12. If in three years you are making progress, persevere.