Writing Advice

I good friend of mine, who is not a writer, sent me a google doc the other day. He had started writing a story after a dream he had one night. It was a bank robbery heist, a thriller type of story. I'm not sure if he wanted advice on writing, or if he wanted me to take the reins and write about his idea, or what, but this is how I replied.

"Write on. Greed is always a great motivator as well as a powerful source of inward and outward conflict.

When writing I find that it helps if I know the ending before all else, but sometimes the ending does change/improve along the way. Keep writing bullet points, and listing off random scenarios, that helps.

But remember, that above all, it’s all about the characters. Their history and tiniest little quirks give them life and justify their decisions.

Ok, that’s enough. My two cents, bro. Plenty more where that came from, haha.

I love to write. It’s therapeutic. Write about what bothers you the most. That’s the good stuff."

It's strange how writing is so difficult, but writing about writing advice is so easy. There's still so much I don't know, and I don't even know where to begin. Like, why is my query letter getting rejected every time. I have no idea. But it is. I write the best letter I can and then write it again and again, and nothing changes. It's so frustrating.

But I didn't mention frustration in my note, I mentioned therapy. Maybe I need to take my own advice, stay positive and write on.

My buddy replied back later and said his writing was done for now. Maybe he got bit by the frustration factor. The negativity is always there just waiting to pounce. You gotta keep moving.