Discover some of the writing tips from Wattpad Star and formerly featured author of 'Trapped'.
I have completed my share of beta reads and critiques for new authors on and off Wattpad and many of the points I have noted are often repeats - somethin...
My first completed book was 180,000 words long which I cut down to 130,000 in my first edit round. Then I gave up. It's maybe still my bible on things I should avoid and I sometimes read a chapter in lieu of watching a horror movie. Yes, it was that bad :(
One of the annoying things I did was not to give the reader any credit. I thought I had to tell them everything. Well—you don't. Most of the time, they can figure it out. When someone takes a bite from their muffin, you don't actually have to outline in detail how they chew and swallow before they can speak again. Readers know that—it's common sense. So give the readers some credit or your work will blow out of proportions.
Examples from The Lovable Nerd (one of my desperate attempts at teenage romance that failed):
The belt is moving, but there is no customer. A single rose is coming her way, its stem wrapped with an orange sticker that the shop normally uses for bulky items that were already paid for and didn't fit inside a shopping bag to indicate to security that the item wasn't stolen.
Oh, man (facepalms!) This sentence is not only clunky and a mouth full, but the last part is totally unnecessary. Once the orange sticker and paid for bulky items are mentioned, you don't need to tell the reader that bulky items don't fit inside a shopping bag and that the orange sticker indicates to security that the item isn't stolen. It's obvious from the context (hence, you can cut sixteen words out of fifty-two and improve the flow).
Another example:
A cold breeze floats in through the crack in the balcony door. With chattering teeth, she sashays over to close it. The freezing wind stops immediately.
Duh! Of course the wind stops. She just closed the door, so where could it possibly come from? Any reader will automatically make that connection and you don't need to tell them.
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So when you write your next chapter, look out for this trap. Readers can imply a lot through context and it's part of the reading experience. Don't try to take that away from them. They will be thankful.
