How to Become a Better Writer: A Wattpad Guide

TIP #13: Having the Whole Package

It pains me when I see aspiring writers wanting to improve only their titles or summaries, hoping that either of the two things alone will carry a faulty story. Here's the brutal truth: you may be able to attract people with your summary or title, but if your story does not live up to the hype, then you will lose them. Those first few chapters are most important. These give readers a sense of your writing and what kind of story you are telling, what to expect going forward. It's the difference between continued click-throughs or none.

To have that wow factor and keep readers engaged, you have to have the whole package. If you are looking to improve, consider these aspects of your writing:

1) Plot - The main storyline (scheme) and how you develop it. If your plot has holes or is shoddy or is just plain unoriginal, then you have a problem. Ask yourself if you are truly satisfied with your plot?

2) Grammar - Sentence structure, punctuation, spelling, word choice, etc. The quality of your writing is improved when you've paid close attention to grammar.

3) Dialogue - The exchange between people. Dialogue should be natural and show the nuances of the characters in the exchange.

4) Style - How you go about telling your story, from the first paragraph to the last. What literary devices do you employ? Do you rely on backstory or flashbacks? What aspects in the writing convey your style? Is it touches of humor? Do you use cliff hangers to entice readers, invoke suspense and intrigue? Do you tell your story from a certain POV? Do you use descriptive language or simply tell everything?

5) Characters - People want to believe in your characters, care about them, root for them. The best characters grow in some way or evolve. Maybe they are just a little bit smarter or wiser by the story's end. Maybe they've developed the skillset to take out the evil villian or dragon or nemesis. Maybe they've undergone an emotional journey where they've become more self-aware and stable. Just remember that you are taking your readers on a journey and you are using your characters, in most cases the main character, to do that. Invest time in character development. It will be worth it.

6) Setting - When and where the story takes place, the backdrop. Be sure that your setting is believable, authentic. Be consistent. Stay true to history. In a story that takes place in 1930, for example, you wouldn't have folks communicating via cell phone or wearing Nike Air Force 1s. Nor would you have the main mode of transportation in a contemporary story be the chariot. When world-building, take care in carving out this new world, its people, the language; give your readers enough to visualize. Be sure the setting plays well into the plot.

These are some of the main areas that should be your focus when writing your story, and if you are weak in any or all, then work to improve. As writers, we must continue to hone our craft. This is the only way we become better.