Forget learning how to write (well, not really but for the sake of this post, just let it go). It’s imperative you learn how NOT to write. Many people learn by doing, learn by example and any other myriad of ways that one can learn something. But everyone needs to learn how not to do something from those that are doing it now. The size of their royalty statements be damned. There are just some things a writer shouldn’t do in their writing. Of course, those elements are outlined in the Turkey City Lexicon (also posted in my links list in the sidebar for extra emphasis) compiled by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.

“Well what if I don’t write science fiction or fantasy?” you may ask, to which I answer, “just read the damn thing.” You don’t have to write science fiction or fantasy to learn that excessive use of thesaurus-wielding dialogue tags is bad and that Deus ex Machina is the bane of the literary world. 90% of that article spans all genres, if not more. You don’t even have to read science fiction or fantasy to recognize what these guys are talking about. Such errors are prevalent.

Most of them can be remedied by simply not being a lazy writer. A cohesive plot, a world that makes sense and characters that have more than one dimension are all things that writers should strive for. If you’re not willing to work to make your writing good, put the pen down now and step away from the computer. Don’t make the rest of us look bad by association because you don’t feel like putting more than a half an ass into your work.

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