I’ve also found great enjoyment in enjoying stories, comedies and so on wearing both my fan’s hat and writer’s hat. I adore The Goon Show and enjoy Spike Milligan'snnnnnnn wonderful writing and hope he himself got a great deal of joy writing it. I know I enjoy what I do. It can also be fun to work out another writer's influences (they inevitably turn up somewhere in what's been written).
Writing can be amazingly therapeutic. Misery memoirs prove that but on a lighter note, fictional work can be a great way of sounding off via your characters and the situations you put them in. The trick here is not to lecture but to have a light touch with this so people get the point without feeling you’re ramming it down their throats.
Remember to edit your story not just for spelling and grammar but for “sense”. Make sure you have tied up all the loose ends. It’s easy to forget something early on in your story - or at least I’ve found it easy to do that! This is another reason to print out work as that can help illuminate errors like this too.
Note your deadlines for short story competitions and so on. Give yourself plenty of time to write and to review and to allow for getting your entry off in the post. Remember to edit your story not just for spelling and grammar but for “sense”. Make sure you have tied up all the loose ends. It’s easy to forget something early on in your story - or at least I’ve found it easy to do that! This is another reason to print out work as that can help illuminate errors like this too.
Note your deadlines for short story competitions and so on. Give yourself plenty of time to write and to review and to allow for getting it out in the post! I like to make sure I’ve posted anything off at least 3 to 4 days before the deadline and I always use first class mail, partly for reliability and partly because it looks more professional. Regrettably second class does look “cheap” and I suspect it won’t be long before it’s abolished altogether. it out in the post! I like to make sure I’ve posted anything off at least 3 to 4 days before the deadline and I always use first class mail, partly for reliability and partly because it looks more professional. Regrettably second class does look “cheap” and I suspect it won’t be long before it’s abolished altogether.