20 Ways to Make It Better (#1)

#1. Write What Matters

Passionate Encounter by Frederick Goodall

Life is too short and we don’t have enough time to write anyhow, so what ever you write, make certain it matters. Write about what you care about. What you’re curious about, what intrigues you, what makes you go ‘hmmmmm.’ Write what wakes you up in the night an won’t let you go back to sleep.

Notice when you ask, “Why?” or when you wonder, as in “I wonder who’s kissing her now?” Be aware of what stirs your juices. Make notes.

If images appear again and again in your writing, you can be sure that this is something that has meaning for you. You may not know what’s beneath the image, but if it continues to show up, you can be sure there’s worth investigating.

When I say, “Write what matters,” I don’t mean to imply that some ideas are more worthy than others. If what matters to you is the way the light falls on the bougainvillea in the morning, who am I to tell you you should write about world peace. Maybe, for you, the light on the bougainvillea has everything in the world to do with world peace. Or maybe it has only to do with the way the light falls on the bougainvillea. The thing is, if it matters to you, and you write about it honestly, and present it in a fresh way, then it is what matters. Every writer must find her own subject, just as she must find her own voice.

Number #1 way to make it better: Be a passionate writer.