Where do I begin?

By Gwyneth Box

So you want to be a writer, but you don’t know where to start? Here are some questions you should consider, and some pointers to where you can find help.

Motivation and Aims

First of all, perhaps you should ask yourself a few questions, beginning with Why do you want to write? and What do you hope to get out of it?

Are you looking for financial reward? or to see your name in print? Will it be enough to see your name alongside your work in a poetry magazine bought only by other poets? or will you accept nothing less than having your writing appear regularly in a national newspaper?

How much time are you intending to dedicate to writing? Do you want to make it a full time career, or is it just a hobby? If the latter, will you be setting aside a regular time, or a certain number of hours per week, or will you just hope to find a few moments as and when you can?

What Type of Writing?

What sort of writingare you interested in? Is it poetry? fiction - novels or short stories? factual articles destined for a general or specific readership? opinion pieces? reviews? plays - for theatre or radio? TV or cinema scripts? Serious or humour?

Obviously some of these combinations are unrealistic: I know of no one, for example, who is highly paid for writing poetry for the national press on a regular basis.

However, it’s always a good idea to consider what you really want before you start a project, and then decide what you’re actually prepared to settle for.

This is a good time to consider your own reading habits, as these will almost certainly have some bearing on your writing. If, for example, you regularly read magazines, you will be familiar with the type of writing they publish and correspondingly more prepared write for that market; if you never go to the theatre, you are probably not the best person to write a west end play.

This leads us on to:

What to write about

Subject matter depends on your own interests. Personally, although I enjoy reading historical novels, I’m nowhere near interested enough to want to do the research into the customs of a particular period to be capable of writing one myself.

I like animals, but I wouldn’t dream of writing anything about dogs, fish or birds as I have never owned or had much to do with any of them; as the fond owner of two cats, however, I might feel my experience there sufficient to write about them. If I did, though, it would be for a general readership, not for experts, as I am a complete amateur - I could write anecdotes and possibly a short story or two, but nothing very technical.

The old advice of ‘write about what you know’ is 100% valid. Or, at least, it is if you accept that what you know can be extended by research.

I’ve said that I couldn’t write an historical novel; more accurately, I wouldn’t want to. It would entail far too much time at the library and the museums, surfing the internet, looking at portraits in art galleries and talking to experts. I have other knowledge which doesn’t need such bolstering so I’d rather concentrate on those subjects.

Am I good enough?

Some people are afraid that their educational qualifications are inadequate for them to be able to write professionally. Perhaps they have no academic qualifications, no university or college education.

This doesn’t necessarily matter - although maybe if this is your situation you shouldn’t be hoping to start by writing university textbooks - it certainly doesn’t prevent you from gaining initial experience by writing letters to the editor, for example.

While I was preparing this article I read about a dyslexic author who has not only written a book , but has set up her own publishing company. I don’t know if she had professional help with editing her writing, but there are plenty of people out there willing to provide typing and proof-reading services if you need them.

Remember: it isn’t necessary to have a degree in English literature or a background in linguistics to be able to use the language well. You do, however, need to have determination and ‘stickability’ to be a successful writer: if you are going to be put off by tripping at the first hurdle you’d be better off not starting the race.

What resources are available?

First of all, the very fact that you’re reading this means that you’ve realised there are websites with information for writers. We all have our favourites, of course, and most websites will themselves have a page with links to other useful sites.

There is help available in the printed form, too: magazines and books to help you hone your technique or locate your markets. In the UK, publications to look out for are Writing Magazine (available from W.H. Smith’s), the associated Writers' News (available on subscription from PO Box 168, Leeds, LS1 1RF) and Writers' Forum (available from WH Smiths, their website is worldwidewriters.com).

These magazines provide articles about technique as well as features of general interest to writers of all levels of experience and all genres You’ll find they publish useful addresses and website links, too.

Then there’s Freelance Market News (e-mail fmn@writersbureau.com for information) which lists new markets, editorial changes etc and American Markets Newsletter (contact S O'Connor, 175 Westland Drive, Glasgow, G14 9JQ).

I am sure that similar magazines are available in most countries, as are reference books such as The Writer’s Handbook, and Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook which list publications together with brief details of their requirements. It’s a good idea to check these out at your library before spending a lot of money - they are updated annually and it can prove expensive to keep up to date.

What about courses?

If you can afford it, there are plenty of organisations that run correspondence courses for writers. You will find advertisements in the writers’ magazines mentioned, as well as those which appear frequently in national newspapers.

A word of warning: don’t be in too much of a hurry to send off your money until you’ve seen details of the course and the terms and conditions. Some are quite general and deal with all types of writing, while others focus on one particular genre. The money back guarantees of at least some of them seem to be quite genuine - if you follow their instructions for the duration of the course.

Not all the ‘write and be published’ courses will actually teach you how to write; some are much more focused on teaching you how to go about selling your writing. They show you how to research markets and how to present your work in a way that means editors will actually read it.

However, you may find that you are required to spend a long time focusing on types of writing which don’t interest you; remember that these organisations aim to make their clients into successful writers and for them this may be more easily measured by financial success than any other way.

There are other courses available, which concentrate on formal writing techniques. They may teach you the exact structure of formal poetry or the most effective way to use rhetorical questions, for example. They may provide the remedial grammar that you need. But will they teach you to sell what you have written? Will they tell you about the importance market research and how to present your work to an editor?

This brings us full circle to the questions I mentioned at the beginning. Why do you want to write? What do you want to get out of it?

If you have answered these questions honestly, you will know what you are looking for in a course and will not be tempted to start one which won't teach you what you need to know.

So, perhaps the most important thing to do if you are interested in writing is to consider your aims and motivations. Remember: if you don't know where you're going, you'll probably end up somewhere else!