New Year’s Resolution: How to Become a Better Writer in 2018

It’s time to bid farewell to 2017 and welcome 2018 with open arms. The end of the year or the beginning of a new year is the best time to introspect about your life – both personal and professional.

Writers too must size up the year and set new goals to work towards in the upcoming year. Whether you’ve just started your professional writing career or have been a seasoned copywriter for many years, there is always scope for improvement. Let 2018 be a year of continuous improvement.

Below we’ve highlighted some tips for online writers seeking to hone their craft:

Experiment

You won’t know until you try, right? Experiment with your style, your voice, new themes and words in 2018. If you’re a writer with a witty side, go out of your comfort zone and pen a romantic story. If you’re an opinionated writer, try compose a factual article. Invent new words. Write in the first person instead of the second or third person.

The more you get out of your comfort zone, the more you will grow as a wordsmith.

Be Concise and Clear

Every writer aims to use the power of words to put across a message to the reader. Whether it’s a blog, a short story or a novel – every one of them is trying to tell readers something. Therefore, it’s extremely important that this message comes across in a clear and concise manner. Readers love clarity.

In 2018, try to shorten sentences and use compelling words to put your point across to readers. This can be easily done during the editing and proofreading process.

Break Grammar Rules Occasionally. But Only for Good Reasons.

Grammar rules are there for a reason and it’s essential to follow them. But you can break them every now and then.

Most tips for online writers recommend breaking grammar rules if it makes the blog, story or article sound more conversational and friendly. After all, the best writing makes readers believe that the writer is speaking directly to them like a friend would at a café. If that means breaking a couple of grammar rules, then so be it.

However, a word of caution: Don’t make this a habit. It’s okay to do it once in a while for a good reason but not all the time. Readers can spot grammatical errors too, you know!

Self-Publish your Book. Or Finish Writing your Book.

It’s honestly very easy to write and self-publish your own book with the advent of e-publishing. Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing makes it almost effortless to publish that travelogue you’ve been working on or a novel you’ve been writing this year or a series of poems you’ve penned over the last few years. You can publish just about anything – witty tales, short stories, chapters on how to write better or a string of movie ideas!

So go ahead and publish it. It looks great on your CV. And don’t forget to promote it on your personal blog and advertise it on certain websites.

If you haven’t published a book yet, what’s stopping you? In 2018, aim to be a self-published author and then brag about it to you friends and family.

Learn Other Skills

Writing is a fundamental skill that every copywriter should know but times are changing. Today, content agencies and businesses are looking for writers who can dabble in different fields and are equipped with myriad skills. Some agencies seek the services of a writer who can create infographics. Others want to hire a scribe skilled in video creation and editing. Even bloggers are expected to be social media savvy and Photoshop experts.

Several tips for online writers suggest learning new skills that complement your existing line of work. Take an online course of creating infographics. Learn video creation and editing on YouTube from a friend. Take a social media management course. In 2018, learn one (or three) new skills that will propel your writing career to new heights.

Use these five tips for online writers to draft your goals for 2018 in order to become a successful writer. A new year brings forth new beginnings and opportunities.