Top Writing Tips from Nicole Hurley Moore

Here are some tips and observations I’ve collected on my writing journey and I hope you find some of them useful.

 Read a lot, especially across different genres.

This isn’t to emulate or copy your favourite authors but to see how wonderfully varied storytelling can be. Each writer has their own voice.

Discover your own unique voice.

What type of story do you want to tell? What genre does it fall into? Is it in 1st or 3rd person? But this isn’t just about the story you want tell but also the style in which you tell it, from the phrases you use to your take on a particular trope.  

For example, if I said ‘Let’s all write a Cinderella story’, when the stories were finished each and every one of them would be different. The trope would be the same (poor, victimised protagonist falls for hot, rich love interest and after some shenanigans live happily ever after) but the way we chose to tell the story would be unique – that’s your voice. And the only one that can tell your story is you.

When you read your favourite author, you can identify the way they tell a story and therefore hear their ‘voice’.

I love a dual timeline and I think pretty much all my books have that feature or at least a couple of flashbacks. So part of my ‘voice’ is incorporating dual timelines into my stories.

Be kind to yourself.

The only competition you should have in this writing game, is yourself.

Sometimes, it’s hard being a new writer and watching fellow peers getting contracts, having great sales and doing really well. You’re happy for them but there’s a tiny voice inside of you whispering, it’s not fair or why couldn’t that be me? What you don’t see is that contracts or sales didn’t just miraculously happen but are rather a result of possibly years of hard work and disappointments.

The more you focus on other people’s achievements, the more time taken away from your own projects. All comparison can do is eat away at your self-confidence and lead to bitterness – and no one likes a bitter writer. So, take a moment to be happy for your friends and then get back to your writing.

Never stop learning your craft.

There are endless books, classes, author talks, conferences, Facebook groups, software, and Youtube channels on writing.

Know yourself.

What I mean by this is only you know your own writing process and what works for you. Maybe you write every day or only one day a week. Are you a plotter or a pantser? Do you word sprint? Do you edit as you go or wait until the rough draft is finished?

Don’t be swayed if someone tells you the writing process has to be done a certain way – it doesn’t. Do what’s right for you.

Listen to advice but only take what resonates.

Believe in yourself. If you want to write, love to write.

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