Over time and with great effort every writer strives to have more strengths than weaknesses. Naturally the first step is to acknowledge your weaknesses and define your strengths. That being said, you are usually your own worst critic. Keeping this in mind I will list what I think are my most prevalent weaknesses. Naturally I think there are many so I will save you the boredom and only list three.
1. Continuity.
I write in spurts and fits. Short furious bouts of insane productivity unfortunately this can lead to confusion. One moment a character has red hair two pages later it's brown. That's the simplest example but it's been far worse. Thankfully I have helped solve my problem with some software and by keeping lists. My continuity issues have been greatly decreased.
2. Details Details.
Once upon a time I was told that I needed to add more detail to my stories. Unfortunately I took that advice a little too much to heart and started adding far too much detail.It has been my constant struggle to pare down on the details. Sadly I still add more than will ever be necessary but I believe that I have gotten it down to a more manageable quantity than before. At least I can edit without slogging though pages upon pages of unnecessary details.
3. Imagery and Senses
For a long time I would read and wonder why I was so easily transported to different places and worlds when I couldn't seem to do that with my own writing. Finally someone mentioned that I was missing my senses. How could I expect to suck my readers into my worlds by only using one or two of the senses? It made total sense and it wasn't something that I had been aware of or really thought of. Once I started adding in those missing elements it definitely breathed life into my stories.It's still something that I struggle with and I constantly have to remind myself to add them into the story.
Now I have listed my three greatest weaknesses. This month's post is supposed to be about our strengths and at this point you must be asking yourself "Why is she talking about weaknesses?"
Well the answer is simply that I believe these to be my strengths as well. By identifying and working on my weaknesses I think that they have become some of my best strengths as well. Further more, by straightening out these aspects of my writing I have been able to identify new weaknesses and have started working on them.
I'm going to end this post here and hope that my attempt at a brief thought may have helped you think on your own strengths and weaknesses.
Please go visit the writings of my fellow writers at Merry-Go-Round Blog Tour and see why they became writers themselves. The first of the month will bring the writings of Alex F. Fayle. Until next month, happy reading!
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