I remember the writing assignments in English classes. They were generic, uninspiring, and more concerned with grammar and sentence structure than creativity and storytelling. No wonder I had so much hesitation at the thought of writing. I expected scrutiny.

When I finally had my inspiration, the story grew along with my enthusiasm. Of course, I shared the excitement about my new muse with whomever was near. To my surprise, I received expressions of interest, intrigue, and encouragement from friends. So it began, but I craved constructive feedback. I wanted this story to be good; to be worth sharing; to be well written. The only way to ensure that was to learn about writing style, best practices, and the common novice mistakes.

One of the first things an aspiring writer should do is explore the various types of writing out there. What do you like to read? Do you gravitate toward stories that transport you to another place and time? Do you enjoy thought-provoking prose or steamy romance? Try to emulate that which you enjoy in order to discover what you want to write about, and in what form. Play with ideas.

Next, find a supportive place to learn amongst other writers. I discovered a free adult writing course, open to any California resident, offered by Santa Rosa Junior College. In this weekly zoom course, we were given prompts of different topics for free-writing practice, given friendly and constructive feedback if we chose to share our works with the class, and given tools and guidance about the craft of writing and the common mistakes often made by new writers. Believe me, I discovered that I made numerous mistakes.

This class is a great way for someone to explore the writing craft. It is taught by Stacey Dennick, a knowledgeable person who is also an editor, and who introduces multiple resources that the students can reference. Another benefit lies in the variety of genres represented in the participants. Each student may have a particular focus, such as poetry, memoir, non-fiction, romance, or others. At the time, I was the only historical fiction writer in the class.

I learned ways to “show, not tell” my character’s actions and senses. I learned to evoke emotions through words, and build rich and immersive scenes for the reader to explore. Pacing, micro and macro views of a scene, character development and compelling dialogue were all introduced in the class.

Another great help— I found a local chapter of the California Writers’ Club. This group contains all types of creative minds. Again, I found a broad spectrum of writing genre, some of which I hadn’t heard the terminology before: creative non-fiction, magical realism, and others. The list of genres goes on, and the levels of experience among the members vary significantly, from multiple published works to just starting out, but the goal is the same for each: writers helping writers. Every month, a guest speaker graces the club meeting with an informative talk about topics such as traditional vs self-publishing, writing tools, marketing, evoking sound through words, and more. Most importantly, the monthly meeting is a place to make connections with others who understand the path.

These associations with others, who show enthusiasm for my efforts and the journey that I have chosen, bolster my resolve to keep writing. Keep in mind, I still have a full-time job. I’m lucky if I can write a thousand words each week. I set a goal of writing one hundred words per day. It’s not very much, but it gets me started. And when the story is clear in my mind, I find an hour or more has gone by, and hundreds of words have appeared on the page.

It takes courage to put your thoughts on paper. The important part is to decide to write, and allow yourself a little time for creativity each day. Make it a habit, and watch what happens.