Do you ever wonder how the pros keep cranking out books or articles year after year? 

While that’s certainly not easy, it’s also not rocket science. The key is finding what works for you, and then keeping a few tricks of the trade in mind so that you, too, can write like a pro.

Make It Happen

The only way to write like a pro, is to actually write. As I noted in a post a couple of years ago, you’re never going to find the time to write. You have to make it happen. Of course, sometimes a shortcut or two can help. That’s where transcription comes in. Talk into a tape recorder (the one on your phone will work) as you’re getting in your daily steps, walking the dog or in the car. Then download it to a transcription service like Rev. If you opt to have a person do the transcribing, you’ll pay $1 per minute and usually get the transcription back in one to three days. Sacrifice a small bit of accuracy by opting for Rev’s automated transcription, and you’ll pay $.10 per minute and have a five-to-ten minute turnaround time 

Know Your Audience—and Write to Them

Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction (or a book or a blog for that matter) you have to know who you’re writing for. 

Maybe you’re writing for people just like you. Excellent. No need to research. 

Maybe you’ve gained a following with a prior book that falls into the soft romance category. Probably not the time to write a profanity-filled biography of Henry Miller if you want to hang onto that audience.

Writing about technology? You’d better know whether you’re dealing with techies or people like me who are technologically challenged.

Sloppy Copy

Whether you opt to write from an outline (often a great idea) or not, assume that your first draft, and especially your first chapter, is going to be downright dreadful and write anyway. It turns out that freeing yourself to write that sloppy rough draft isn’t just helpful, it’s essential. Just make sure you don’t fall in love with it when you’ve hit the end. As author Jeff Goins says:

FACT: All first drafts suck. If you’re calling your first draft your “final draft,” then you’re settling for less than your best work.

Often, when I write a preliminary draft, I end up cutting it down a lot in editing. Learning to slice and dice your content is essential to getting a great final draft.

Nothing’s as good as you think it is the first time around. Do the hard work and make it better.

Even after you rewrite your book one, two or three times and proofread the final draft, you’re going to need to hire an editor. Or two. A line editor will help on the language and flow fronts. A copy editor will look for spelling, grammar, logic and factual errors. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Themed Chapters

Remember that chapters are not determined by the number of pages.

They’re often not determined by your story’s chronology, i.e, what happened, then what happened after that and after that.

They’re ruled by themes. Or, to be more precise, by a single theme per chapter.

And they need to start with a hook and end with one so people want to keep reading. Nowhere is that more true than with your first chapter. 

Hone Your Writing

Once you’ve hit the end of your sloppy rough draft, it’s time to polish up your prose:

• Opt for dynamic verbs rather than boring fall-backs like “to be” or “to have.”
• Active writing will always trump passive sentence structure. 
• Go big on detail and avoid qualifiers that make you sound like you don’t trust yourself.
• Cut the fat and tighten your writing. Little extra words that don’t mean anything strip your prose of power.

Now Go Do It! 

Here’s to having some fun along the way.