Thank you for checking out the mini fiction writing workshop. In this series I share small, actionable tips for writing fiction. Whether you’re a seasoned or developing writer, hopefully you will find some useful information.
The topic of this workshop is about who you are writing for.
As an aside, I realize I have ended that sentence with a preposition, and that offends some people. But I’d like to take the opportunity to help dispel the myth that it’s not okay to do so. If you are in the camp that believes this is a rule, please look it up. The first page of Google results provides multiple reliable resources. For your convenience, here is the online Merriam-Webster dictionary answer to the question of whether it’s okay to end a sentence with a preposition.
Okay, on to the topic of the day!
Who are you writing for?
I think this is a good question to ask yourself. It’s important. Why? Because the effort you put into writing, editing and marketing your work will all be impacted by that singular question.
And honestly, I believe there is no wrong answer.
Perhaps it will help to think of it as the rungs of a ladder.
At the bottom of this ladder, you may just be writing for yourself. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. There could be several reasons why you are not writing for an audience. Maybe you’re all about enjoyment of the process and have no long-term goals. Or perhaps you are working through some painful life experiences, and the best way for you to process that right now is to write it. Maybe you’re being so bold as to write the full story of your life with your abuser. If that is what serves you, then do it. Do you need to fuss about your plot? Or the mechanics of your writing, such as grammar and sentence structure? Probably not, if it’s for your eyes only.
The next rung of the ladder is self-publishing for fun. Blogging and social media can fall into that camp, especially if you’re really not expecting to ever work professionally as a writer. If you don’t need to impress a publisher, then writing well and carefully editing your work may be a great goal, but are perhaps not critical.
The top rung of this ladder is writing for publication. Whether your goal is mainstream publishing or self-publishing work for Amazon, everything matters. As a fiction writer, you must fully master the craft. You must learn to build worlds, develop characters, write excellent openings and compelling scenes, and story arcs that take the story to a climactic close and make the ending satisfying. Every word counts. And grammatical perfection is imperative.
Taking the next step up the ladder
If you do aim for publication, learning the craft of writing is vitally important. You don’t want anyone stumbling over poorly-crafted sentences, feeling like they can’t quite grasp what is happening, scratching their heads over the motivations of your key characters, or possibly the worst outcome of all — setting your story down after the first few sentences because the opening just didn’t grab them.
You want readers to love your work from the moment they read the first word until its beautifully-told ending. You want reviewers to love your book so you can get excellent reviews and build your readership. It’s a whole different ballgame. You need to master every aspect of writing, from storytelling to the mechanics of sentence structure.
None of that will happen over night. It requires ongoing practice.
Reading great books, writing regularly, and hanging out with other writers who will give you honest feedback on your work will all make an enormous difference.
So, be certain you know who you’re writing for. That will set the course for your development as a writer and support you in your journey.
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this mini writing workshop.
The writing workshop collection
You can browse my collection of writing workshop posts in the links below.
Mini workshop series
Short posts on specific writing topics:
- Mini writing workshop: Is there a shortcut to good writing?
- Mini writing workshop: Can you get paid to write?
- Mini writing workshop: Is there anything wrong with using italics for emphasis?
- Mini writing workshop: What is the best way to write dialog?
- Mini writing workshop: What should we know about your character?
- Mini writing workshop: What does “show, don’t tell” mean?
- Mini writing workshop: Can you write if you don’t have time? (Finding where you can fit writing into your life)
- Mini writing workshop: What should you write about? (Ideas for finding inspiration for your stories)
- Mini writing workshop: How do you start a story? (How to determine the starting point)
- Mini writing workshop: What is magical realism? (Exploring the magical realism genre)
- Mini writing workshop: Should you write in present tense or past tense?
- Mini writing workshop: Must your character do that? (About writing tics and character pet peeves)
- Mini writing workshop: What’s it all about? (About story lines)
- Mini writing workshop: Must we fight? (About conflict in fiction writing)
- Mini writing workshop: What’s the point? (About making things happen)
- Mini writing workshop: What prompted that? (About writing from prompts)
- Mini writing workshop: Who said that? (Tips for writing dialog)
Mini workshops within 50-word prompt posts
Brief workshops, typically 3-5 paragraphs, at the top of 50-word short story challenge posts:
- Mini writing workshop on “tense”
- Mini writing workshop on the editing process (with a walkthrough example)
- Mini writing workshop on taking time to write
- Mini writing workshop on the power of editing
- Mini writing workshop on critique
- Mini writing workshop on fixing punctuation errors
- Mini writing workshop on mainstream publishing (with a resource for 50-word story authors)
- Mini writing workshop on voice and language (as compared to the importance of plot)
- Mini writing workshop about becoming a great writer
- Mini writing workshop on contests and challenges
- Mini writing workshop on what makes a story a story
- Mini writing workshop on demystifying story writing
- Mini writing workshop on 50-word short story writing process
- Mini writing workshop on the steps for writing 50-word stories
- Mini writing workshop on micro-fiction and writing succinctly
- Mini writing workshop on the “why” of writing
- Mini writing workshop on the challenge of micro-fiction
In-depth workshop posts
The original writing workshop series:
- Writing workshop: The beginning
- Writing workshop: Exploring voice in writing
- Writing workshop: Say what you want to say
- Writing workshop: Getting organized and actually writing
- Writing workshop: Tips for writing anywhere, anytime
- Writing workshop: Should you write historical fiction?
- Writing workshop: Prompts, contests and challenges – oh my!
- Writing workshop: Pushing through insecurity and writing anyway
- Writing workshop: Perspective and POV in fiction writing
- Writing workshop: Second person point of view in fiction
- Writing workshop: How to write your character’s background
- Writing workshop: What to do with all these voices in my head?
- Writing workshop: Write your story from a logline
- Writing workshop: Three tips for improving your fiction
- Writing workshop: How to accept criticism on your fiction writing
Keep writing!
About Jayna Locke
Jayna Locke is a Minnesota writer who has had a lifelong love of fiction. Her short stories have appeared in a range of literary journals, including Great Lakes Review, Portage Magazine, and Bright Flash Literary Review, as well as several anthologies. Her collection of short stories, Somewhere in Minnesota, is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kirk House Publishers. She is reachable through her contact form at bit.ly/ContactJayna or on X at www.x.com/@jaynatweets.