A Writer's Tasks

You, the writer, have been given the format and subject, as well as who you're writing for (your audience), and even a due date.

What if you're not given all of this guidance? If you're just told, "I want a story. It has to be at least five full paragraphs long." Time to freak out? Not hardly! Simply turn to your journal, your freewriting, or your creative writing laboratory and generate some great ideas - topics - and you're set.

Right... so we've not gotten there yet, but we're going to.

After choosing, or being given, your subject you have to begin writing. All writers have to face that fear of a blank page, you're not alone if you feel overwhelmed when you see that pure white page with no writing on it. The best way to continue is to decide what part of the subject area you want to write about.

It's really not difficult. If you know absolutely nothing about a subject, avoid it unless you're going to investigate it or have been assigned to it. Instead, pick a point that you do like, and know something about. Ask yourself, "What do I really know about this subject?" or "What do I believe about it?" and make a list.

If I was asked to write a story about space, I would immediately feel lost. I know nothing about astronomy. But if I take a minute and think about what I do know about space, I can remember that a lot of the constellations were named after myths. Maybe I could write a story about how a constellation (even if it's not real) came to be named? Or maybe I could go way out in left field and write about a group of aliens that land in our galaxy... that could be fun!

The point is that discovering your topic can be hard, but it doesn't have to be a pain.

Plan an Approach

Your approach, or the end result you are aiming for, exists precisely because someone will read your writing.

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