If you are writing your first book or are finding it difficult putting pen to paper, the following 10 handy hints will help to make your writing more appealing.

1. Delete the boring parts

This might sound obvious, unless you are writing for purely personal reasons, you need to hold your reader’s attention. Publishing a book that is full of confusing and long-winded explanations could put readers off. You may need help from an editor who will look at it from a reader’s perspective. This is often very difficult when it is a work of your own.

2. Remove superfluous words

Following on from point 1, it is VERY tempting to be EXTREMELY descriptive when you ACTUALLY sit down to write your book.  By cutting out words such as those in caps, your writing suddenly becomes clearer and more focused.

3. Write with passion

If you’re not passionate and excited about your writing, then it will be very difficult to convince anyone else to be.

4. Paint a picture through suggestion

By stating the obvious and telling the reader what they should picture in their minds does not capture the imagination. Using similes and metaphors helps to create a far more powerful response.

5. Keep it simple

Despite using metaphors and passionate language, it is still important to keep your writing simple.  You writing will be far more effective if you can say what you mean simply.

6. Remember why you’re writing

If this is your first book, it is highly likely that (unfortunately) you won’t reach the dizzy heights of J.K. Rowling over night. If you are writing for love or to tell your story, hold onto that thought. When you first start out, sometimes the feedback is more important than the money.

7. Learn from criticism

By publishing your book, you are putting yourself out there for all to judge. Constructive criticism can be very useful. If it is not constructive, simply let it ride over your head.

8. Write, write, write

The more you write, the better you will get and the quicker you will get. If you don’t think you can manage a long novel at the minute, take it step by step and strt with a regular blog. This will get you used to writing for fun. Move on to longer articles and short stories, you will soon be writing much more, much quicker.

9. Write about what you know

In order to be a successful writer, your readers need to believe you. This means that you need to know your facts and understand what you are talking about. A novel should be thoroughly researched. How you then use these facts is up to you. Basing writing on complete fantasy can be difficult. The reader needs to trust you.

10. Don’t be afraid to do something different

Experimenting with new styles, could see you starting new trends in the literary world. Readers crave uniqueness and with a bit of thought, you can create something different, passionate, interesting and new.