*Please note that I am not a professional writer, and this is all based on experience. Some things that I'll point out are from things I've seen from this site while others are from the other sites that I write in.

  Writing is fun. At least to me it is. And honestly, you don't have to be the best writer out there because even professional writers have editors to guide them in their writing. Here are things that I believe are useful tips for writers out there, and remember this is all based on my experience and what I look for when I read the story. Also, I did a couple of things when I first started out (I'm not ashamed because it helped me learn), so if you notice yourself doing this, then that's ok! It's part of learning!

1) Title: Honestly, I have a hard time making up titles, but the way I come up with titles is either use a one word title that practically sums up the story such as: Serendipity. Or a quote that a character says. For example, in one of the stories I'm writing offline it's called Halcyon Days because one character says, "I just want to return to those Halcyon days" after a betrayal that leads to multiple events. You can also do the name of a person: Naruto (Woohoo) or the name of a project: The Misfit Project (Just made that up on the top of my head). You can also use a random title generator. Usually when I use this, I mix the different titles to match what I want to get across.

2) Description/The Little Blurb on the Back of Books: Sure the cover and title is what really draws a person, but the description is what makes me stay. Why? Well, because as a reader, you want to know what you're getting yourself into. If you put a very vague description, then how do we know what the plot will be? For example (this is from the top of my head): "______ moves into a new town and meets ______. What will happen when these two meet?" Yeah, you do get a bit of a plot, but what's so cool about it? There's tons of stories like these and just seeing a description like that will make me think of all the stories I've read with a similar plot. Try doing something like: "It all started as a dare. That's basically what happens to Myung Hee. During middle school, she was known as the "nerd" of the school, but when she followed up on a dare, she became one of the 'popular' girls. When a new student comes in, the girls dared her to date him. She thought it would be fun to go with the dare, but soon she starts falling for him. There was something in him that attracted her, but what?" (I just used an old descrption I had. It's not the best because I'm not good at descriptions anyways, but at least it has the hook.)

3) Break Away From the Cliche: Everyone says to break away from the cliche, but honestly, it's hard to avoid that. First of all, every story derives from another story which derived from another story, and another, and so on. So, there's no way in avoiding an original idea. However, the best way to make that cliche into something new, you add your own flair to it. For example, I'll use the Chosen One stories. You an definitely have a Chosen One, but honestly, I would prefer if they didn't have the talents right away. Yeah, some are actually gifted, but I want to see their struggles. Or maybe they thought he or she was the Chosen One, but in the end they made a mistake and it was actually their twin sibling or something. Just add your own twists and turns, and that'll be enough to break the cliche. As long as readers can distiguish your story among others, then you're all set.

4) Grammar, Grammar, Grammar: Many are turned away from stories due to grammar. Me, personally, as long as I can understand you, I'll be able to handle it, but that means I have to also like your story. If not, it'll be frustrating. I know English isn't everyone's first language which is why grammar doesn't irk me that much and also, I'm not the best at grammar either. So my tip for you is have someone read your story and help you edit. I usually ask my friend to help me and she points out a lot of things that I don't notice. (However, she is a bit of a lazy reader, so I end up editing everything myself and not notice all my mistakes in the end).

5) Character Connection: Oh my gahd. Characters, for me, are what makes the story so interesting. Well, yeah, there's also the plot, but the characters make the plot, if you catch my drift. I love seeing how authors develop their characters and how each character interacts with others. It's also nice seeing how they grow based on the events that take place throughout the story. Ah, now that I'm in the character topic, let's talk about Mary Sue. I'm pretty sure everyone knows what a Mary Sue is, but if not, it's basically your "perfect" character, or your "imperfect" character. What I mean by that is, think about The Chosen One topic I mentioned. Usually the Chosen One is someone who does everything perfectly though they have no knowledge of combat or whatever. It's an easy way out when writing because you don't have to explain the training and such things like that, but at least have some sort of flaw. Maybe they can do one thing, but can't do the other. I don't know. Just try to avoid making the perfect "Mary Sue." Also, I noticed there are a lot of stereotypical characters when I first started out writing. Not sure if it's still common based on the popular stories out there. But please, stop making the gorgeous, popular girl the . I mean, that's just terrible stereotyping.

6) Rated vs. Not Rated: I read either, and honestly, as long as the story is good, I will stick with it. In my opinion, if you're writing rated stuff just to get more reads, it's not the best option. Why? Well, I think readers should read a story based on the plot not based on rated stuff all the way through. Yeah, some are good, but some do get a little ridiculous. I mean, don't get me wrong, I read rated stuff. In fact, one of my favorite webtoons is called Blood Bank and it's definitely rated, but there was more to it than just a forbidden love. Apparently, the human was connected to the vampire's past and everything clashes after the human learns the truth about vampires and what they do to humans. There's also a mystery behind the main character because we know nothing about his past. So, basically, if you're writing rated, write it because you feel that it'll fit the story, not because of reads. (I have no idea if I was being hypocritical here)

7) Foreshadow: I was going to type Planning for this point, but Foreshadowing is something I really want to talk about. I was reading one of Ernest Hemingway's short story The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber and let me tell you that foreshadowing was spot on. He would mention key things a few pages back and put it into use in the story. That definitely takes planning. Also, I had to read O Pioneers by Willa Cather, and it may not be my favorite choice in books, but I thought it was well written. When she wrote about Emil and Marie's death, the events leading up to it was definitely a rollercoaster ride for me. The whole time as Frank (Marie's husband) returned home to find Marie wasn't there to grabbing the gun to finding them under the White Mulberry Tree to the time of their death, my heart was screaming out, not wanting to believe it. Of course, there's more to the story as I had to analyze it, but I won't bore you about that. All in all, when you write stories, giving small hints, even if it's subtle, will make your readers be like, "So that's why the gun was there!" Or things like that. It's better to give little bread crumbs rather than hitting them square in the face with no warning. Speaking of foreshadowing, on Blood Bank there were actually a lot of hints throughout the story that I didn't realize until I read it a second time (Yes, I read it twice) and it amazes me how the author planned it all from teh beginning. Same goes for the webtoon Tower of God. It had tons of foreshadowing and it was amazing!

8) Write. Write. Write: This one is the most important one in my opinion. Why? Well, ask yourself, why do you write? I write because it helps me get away form the world and relax after a long day of studying. Writing also allows me to be myself and let my imagination flow. Honestly, at first, I cared a lot about how many people subscribed to my stories and comment and vote, but now I'm writing for myself and for the small community that shares the same interest as me. I mean, just knowing that one or ten people reading is enough for me. Plus, I would mainly write for myself. When I complete a story, it's like completing a quest, only to continue a new one, and when you look back, sometimes you may feel like it was a failure, but then other times you will be amazed by yourself. I looked at some of my old stories when I first started out, and let me tell you, they were a bit strange. I don't know what my younger self was doing and man, I feel embarrassed by about 3/4th of what I wrote. But that's just how growing up is. You live and you learn.

  So yeah, these are the tips I can think of at the top of my head. This is all based on my experience, so not all of this may be what other people think. And I hope I made sense. Not sure because my brain is actually tired from studying till 2AM last night and I still woke up at 7AM for no reason... I wish I got more sleep, but I also hate taking naps... -_-