Prose?

[WhaleSprite]

So, recently it seems like my story is well received so far. While I only have 2 ratings on this site they're both 5 stars. And on RR, my rating has about 9 ratings with 5 of them being reviews. One is 4.5/5 stars and the rest are 5 stars.

But it's been brought to my attention that sometimes my prose can be a better and that I can get repetitive at times. This is a weakness I'd like to improve on, are there resources, tips, or exercises on how to improve your prose other than reading a thesaurus of course. Even if my story is doing well, I'm kind of a perfectionist and it's something I wouldn't want others complaining about too much in the future. So, I really want to fix it or at least improve the level of what I currently have.

 

[Eldoria]

I can't offer any real advice because I'm still learning as a new writer for 1.5 months. My Royal Road novel doesn't even have any ratings or reviews yet. So all I can say is: we're both still learning.

 

[RivCA]

I hate to say it, but a thesaurus is still a very good tool to invest in. Get yourself a hard copy if you don’t have a strong vocabulary, and even if you do. I just bought mine recently, and while I’ve only cracked its spine a couple of times for the humor of it (the ten-year-old in me encourages you to look up the word “toilet”) you don’t have to read it cover to cover. It’s a tool, not a novel. As a writer, that is one of your best tools to have.

As a reader, though, a dictionary is a better choice. Nothing slows the pace faster than pulling that heavy copy of Merriam-Webster out to check a definition, but I would much rather reread a passage with the knowledge than get completely lost because I didn’t know what a word meant. It’s also a fantastic, if less-used tool, for writers to take advantage of. If you’ve ever published (or exposed) a work to someone, then been criticized over word choice, it can leave you feeling like you have egg on your face.

Beyond that, the best advice I can give to any writer is to WRITE. Go onto Reddit (huge community, hence why I’m suggesting it) and check out their writing prompts for ideas to challenge yourself with. Set a goal of x number of paragraphs, or time yourself on the composition. The biggest thing is, do something to keep honing your craft.

The strongest advice I can give is to always be reading more of what you wish to write. It doesn’t matter if you’re writing smut, Young Adult, fantasy, science fiction, mystery, or even research papers. You do yourself an extreme disservice when you aren’t reading in the field you wish to write in.

Looping back to dictionaries, ensure the reference book you’re using is geared toward your given field. Most creative writers will only need a generic dictionary, but if you’re going hard on the scientific, get an appropriate reference book. If you’re doing something like The Expanse, get a beginner’s astronomy book. If you want to do plants, get a botany reference book, and so on and so forth. I’m not saying you need to become an expert, but I’m saying you need to have enough knowledge to not look foolish.