Writing tips from bestselling author beth miller

Beth Miller is the author of six novels, including the bestselling The Missing Letters of Mrs Bright. She teaches on the Creative Writing Programme based in Worthing on Friday mornings. Here she offers her top writing tips.

1. You don't need to write every day. However, if you leave a book unattended for too long, it will wander off, like a toddler. Keep it in mind when you're not working on it.

2. 'Don’t get it right, get it written’. This is the mantra in my head the whole time I’m writing the first draft. It means: don’t go back endlessly over your work rewriting; don’t sit there pointlessly worrying that it doesn’t say exactly what you want; don’t waste time moving commas about. Churn out the words, and trust that you can make them better later. You can.

3. Related to 2 - the real work of writing is in the rewriting. Don't get too attached to the first few sets of words you produce. It's similar to practising a musical instrument; you wouldn't play at the Albert Hall having only tried a piece once.

4. Related to 2 and 3 - writers have a creative side and a critical side. Both are useful at different stages of the process. Most writers let their critical side out too early, before their creative side has had its say, and end up editing themselves off the page. Creativity needs space and encouragement.

5. If you’re a pantser, write without worrying too much, then when you get into the classic pantser pickle at about the 30,000 word mark, write a long synopsis about everything that’s happened so far, and what might happen next.

6. Share your work with a couple of writing buddies who will tell you what they love about your writing as well as what doesn’t work. Writing a book is a big project, and hard to do completely alone; I’ve found that it takes a village.