Thread by @RuthWareWriter

A thread of ten writing tips for anyone doing #NaNoWriMo (or anyone not doing #NaNo! You can write any time you want).

1) Have an ending in mind. This is the number one tip I give when asked for writing advice. You don't need to plot out the whole book (I don't) but having a

solid direction in mind will help keep you on track, and it's really invaluable for the kind of books I write - the kind that require you to drop hints for the readers. I know crime and thriller writers who don't plot at all - @lisajewelluk is one I believe - but I think they're

a rare breed and most of us want to travel with a destination in mind, even if the route we take is a surprise.

2) Read. A lot. It's really hard to write in a genre you don't know at all. And yes it's fine to break the rules, but only if you know what rules you're breaking. But at the point where you start writing I, personally, have to stop reading. I need to listen to the voices in my

head and it's hard to do that with other people's characters shouting at you. So I generally do most of my (crime) reading between books.

3) Write. I know this one sounds stupid but it's surprising how many people want to write a book but never sit down and do it. It doesn't matter if the book isn't perfectly formed in your head - mine often aren't when I start writing. It doesn't matter if there are bits of

research you haven't done or plot twists you haven't figured out. If you're waiting for the perfect idea, or the point in your life when you have nothing else to do and no worries and loads of time - that time will probably never come. So carpe diem, as Robin Williams tells us.

4) Give yourself permission to make mistakes. This is a big one I think, at least it's a big one for me. The fear of failure or of people hating your work is huge. I've learned that the only way I can take risks is to trick myself into believing this book is just for me.

I write every first draft in private, telling myself that if it's rubbish I won't show it to anyone. I don't talk about it. I don't let anyone critique it while it's forming - it's too fragile at that point. Only when it's finished do I let myself feel ok about showing it to my

editor and agent. Then to a few more people. Then I finally let myself come to terms with the fact that it will be published. Some people thrive on feedback - and if that's you, great! Join a writing group, find a buddy writer. But if that's not you, that's ok too.

I think it was @StephenKing who said he writes the first draft with the door closed, and the second draft with the door open. That sums it up perfectly for me. I hated anyone reading over my shoulder at school - and I still hate it. But once it's finished, I can let go.

5) Give your readers a reason to turn the page. I think this is maybe more one for the crime and thriller writers - but it probably applies to all genres to some extent. There has to be something your reader wants to find out, some question they want answered, some conundrum they

want to solve. That can be very big (who killed X) or it can be something more subtle (why did X say that). What works well is a series of questions layered over each other. There's a great example of this in @TheGillianFlynn's Gone Girl. In the first chapter the big question is

of course what's happened to Amy. But early on Nick says something like "It was my fifth lie to the police. I was only just starting". It's the end of that section. And immediately we're on fire to know what were the other four lies, and what on earth is he doing?

At that point, I knew I wasn't putting this book down until I had the answer to those questions, even more than what had happened to Amy.

More tips are coming tomorrow but I need go do some writing myself (ironically)