How to Improve as a Fiction Writer in 2024! 

Thank you for being here

Part 1: Improving Your Mindset 2:15 Mindset #1: Talent vs Hard Work 8:02 Mindset #2: Putting your vision above your emotional attachment 13:39 Mindset #3: Don't blame the story idea: blame your skill level 16:49 Mindset #4: If it works, it works. 19:55 Part 2: Improving Your Writing Process 21:10 Tip #1: Figure out a process that works for you 27:30 Tip #2: Find a schedule that works for you 33:21 Tip #3: Edit whenever you want 37:08 Part 3: Improving Your Skills 37:54 When you want to improve a skill, identify what specifically needs to be improved 43:38 How to Identify Weaknesses (5 Core Skills: Story Structure, Scene Structure, Character Arc, Strong Sentences, Cohesive Paragraphs) -45:14 Story Structure -46:59 Scene Structure -48:42 Camera Dies -49:50 Character Arc -52:49 Strong Sentences -55:17 Cohesive Paragraphs 59:30 Fix it in Post

Adding to everything you've said about skill and talent, I thought I'd share a quote by Sir Michael Caine that's always stuck with me: "I'll always be there because I'm a skilled professional actor. Whether or not I've any talent is beside the point." I think this quote is wonderful because it can be applied not only to acting, but also to writing and a lot of other professions. As a reader, I don't care how talented the author is. What I care about is the quality of the book.

The longer your videos are, the more excited I am to watch them. Thank you for filming it despite your house situation, it must be unusual for you, but the content is worth it. Can't wait to see what you're preparing for us in 2024 (the interview with an agent sounds great). And Happy New Year to you too! I hope you have more time to work on your novel this year, and that your health gets better, but don't rush and take care of yourself. My comment is all over the place, but I'm just glad to hear from you and see that you are well. All the best, Ellen!

I personally love Mindset #3 "Don't blame the story idea: blame your skill level". I know several writers who constantly have amazing ideas and are always telling me about them, but seemingly give up after a few chapters in because they don't think the story is that good, or it's "bigger than they anticipated" or some other reason they tell themselves while giving up and moving onto their next big idea.

Brick by brick, editing as I go, is the only way that works for me. Thank you, Ellen, for recognizing this approach. Another great video, as always!

Your four types of writers video(s) were an absolute game changer for me. I'm firmly a methodological pantser and as soon as I stopped listening to advice that contradicted my natural tendencies writing got soooo much easier. I have an actual process now. 😲

Love this - you know it's a good video when you're torn between immediately rewatching and picking up your writing project to get started!

A one-hour video! Thank you so much for this. A lot of great points. Hopefully this is the year I finally finish a manuscript.

Just take it one day at a time, and don't be frustrated when things are not working out. Just keep working at it, and you will get there. Thanks Ellen Brook, you truly are a good mentor.

I keep coming back to your videos whenever I feel stuck, which is more often than I care to admit. Your channel is a goldmine. Thank you for helping me all the way from the barest idea of my novella to actually publishing it!

great contribution to the community to make such extensive content!

I fit most into your Methodological Pantser type. For me, it's important to edit those early scenes before I finish because i'm still new at this and need to see how it will look when polished. I don't want to build more bricks on top of an unstable one, to use your analogy. That instability just sits in my mind and I think it will cause me more work later, to fix everything that's built on it. And I also don't want to get to the end and only then start working on my polishing skills. I do think it's important to keep going, and to finish. But for me, if I don't finish at a certain level of quality, I worry that i'll give up and put it down. So a big part of it is building evidence that I CAN do this, I think. I could definitely see this changing if i'd already completed a first book, and knew more about how the process is likely to go (for me).

Ellen, thank you so much, not only for this wonderful video (I was taking notes like mad!), but for teaching me to write. Your four writer types categorisation was a game-changer for me. As a plotter who straddles the intuitive-methodological spectrum, it cut through so much confusion. I'm now able to embrace rather than fight my weird tendencies (like intuiting a plot first, then using story structure to get the pacing right) and write more than I've ever done. 2023 was my best writing year so far, but I want to make 2024 even better. Thanks a million for putting out this video despite the circumstances. It's a shame RU-vid isn't promoting your videos as much, but we'll do our bit to share them! Take care and hope your year is going well so far :)

I'm someone who once had "natural talent" as a writer, but I also have bipolar disorder, and in retrospect most of my creativity was fueled by mania. Medication saved my life but also robbed me of that talent, and I've had to go back and consciously re-learn many of the stylistic and structural elements of fiction writing that used to feel second-nature to me. Your channel has been a great help in that, and it's so encouraging to hear from someone for whom writing was a learned, chosen vocation. Yours is still one of the best writing channels on RU-vid, bar none.

I‘ve worked my way through so much writing advice, but just the concepts of letting go the idealized version of what I think how a writer should work and the specific core skills helped me get so much perspective on the areas I am struggling with. I will definitely have a look at those other videos!

Just today I was realized that I needed to start focusing on improving specific storytelling skills if I want to become a better writer. I've spent a lot of time just teaching myself to finish stories, and I'm beyond ready to start focusing on improving other skills. Those five core skills you listed, and the signs that you may be struggling with them are just the thing I was needing. I was debating what skills I should focus on improving first, and now I have a much better idea of where to start. I always learn so much from your videos!

Happy New Year Ellen, thanks for all the amazing advice and content. I always refer back to your videos when I'm struggling or feel lost.

I love these, these feel both conversational and instructional at the same time. ONLY thing I would suggest is, you mention 3 sections, I don’t see this in the vid right now but I would love if there was a way to retroactively provide time stamps for each section. Otherwise, very solid work, as usual.

I guess I've never really thought about how our feelings about our story may differ from our *vision* of it, because these often come from the same place I think. And still, sometimes they stop going hand in hand and you have to sacrifice something. And one thing that really brought me a lot of peace about choosing to delete a scene or reject an idea is how these things don't really disappear: you can recycle them later. It sounds obvious but for the longest time it didn't really seem true to me, like, how would I ever be excited about an idea that I've already had to reject? But over the past year, there's been a bunch of times when my previously rejected or forgotten idea popped up again and turned out to be just the right thing for a completely unrelated story. This makes me unreasonably happy. You're not throwing this character or this scene into a volcano, they'll remain in your library of ideas and maybe there will come a point where they make an unexpected return!

Ellen, thank you for making these videos! I've been following your channel for... god, like 8 years? And I've been rewatching a lot recently since I really want to write a novel for the first time in forever and I feel very lost, because I've completely switched to short form prose and it's quite overwhelming to set out to write a whole novel again. Considering all that, it was a delight to see a fresh new upload amidst binge watching your old videos. Your presence on this platform has always been very comforting for me, not to mention that I've learned a lot from your channel! Also, I might leave a bunch of separate comments because this video is turning out to be very profound and there are things I want to share in response that are piling up as I watch 😅

I'm only 20 minutes in but this is truly a masterclass. I can't believe we get this for free. Thank you for sharing.

Happy 2024, Ellen! Thank you so much for this video. I've watched through twice already, and will surely be watching many more times throughout the year. I'm especially taken with your distinction between primary and secondary skills, and the examples you gave to diagnose what a particular writer needs to improve on. I started off 2024 in quite a deep creative rut, so the reminder that improvement is possible with hard work and resilience is very appreciated! Wishing you the best with your health and your home!

This video is poignant and succinct. One of the greatest videos you've produced!

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” -Vince Lombardi

Single best writing video I’ve ever seen. This is so spot on.

i missed this video when it first came out, but i'll comment anyway! your stuff is among THE best advice i've ever seen, and i really appreciate how clear, consice, but also well balanced it is in the pep talk vs tough love department lol. Your author types breakdown is my absolute favorite, and i've definitely been showing it to every group of writer friends i have whenever the opportunity arises! Personally speaking, i think i've come up to the "just gotta practice and get feedback on my work work" stage of improvement, so i don't really know what questions or video subjects might be useful to request, but i do love your Sample Editing videos! having the in-context concrete examples of what could be improved is so insightful, and feels very applicable compared to pulling "good examples" from books that have already been published. Hope you're doing well, thanks so much for your hard work

I learned so much from you in ‘23. Looking forward to all the mind gains in ‘24 from your content!

I picked your vlog for my 20-minute workout. I'm an accountant writing my first sci-fi. The story popped out in a dream I had a day prior. It's been three months, and I am about halfway through. I started with an outline of the plot per chapter. When I start a chapter, I handwrite the main idea. I write and complete the chapter on Saturday and Sunday. My goal is to have a four-book series.

Great information. I took a fiction writing class in grad school but I don’t remember any of it. I am now absorbing information from you and other writers on RU-vid and I bought some used books about writing fundamentals. I had instructors at college want what I wrote for examples for future classes but that was all non-fiction. Fiction is a whole other animal. I don’t have natural talent, I work on it. I am also finding that planning is very helpful. Writing back stories about a character and their relationships with others like family very helpful. I am working on structure at the moment. It is a fun and interesting adventure.

Thankful for your continued well thought-out videos - quality of content here means I don't care that this is a basic video. Wishing you the best in 2024 and for your writing and editing journey.

Im really happy with where my mindset is at. Very few people ever write a novel in their lifetime. I try to write a thousand words when i can because i know theres far more benefits to writing than simply reaching the finish line as quickly as possible. If youre struggling with mindset, my tip would be to complete a short story and print 1 copy. I created a few short pokemon stories for my son and i cant describe the feeling of reading a hardcover finished product to him. It reminds you that every single time you make a little bit of progress, it will be worth it. Plus you got to sit quietly and be creative for a few hours, which is a blessing in itself.

I did want to mention that you used to come up on my feed all of the time but, I'd not heard from you in years, so glad you are back. I shared this video on my discord server and with any writers I meet. Thank you so much Ellen. These videos mean a lot to so many people.

The four types of writers wasn’t something I’d ever heard of. Super helpful to know myself during the process. I never considered editing as I go instead of at the end of the draft. Would definitely change up some things for me.

This is such a speedround of excellent, precise, actionable information! Thank you so much for taking the time to do such a thoughtful, in-depth video during a tricky phase of your own personal life, it's hugely appreciated. As always!

It is great that you made this video. There is so much advice on the internet and even your channel alone, so having a roadmap that explains what to focus on first is really helpful.

I absolutely loved this video. Going into the core skills and how they can bubble up in writing was such a new way for me to look at my writing. 100% plan on catching your other videos.

Ellen, tysm for this and just your whole channel in general. It has been so eye-opening. I was very much trying to be a methodological plotter at first and was getting frustrated. I love science and theory, so I just presumed I needed to learn that way. Idk what type of writer I am yet, but knowing I can just discard structure whenever has made it easier to actually start writing a story

Thank you for another wonderfully informative video, Ellen. I've been wanting to write a novel for as long as I can remember but your videos are helping me to give it a shot this year. Hope you have a healthy and happy 2024!

Your channel is so helpful. It makes me feel like I have realistic paths to follow to improve! Thank you.

Thank you so much Ellen for this video and everything you do. Watching this motivated me to tackle some editing of a first draft 1/3 in. I wish you a great year with better health, better house and better writing!

Ahh, now I get it. I’m stuck in the middle so I need to work on story structure. I’m an intuitive plotter. I do know the beginning and ends right away (although the ending could change). Also the advice about editing is priceless. I always feel like I’m messing up by editing, yet I can’t move forward without feeling the need to build “brick by brick”. Thank you for all the advice!

Thank you so much. This was incredibly helpful! I can't wait to watch more on your channel

This is exactly the kind of video I needed today! Thank you.

Happy New Year!! Thanks so much for another really helpful video. I'm currently plotting/writing what I hope will be my debut novel, and your videos have been a Godsend.

I really appreciate the respect you give to how different writers have very different processes that can still work. Many writers onky talk about plotting and planning and no attention is given to us intuitive pantsers. Thank you for your videos. They have been most helpful!

Thank you this was so helpful ❤! I've been rewatching the video a few times. I didn't even knew there were 5 core skills to improve on. This is what I've been struggling with the most since I started writing but didn't know what was wrong. And I also didn't know how to improve it. Your 4 writer type videos also saved me it was like the brain fog left my head lol 🙂 it made me embrace my chaotic writing process more. Keep up the good work!

Only 20min in, and I know I'm going to watch this twice. So much useful information, it's so encouraging to hear everything you said. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge.

Thank you so much for all of your wonderful insight. I am about to put my in print. It has been in my head for a few years.

Always a joy to hear your thoughts. Great video!!

I really appreciate what you said about not having to be efficient. I'm revising and trying to work on multiple aspects and kicking my own butt because I'm not just flying through every scene in an hour or two.

Good luck with your new house! I will always improve as a fiction writer.

Hello Ellen. I like the long form unedited versions of your videos. You mentioned writing types, I'm definitely one of those writers that started as a religiously strict outliner for my first five or so attempts at a novel. I've never really described my process before, but after struggling for years I forced myself to change how I write stories. Now I write with a beginning and ending in mind but no clear idea of how the middle will go. I will start at the first scene, introduce trouble, a catalyst, and the antagonist as soon as possible to "light the fuse" of the story, and then I will springboard the character into the next scene in a logical entertaining way as a consequence of however the character dealt with the issues in the last scene. I do this over and over so the story can go in some wild and unpredictable yet organic (I hope, lol) direction until circling back around to the pre-planned ending, but I give myself permission to change the ending and often do if it feels better or is more satisfying. I finished two first drafts using the strict outlining method and I was happy with them but each of them took me about 6 months to write. After switching to the loosy goosey method that I use now, which allowed me to get into a more vivid flow state, I wrote the first draft of a 40,000 word novella in seven days. Thank you for the great videos!

I've shared your channel with my writer friends, your content is amazing. Your concept of the 4 main types of writers made such a difference in how I approach my writing ❤ thank you for sharing your wisdom, and Happy 2024!!!

Thank you! Love your deep dives! Your knowledgeable analytical and empathetic approach to writing advice is superb. I have so many of your videos in my writing 'reference' playlist.

You're amazing, Ellen. This video was so useful. I'm excited to improve my weaknesses!

Such a great video!!!! Thank you, Ellen!

I absolutely LOVE LOVE your channel and your tips. I know your focus is on novels, but would also love a video on Screenplay writing

Thank you for creating this!! It's so helpful!!

This video was super insightful and helpful, thank you so much for helping us discover our weak points, I've been struggling and don't know why. I'll look into the things you mentioned. Thank you again and happy new year! 😊

Thank you for putting in the work, you're the person giving the best writing advice for me on youtube

Thank you for this cohesive video, Ellen!

Thx for the video in spite of the personal challenges. I'm always blessed by your insights, but moreso by your heart for writing and for others who write. Happy New Year!

I've started watching your videos recently and they've helped me so much. You're fantastic at explaining these concepts. Thank you so much for making these videos readily available ❤

You have a natural talent for teaching writing. You’ve helped me so much!

This was great. You have been a huge help in my writing journey. Thank you for always delivering such helpful and applicable advice.

Thanks for another great video! I feel seen, yet again, and that means so much. It helps me build confidence in my own process. 💕🙏

Thanks for this. It was a gem as all your other videos are!

Thank you so much for this! A frequent issue I have deals with characters that end up effectively being the same "person" and have too little to distinguish them. If there's a quick video in that, I'm all ears! Thanks again

As someone who has a lot of paragraphs I'm emotionally invested in that just don't work - some even 10yo now - I agree that creating a separate doc where you keep it, and then edit it out of the main doc is the way to go. 70% of the time I never even remember the paragraph or line. But there are times where years after I've removed it I realize it needs to be in there, so it's helpful to go back to the "Play" file and bring it back in. Esp. when upon re-read I can't help but mentally add it back in every time.

Thank you so much for this video, one of the most helpful things I've watched in a long time.

wow, the things you said about talent and passion really struck a chord with me. I definately don't have passion for writing, I've come to the realization that I write more out of a fanatical obsession of getting a book published and beeing able see it in a bookshelf at a local bookstore. There have been so many times over the years where I thought to myself that i'm never writing again, but then after some time passes I always get back into it ugh.

Thanks so much, Ellen, for another great video!

Ellen - amazing, all of this was so helpful, thank you

You always makes me remember what is important

So inspiring and educational! Amazing video as always Ellen.

Thank you for your kindness. I've been feeling really pressured and overwhelmed these days

I like the color palette of this video. The background looks aesthetically pleasing. A new feel for a new year. Happy writing, everyone.

I've been writing compulsively for some time as a hobby and I've noticed a considerable jump in my own abilities soon after I've read something like a masterpiece let's say--but I'd say it applies to any story worth its own salt. I cut my teeth on genre fiction and still love it today, but find reading through many of the classics of both old and recent work to be the deepest well in which to draw from. Your content is so good and I appreciate your fun and creative but no nonsense approach to this, your advice has been extremely helpful!

Good to see you! Happy New Year!🎇

Thank you so much! This was very inspiring and helpful! Looking forward to the video with the literary agent 😄

WHAT?! It's not even August! Yay! New Ellen! Thanks lady!

This video was a well needed nudge to get writing this year. Thanks.

This was brilliant, useful, and inspiring! Thank you! ❤

This is such a helpful video, thank you so much for creating this and all of your advice and time :)

So helpful! Useful insights, much appreciated. 🤩

What an awesome video! I admire your eloquence!!

Everything you said about the core skills was super enlightening thank you!

So happy to have a new video from you. This video was so thorough and gave me so much to think about. Thank you so much.

Wow! What a video! Thank you so so much!

You really drove down the point about the value of editing and I appreciate it - up to now I have always given up on writing projects before finishing OR editing because I thought they were too bad, and I could start a better one, but this year I will look my NaNo23 project in the eyes and try to fix it!

Thanks for reminding me to look over your four types videos again! I can't remember if I was the intuitive plotter or methodological pantser. Also I really appreciate going over the mindset aspect of writing. Like with a lot of things how we think about it has a huge effect on how we deal with it. I think even if you had a video just on that first part I can see people making huge gains with their work. Although obviously the rest is very helpful as well!

incredible stuff, Ellen, as always

I could be listening to you forever ❤ Thank you, your tips are very useful!

Really awesome video. And the perfect followup to your character arc video, which I also found very helpful. I'm at the stage where I think, or like to think, that I have a good handle on story structure, so I've been looking for ways to better present the existing story rather than trying to change it. The section with the 5 core skills particularly stood out to me Thank you for your insights and I'm really looking forward to the next video!

Love you, Ellen! You are awesome and have helped me so much

Thank you Mrs Badger! I paused this at 22 mins and rewrote a scene which has been holding me up. I realised I was trying to make myself create more characters and dialogue that really didn't move the story forward, so I just reported it rather more impersonally. In context (between two lengthy dialogue sections) it seems to work ok. This means I can move my mental cursor to the end of the text, where I'm also a bit stuck. So now I shall watch the rest of the video. 🙂

Woah, this video is so interesting and helpful! Thanks!

My algorithm must be so off right now, I haven’t seen any notifications from you in almost a year! Glad to see your content coming across my feed again ❤

A great video as always. Thank you from Poland