Teen Writer's Network. Helping beginners open the gate to the writer inside them.

Avoiding Common Pitfalls

Here is a list of things for you to check your writings for. This will help you avoid some of the most common mistakes new writers make.

Be sure that you've used the same tense throughout your writing. It is easy to slip up without even thinking and write something like, "Yesterday I went to the store. When I get there I grab a gallon of milk." This should read, "Yesterday I went to the store. When I got there I grabbed a gallon of milk."

Make sure the whole thing is told from the same point of view. If done correctly, it is okay to tell the story from the point of view of two or more different characters, but make sure you stick to first person, second person, or third person throughout the writing.

Check to see if you've provided your characters with some sort of purpose for the things they're doing. For example, if you are writing about a vampire who kills human beings to drink their blood, make sure you tell why he wants to drink their blood. It would be unrealistic for a person to believe that he just likes the taste of it. A much more interesting story would be if he did not like to kill people for their blood, but had to in order to survive.

Make sure your writing has continuity. If you say that a character got their stereo for Christmas, don't say later in the story that they got it for their birthday. In novels and longer short stories it is helpful to write down key events on notecards so you can keep track of what is going on.

These are all the tips I have for you for now. I hope to think up more soon. Send me an e-mail if you know of any I've missed.

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