Writing is a skill you can train. Like any craft, writing improves through intentional practice and reflection.
I’ve needed to retrain as a writer several times since I started my career decades ago. I got my start as a print journalist before taking on a press liaison job. Currently, I work as a writer for the web.
I’ve personally used the tips I share below during my own journey.,Whether you’re writing emails, essays, or novels, these principles apply across all forms of writing.
How to Get Better at Writing: 7 Techniques I Used to Improve My Writing
To improve your writing skills requires a combination of deliberate practice and consistency. Master the basics, set clear goals, and build a regular writing routine. Freewrite to strengthen flow, read widely to refine your style, and learn from writers you admire. Seek feedback and revise often.
Here’s how those steps look in action.
1. Master the Writing Basics
The first step to improving your writing is mastering the fundamentals.
“Writing” is a broad term.Yet all good writing shares a foundation: clear sentences, correct punctuation, and deliberate word choice.
This doesn’t mean you need to become a grammar expert. Far from it. Mastering the basics doesn’t require memorising obscure grammatical rules. That would be the last thing you need to optimise for. Rather it’s about identifying your weak spots and smoothing the rough edges.
My own focus was constructing better sentences. I asked myself: What’s holding me back from writing with more range? I read The Elements of Style by Strunk & White and I figured I wasn’t always sure about how to use clauses depending on which clause was in the sentence.
Do commas trip you up? Are your sentences all the same length? Do you overuse filler words like really or very? Once you make small tweaks in these areas, you’ll see big improvements in how your writing reads. You’ll feel more confident while writing.
Think back to my struggle: I kept using the same sentence structure because I wasn’t confident enough to experiment with rhythm or variation. The result was that my writing felt flat and predictable. It brings to mind this quote from writer Gary Provost:
“This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals—sounds that say listen to this, it is important.”
This illustrates the difference minor tweaks can have on your writing.
A few timeless resources to keep nearby: The Elements of Style by Strunk & White and Writing Tools by Roy Peter Clark. When it comes to Elements of Style, I focused on the first six rules.
2. Set a Clear Writing Goal
In early 2018, I set out on a challenge: to improve my online writing skills. I’d been writing for years, primarily as a print journalist. My experience was in news articles and press releases. Blogs, however, required a different set of skills.
My goal was simple: become a stronger online writer and attract more freelance work. That clarity guided what followed. I identified online writers I admired, followed their advice, and took courses to strengthen my skills. Within a year, my writing had changed dramatically.
Having a goal sharpens your focus. Think of it as your writing why. What job does your writing need to do?
Example goals:
- Communicate ideas more clearly at work.
- Share your thoughts or expertise online.
- Complete your first novel next year.
Whatever your motivation, define it clearly. The fundamentals of writing remain constant, but different genres demand different strengths. A journalist, a novelist, and a researcher all write well. They’ve tailored their skills to their purpose.
3. Create a Consistent Writing Routine
Once you’ve set your goal, build a writing routine around it. My own writing programme included:
- Reading content in my field.
- Reading content outside my field.
- Studying a passage from a book or article I admired.
- Rewriting that passage in my own words.
- Writing an article I was working on.
I followed this routine day in and day out, whether I felt like it or not. I treated it like a job.
Stephen King puts it like this:
“Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.”
Don’t wait for a jolt of inspiration to strike. Sit down, write, and make writing happen. Set aside a specific time and space for your practice. Protect that time as you would an appointment.
When I worked a full-time office job, I woke up early and dedicated the first hour of my day to writing. You’ll always have commitments outside your writing practice. The key is to choose a time you can keep consistently. Develop a writing process that works for you during this time. The longer you show up, the more natural writing becomes.
4. Establish a Freewriting Habit
Freewriting is one of the simplest yet most transformative writing habits you can develop.
At its core, writing is about getting your ideas out of your head and onto the page. Your aim is to shape them so a reader understands and cares about your message. Yet many writers stall before they start. I know I have too. The thought of assembling words in a way that conveys true meaning can induce instant writer’s block.
This is where freewriting helps. Set a timer for 10 or 15 minutes. Write without stopping. Ignore grammar. Forget about structure. The only rule: don’t stop writing until the timer ends. I first read about freewriting in Writing With Power by Peter Elbow. Elbow is a university professor and he does a great job of making practical strategies for improving writing more accessible.
Once you make this a daily or weekly habit, watch your writing flow more naturally. You’ll begin to think on paper.
5. Read Widely and Often
You can’t write well without reading widely. Reading exposes you to rhythms, sentence structures, and word choices that end up shaping your style.
Don’t limit yourself to one genre. Read essays, fiction, and journalism. Notice how good writers play around with sentence length and guide readers through complex ideas.
When you read something that resonates, ask yourself why. Is it the clarity? The tone? The pacing? Learning to read like a writer is one of the most effective ways to grow.
I usually have a document with pieces of writing I like. Build up a bank of what good writing looks like to you. Conversely, take note of what you want to avoid.
6. Steal From Writers You Like
Every writer you admire has “stolen”, albeit wisely. The goal isn’t to copy. You’re dissecting what moves you with the goal of applying the principles at work to your own writing.
As Austin Kleon writes in Steal Like an Artist:
“You don’t want to look like your heroes; you want to see like your heroes.”
If a writer you like uses short, punchy sentences, try mimicking that rhythm. If another uses lyrical, flowing prose, experiment with longer ones. Over time, you’ll absorb elements of each and blend them into your own authentic voice.
A two-step step strategy I often use is copywork and rewriting in my own words. Copywork is writing down everything from your inspiration word for word. Many writers swear by this tip and it works. It gives you the feel and rhythm employed by the target writer. Next you write the piece in your own words. To start, experiment with only a few paragraphs.
7. Get Feedback on Your Writing
Feedback is one of the fastest ways to improve your writing. My writing level jumped when I began working closely with an editor.
There are many ways to get feedback:
- From readers: I post a lot of content online. The response, in the form of comments, engagement, questions, is a type of feedback. Just remember to factor in algorithms
- From AI tools: You can upload your article to tools like ChatGPT. Use a clear prompt that specifies the type of feedback you want. For example, tone, clarity, or structure. Here’s a sample prompt:
- Review my article for clarity, angle, tone, and originality. Give me: What’s working well, Specific, actionable ways to improve. A one-sentence verdict on readiness. Be honest. Don’t just say it’s good. Critique with the goal of making my writing stronger.
- From people you trust: Constructive feedback is a skill not everyone has. I’ve been on the receiving end of vague or discouraging critique, but also from editors who could articulate their thoughts clearly and help me find practical ways to improve. Seek the right voices.
Becoming a better writer isn’t about sudden breakthroughs. It’s about consistent, thoughtful practice. Progress isn’t linear. You’ll barely notice a day to day improvement. Show up, put in your reps, and watch as you improve one sentence at a time. You’ll look back at your old writing and be amazed at just how far you’ve come.
