Improving my writing skills!

[KrisVFX]

Well, I already know that my writting skills are not as good as normal authors. I can't help that since English is not my primary language. My readers have also mentioned that sometimes the structure of my story is a bit hard to understand. But mostly everyone doesn't mind it.
But I'm still trying to reupdate all of the chapters with better quality.
If you have read "Green Life" then yes thats me, the author.
The first time I published the first chapter of Green Life, they mentioned a lot of mistakes I had maken.
Of course I tried fixing it! But even after some time, the readers still find mistakes I had missed...
Anyway, i feel like my writing skills have improved ever since I started writting but something feels wrong.
Sometimes, the readers feel dissatisfied about my story like "it doesn't have the right tags" or "the mc is stupid","what is the point of this story "i hate the mc", "The story has holes" etc.
Some might even know that Im making the character hated on purpose and some just get mad.
I like to take my things easy and slow to explain the story, and I'm not planning on making my story faster.
To someone my story might sound too bland and without any point. They might think that because the mc doesn't have any strong goal.
...
So I have been thinking, "What do I need to improve my story and skills?"
I don't plan on changing the whole story since that's how I wanted it to be. But I still feel something missing and I want to improve!

 

[Mihou]

The largest tip anyone can offer to you is to write more. Humans are simple creatures, we grow as we do things. You can also read articles about how to improve your writing then try to incorporate it into your style but the tip stays there as always, keep writing. Never stop writing if you wish to go further, there may be better tips that may be handed by others, but all of those will be useless if you stop writing.

 

[K5Rakitan]

I recommend getting a program that reads aloud to you for proofreading purposes. I use Natural Reader since I bought it many years ago, but these days, you can get tts programs for free or simply access them from your browser.

Also . . .

 

[ldoronoco]

I'm on the side of quantity is not quality but familiarity.

I agree with above that you do need to write more but when it's about improving stuff, write more with purpose.

Write small, write just say 10 random chapters which only focus on the improvement of one specific aspect of your writing.

This could be on plot, character, structure, background and ask someone does this plot make sense, or does character feel real or does this city feel lived in etc.

I can't help you improve your story but I do have a heap of resources, I've used to help me understand what writing is about and I say to you, look around for such resources, tweak existing characters, plots etc:

Analyzing famous works and riffing a few chapters can be helpful - example, Da Vinci Code: https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/davincicode/summary/

You could brush up on the prose : https://www.novel-writing-help.com/prose-writing.html & https://jerichowriters.com/prose-style/

Or look into plotting techniques: https://www.writtenwordmedia.com/how-to-plot-a-novel/

Even brushing up your knowledge on characters,

Hope something above helps.

 

[TheTrinary]

I know you specifically mentioned structure, and that can be learned academically. A lot of learning writing is quite nebulous and can be confusing, but you can LEARN structure if you're willing to put in the work.

 

[Wintertime]

When new authors get started, they always question the quality of their prose. "Does my sentences have good grammar? Am I using verbose words to portray my work?" Just realize the world that you think in your head is infinitely more complex than words could ever convey. Language is the closest thing we will ever get for others to understand your thoughts. The most important thing isn't about the quality of your prose, it's the way you convey your characters through your world.

When I first started, I had problems with this. My prose was alright, but the way I conveyed my characters and world was too monologue. Too boring, too much info-dumping. It didn't help that I tried to be verbose as well, making it only harder for readers to get enticed. It's a fine balance of both. The best way to make an engaging novel (in my opinion) is to start with two or three main characters. They have to be from completely different lifestyles; their contrast portrays their viewpoints about the world. If you want similar lifestyles; then focus on their character.

How will your three characters meet? How will they react if one does this? If you've imagined an interesting scenario, how will each player fit into that scenario? There are multitudes of ways to write novels, but there is only one thing in common with every great novel. The characters are absolutely engaging, (all of them), and the world is portrayed through the engaging characters.

When someone reads a book and truly enjoys it, they don't give a fuck about how bad you write. Nor do they give a fuck about how cool or boring your world is. They only care if your work changes the way they think about their world. That's how it works, and how it will always work. So keep writing, keep closing the gap between how you perceive your characters and world and how you can convey it, and your hard work will always pay off in the end.

 

[CookieCrumble]

I'm on the side of quantity is not quality but familiarity.

I agree with above that you do need to write more but when it's about improving stuff, write more with purpose.

Write small, write just say 10 random chapters which only focus on the improvement of one specific aspect of your writing.

This could be on plot, character, structure, background and ask someone does this plot make sense, or does character feel real or does this city feel lived in etc.

I can't help you improve your story but I do have a heap of resources, I've used to help me understand what writing is about and I say to you, look around for such resources, tweak existing characters, plots etc:

Analyzing famous works and riffing a few chapters can be helpful - example, Da Vinci Code: https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/davincicode/summary/

You could brush up on the prose : https://www.novel-writing-help.com/prose-writing.html & https://jerichowriters.com/prose-style/

Or look into plotting techniques: https://www.writtenwordmedia.com/how-to-plot-a-novel/

Even brushing up your knowledge on characters,

Hope something above helps.

Thanks, this really help