There is endless advice on writing. Some of it is self-evident, some of it sounds good but makes no practical difference. Yet there are a number of techniques in literary history that have been used by experienced writers and editors for decades - and that can really change the way a text works.

The following eight writing tips are not just for beginners. They are tools that many well-known writers have also used during their long careers.

If applied consciously, they can change both the rhythm of the text and the reader's experience.

1. "Burnt tongue" - break the tongue on purpose

One of the most famous editors of the last 100 years was Gordon Lish, who worked with Raymond Carver and others. His advice to writers was peculiar:

write with a "burnt tongue".

The idea is simple but powerful.
Instead of being complete and grammatically neat, the sentences are deliberately broken.

Why?

Because people don't think in complete sentences, especially when they are:

  • stressed
  • Shocked
  • scared
  • in the grip of strong emotions

The "Burnt tongue" technique can mean, for example:

  • sentence order violation
  • deletion of articles
  • run-on sentences
  • unfinished thoughts

Example of an exercise:

  1. Write a scene where a character receives bad news.
  2. First, write it in normal grammar.
  3. Rewrite the same scene by breaking sentences.

Often the second version feels much more authentic.

2. "Weak blonde prose" - limitation of the child's voice

The writer Vladimir Nabokov used the term "weak blonde prose" to describe a style in which a story is told in the limited language of a child.

His argument was clear:
if the narrator is six years old, he cannot use complex metaphors or analyse the world in depth.

In other words: the author limits himself.

Yet many famous novels prove that this limitation can also be a strength.

For example:

  • Room (Emma Donoghue) - the story works precisely because the narrator is a child.
  • Flowers for Algernon (Daniel Keyes) - the narrator changes intelligence over the course of the story.
  • The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Mark Haddon) - a different perspective makes for a fascinating narrator.

So the lesson is not that you should avoid your child's voice.
But that the effect of the restriction must be understood in advance.

A good exercise is to write a page using only words that a five-year-old would use.

If that seems impossible, the narrator might not be the right choice.

3. Avoid "absolute naturalism"

Writer Frank Conroy warned writers about one common mistake: over-describing the details of everyday life.

This is what he called abject naturalism.

It means moments in which the author describes, for example:

  • washing the dishes
  • setting the table
  • weeding the garden

with a long and detailed description.

The reader gets bored quickly.

According to Conroy, there are three options in such a situation:

  1. Skip completely
  2. Condense into a subclause
  3. Tell us in one sentence

For example:

He washed the dishes and went out.

Details should only be used when they have a narrative significance.

Otherwise they slow down reading.

4. Repetition is not a mistake - it is insistence

The writer Gertrude Stein did not like the word repetition.

He preferred to call it insistence.

The idea is that repetition is not just reusing words - it is emphasising meaning.

For example, in the scene where the character realises that his spouse is not dead:

Not him.
It wasn't him.
No, it wasn't.

Such repetition can describe relief better than a single sentence.

The general rule is:

  • 3-5 repetitions often works best.
  • Too many starts to tire the reader.

5. Defamiliarisation - make the familiar strange

The Russian literary critic Viktor Shklovsky developed the concept of defamiliarization.

The basic idea is:

Make something familiar strange to the reader so that they see it in a new way.

Example:

Kurt Vonnegut described New York as:

"National Skyscraper Park."

Suddenly the city looks different.

The same technique also works in reverse:

  • make the strange world familiar
  • explain a foreign environment in a way that the reader can understand it

This is used a lot in science fiction and fantasy, for example.

6. The curse of filter words

The writer John Gardner pointed out a common problem:

filter words.

These include, for example:

  • he saw
  • he heard
  • he felt
  • he noticed

For example:

He noticed that the sky was full of stars.

A more powerful version:

The sky was full of stars.

A filter word puts more distance between the reader and the event.

But they are still worth using in two situations:

  1. unreliable multiplier
  2. clarifying the perspective

7. Decorate the world on a budget

Author Robin Wilson reminds us of one important point:

A writer cannot describe everything.

In a movie, the camera can show the whole room in a second.
In a novel, the same would take pages.

That is why the world must be "decorated on a budget".

In practice, this means:

  • a few precise details
  • that represent the whole environment

Example:

If a room has a bong on top of a chest of drawers, the reader will quickly draw conclusions about the owner of the room.

One detail can tell you a lot.

8. Tapa "purple prose"

The term purple prose is old - it dates back to the ancient poet Horace.

It means over-embellished, flowery language that doesn't serve the story.

Example:

The crystalline tears of ethereal grief streamed down her alabaster-white cheeks like liquid diamonds.

A simpler version:

Tears streamed down her face.

Beautiful language is not a problem.
The problem is when the writer is trying to impress the reader instead of communicating.

Three good questions:

  1. Can I delete this piece without damaging the story?
  2. Did the language match the character's voice?
  3. Am I trying to influence or tell a story?

Finally

Good writing does not usually come from one big insight. It comes from small techniques applied consciously.

Each of these eight ideas works in a different way:

  • one to change the sentence structure
  • another perspective
  • third rhythm
  • fourth reader experience

But together they remind us of one thing:

Writing is not just about telling a story - it's about building a reading experience.

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