Any advice for an aspiring author?

Consider your medium to communicate with. You can practice on youtube or blurb. You don’t have to be conservative with your medium. You can write on Amazon for Kindle. Self publishing places can help you get noticed for free.

There are tons of how-to resources online, as well as some actual books. And there are classes and workshops. But in the end it’s really something you can only do yourself and on your own.

Everybody needs an editor.

Just do it, and then do it some more, and then do it some more. You don’t get better by not practicing.

Keep your square job.

I guess I’m looking more for “structural” advice. For example, if someone finds that it’s easier to piece the story together in one way or the other. At this point, I write pretty head-on, which is fine for short projects, but I think might be problematic if I want to delve into a 3-part series. I know that some people do outlines, some write the beginning and end first and then figure out the middle—just looking for what works best for others.

And, as the last sentence suggests, what to avoid.

There’s no way someone can tell you that. We have no idea what you’re capable of. And as you’ve already said, different things work for different people. One person lines a wall with brown paper and covers it with Post-it notes in different colors; another starts by writing a scene that’s vivid to her (knowing that later she may have to leave it out entirely) and then builds a book around it. The answer is: whatever works.

Here’s what you want to do: Be brilliant. Write beautifully, invent wonderful characters, devise a compelling plot, treat great themes, and by all means come up with a terrific ending. Above all, keep writing. The book in your head is no book at all.

Is there anything specific that you really dislike in a book?

This is not the right question. The right question is, what do you want to write about?

Answer that, and then write, write, write.

And read, read, read.

Look at at different mediums.
Read how to books
Join or start a Writers Group
Keep writing, whenever the urge to write happens…small blurbs,poems,full sentences,paragraphs,pages etc
I soon got tired of Writers groups as I found that the Speaker brought in ( expert) assumed that we needed to jump start our creativity?
I am creative and have several writing projects jotted down, some drafts that need reediting,some new ideas,some threads of an idea etc

I soon tired of the childish attempts to supposedly jolt an aspiring writer , and I suppose that there are some who do need that in the beginning?

But our group was formed of writers that had books in the works at various stages.
I have had a particular writing project on my mind for years and have added pages periodically.
Have read lots of ” how to books“and found that I trust my own way of writing rather than following a set guideline, that is frustrating as it is telling a reader in fact “How they” write.

One needs to trust their own style of writing and write away, later do the editing , as it is important to get your message down on paper first.
I am now reading “Screenwriting for Dummies” by Laura Schellhardt ( I really like this book as it is helpful for me)
and had also read the book titled:
“Complete Screenwriting Course” by Charles Harris
( of which I took away some info but do not like this book as much as the first ( above).

I read Diana Gabaldon’s Q&A site: Where she states that she NEVER had post it notes or any other strategy other than just writing in her own way and style,where she broke the rules in writing and did it her own way, and hence she is a Famous writer making millions as her books are now Movies!

At first one may need the basics , but if you are one of those writers that can hit the page running then maybe go for it!

It is the ones that stand out from the rest by breaking from the norm that get noticed sometimes..hopefully for the good?

Good luck on your writing and yes as someone had stated above,
“Keep writing“as the more one writes the better and accustomed they become.

Read

Write every day.