Welcome back to the June edition of the Merry Go Round Blog Tour.  This month we’re sharing ways we improve our craft.  There are three ways to do this:  Reading, study, and practice.

Reading can be accomplished at least two different way.  I can read books by other writers to evaluate what techniques they use that work for them, or, conversely, techniques that don’t work for whatever reason, or I can read books specifically about craft.  I’ve been a reader for most of my lift, but reading to learn to pick these things out is tough, and I don’t pretend to have mastered it yet.

That second form of reading could fall under study, but the examples I’m considering are more a combination of classes and practical exercises.  I’ve found Holly Lisle’s classes particularly helpful, since she gears the lessons to use my actual work.  Because of this, I’m not wasting time doing unrelated exercises to learn.  The two I’m using now are How to Revise Your Novel and How To Write A Series — Expansion.

This leads me to my third way, which is practice.  The only way to improve writing is to write.  So, using the three-pronged approach of reading, studying, and writing, I’m working to improve my craft.