Ernest Hemingway was a wordsmith long before he became a deep-sea fisherman and a big game hunter. He used to wake up early every morning to write. He has one of the most influential prose styles of writing and his best stories are masterpieces that few other authors can match. Although Hemingway never wrote about the art of writing, he left a great deal of advice in books, articles, and passages in letters. These are some of the best pieces of advice.

1. To get started, write one true sentence

Hemingway had a remarkable method of overcoming writer’s block. When he found himself lacking inspiration, he would find ways to distract himself from the tiresome task of finding ideas for his works. He found consolation in the fact that he had written before and had the capacity to write again whenever he liked. Hemingway would tell himself to write the truest sentence he knew and that would easily help him get started with writing. According to him, there was always one true sentence that he knew.

2. Stop writing for the day when you still know what comes next

Hemingway did not have a daily word-count quota and it wasn’t important to him. The only thing he considered important was to never empty his imagination’s well. Hemingway advised a young writer in a 1935 article that if he always knew what was going to happen next when he stopped writing, then he would never get stuck.

3. When you’re not working, never think about the story

This advice builds on Hemingway’s previous advice. He says that you should stop thinking about the story at the end of the day and start thinking about it the next day. “That way your subconscious will work on it all the time,” he said in his 1935 piece in Esquire. When you consciously think about your story, you will tire your brain before you start writing and that can kill the story. To distract himself from the story, Hemingway would read, get exercise, tire the body, and make love.

4. Always start working by reading what you have already written

This is a logical piece of advice because it is virtually impossible to maintain continuity if you didn’t go over what you wrote last. Hemingway said that it is good to read the work from the beginning correcting it as you move along and continue writing upon reaching the end.

5. Make emotion – don’t describe it

Hemingway said that you should closely observe life in order to write well. When observing life, you should not only listen and watch what is happening but also notice the emotions stirred in you by the events. The better you become at this, the better you will be able to make readers feel the emotion in your writing.

6. Use a pencil

We are in the digital age and computers are the preferred way of writing anything. Hemingway had a typewriter for letters but he only used a pencil for serious work. He did this because it was easier to correct and improve what he wrote by pencil.

7. Be brief

Hemingway disliked people who wrote a lot to convey little information. According to him, it is better to use few words to tell your story when possible since you will have a greater impact on the reader.