There are writers of all levels, of all experiences and abilities, and we all tend to fall into one of three categories:

Novice Writer

The new writer, the one who woke up one morning and a switch had been flipped; now the ideas are pouring like a raging river. You now that you are far from perfect, that your work needs more, well, work. But something compels you to keep writing because you just can’t stop the flow of ideas. And even if you could, you don’t want to.

What to Read -  the ideal books are those that deal with the mechanics of writing. But these kinds of books are likely to bore a novice to death so concentrate on books that deal with the structure for now; the mechanics can wait until later. Look at it from the point of view of a potential editor. Work that is written poorly but well structured can be edited into something worth reading. But if your work is poorly structured too then it isn’t worth the effort of editing it. Usually, this boils down to the writer not being knowledgeable about his subject, isn’t writing with clarity and doesn’t know how to engage their audience.

Competent Writer

You are a good writer, you have plenty of good ideas but, more often than not, you haven’t a clue where to start. If you are completely honest, your writing just about passes muster with the odd inspirational gem.

What to Read:

Begin with books that deal with structure and approach, books that can help you to think your ideas through before you start writing. For many good authors, the writing starts in their heads before it gets to paper.

If you have been stuck on a specific style of writing for a while, try moving into a different genre; look at how screenwriting is structured, perhaps poetry. Do this for a few months. As long as it takes for it to become second nature to shift between styles and genres. You will discover that there is a dramatic change in your writing, one that is quite permanent.

Once you have improved your approach and structure, you can move on to the mechanics; pick a couple that you can work on while you use your new eyes to rewrite and edit your work.

Once you’ve improved your approach, pick one or two mechanical fixes to work on as you rewrite and edit with your new eyes.

Seasoned Writer

You’ve been writing for a long while and have mastered the mechanics but your experience has been centered on one area, perhaps law, medicine or something like it. You want to have a go at writing fiction or use some of your experiences to help others, but you just can't seem to get your ideas across in your own voice. You know that your writing is pretty solid but there is something missing; there’s no sparkle there.

What to Read:

Books about living life as a writer. Read memoirs of best-selling authors and you might be surprised at how similar your struggles are. Try something new; perhaps writing poetry or a conscious journal in the early hours of the morning to see if you can change your point of view.