Alysa Liu leaving the ice after her free skate!

Everyone calls me Mel. I'm so happy to be here.

your first draft is allowed to be awful. let it be awful, you can always improve it later.

if you’re writing as a hobby, it should be enjoyable and not feel like a chore.

if you’re stuck on a scene and can’t get the words out, skip it. write a note for yourself to come back to it later and move on to the next scene. sometimes you just need to look away from the scene and come back to it with a fresh pair of eyes for the words to flow again.

that also applies to finding the right words and metaphors.

consuming media is one of the best cures for writer’s block.

another thing that helps writer’s block is asking yourself: “what is the most fun/best/most devastating thing that could happen next?”

do not rush your writing. quality work takes time, so don’t ever beat yourself up for being a “slow writer”. it’s always worth taking your time building the right plot and finding the right words to make something you’re proud of.

you’re allowed to take a break from your writing. writing is hard work and burn out happens. take a break if you need, and come back to it when you’re ready. writing is not a race.

writing a story/plot you love > molding your plot to trendy tropes you don’t enjoy.

when you’re writing as a hobby, your work doesn’t need to be perfect. it just needs to make you happy. that’s it.

having more words doesn’t mean higher quality work. don’t feel bad for having a low word count.