Why Paying Attention Makes You A Better Writer

Why is paying attention important for writers? Discover how observation can generate ideas and help you create better stories.

One of the most important qualities a writer needs is the ability to pay attention.

Writing is all about creating and describing, and most of us get our ideas and inspiration from what we see, taste, smell, hear, and touch. We take ideas from books we’ve read, films we’ve watched, stories we’ve heard, and people we’ve met.

Great writers pay attention to the world around them and find ways to turn what they experience into words.

What Does It Mean To Pay Attention?

Paying attention means concentrating on something and taking notice of what is happening around you.

When you pay attention, you observe without interfering. You take the time to discover more, notice details, and watch as things happen or change on their own.

When you pay attention, you don’t judge or criticise what you see. You simply observe it. You are neutral.

If writers can get this right, they will uncover a treasure trove of material everywhere they go. They concentrate on the details because that’s where the interesting stuff resides.

How To Pay Attention

1. Breathe.
2. Be quiet.
3. Be patient.
4. Use all five senses.
5. Accept what you experience without judging it.

Write down what you’ve experienced afterwards.

Make Paying Attention A Writing Habit

Make observation part of your daily writing practice. Notice one interesting person, place, sound, smell, or detail each day and write it down. Describe what you noticed without judging it. Over time, you’ll build a collection of small observations that will stir ideas and enrich your descriptions.

Why Paying Attention Makes You A Better Writer

Paying attention helps us become more empathetic. When we pay attention, we gain insight into people and places. We may have seen a person a thousand times, but until we really pay attention, we don’t understand them.

In another post on this website, Anthony Ehlers describes how noticing a perfect moment made him actually look at what was around him. He says: ‘You can learn the craft of plot, of developing character, of refining genre — and all these are important steps to becoming a great writer — but at the heart of it, it’s really about capturing how you see the world. The beautiful, the seedy; the thrilling smile from a stranger, the polished shoes of a policeman, the way stained glass in a church makes you think of wine gums.’

A writer has the power to make things that weren’t obvious visible. The best writers do this all the time. They put what they have observed into a narrative.

Paying attention – watching people and listening to them – is also a great way to beat writer’s block.

[Suggested reading: 17 Ways To Think Like A Writer Every Day]

What Famous Writers Say About Paying Attention

I’ve included these quotations from writers who know about the importance of paying attention.

1. ‘Pay Attention. Notice the quality of light, the heft of air, colour of sky, faces, clouds, flowers, garbage, graffiti — all of it. Slow down and pay attention. Stop during your walks and examine a leaf. Read the writing in shop windows. Observe people getting on a bus, the bus driver, the stink of the bus exhaust.’ ~Judy Reeves
2. ‘Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.’ ~Mary Oliver
3. ‘But the sensibility of the writer, whether fiction or poetry, comes from paying attention. I tell my students that writing doesn’t begin when you sit down to write. It’s a way of being in the world, and the essence of it is paying attention.’ ~Julia Alvarez
4. ‘Pay Attention – I honestly believe that the quality of a writer’s work has a direct correlation to the quality of his or her attention. I have to remind myself all the time to show up in my moments with all my antennae switched on.’ ~Sue Monk Kidd
5. ‘Writing is seeing. It is paying attention.’ ~Kate DiCamillo
6. ‘Listening is terribly important if you want to understand anything about people. You listen to what they say and how they say it, what they share and what they are reticent about, what they tell truthfully and what they lie about, what they hope for and what they fear, what they are proud of, what they are ashamed of. If you don’t pay attention to other people, how can you understand their choices through time and how their stories come out?’ ~Marge Piercy
7. ‘Zen pretty much comes down to three things — everything changes; everything is connected; pay attention.’ ~Jane Hirshfield
8. ‘A writer, I think, is someone who pays attention to the world.’ ~Susan Sontag

The Last Word

Good writers pay attention. They notice the small details, listen to people, stay curious, and look at the world with fresh eyes. Make paying attention part of your writing practice, and you’ll never be short of ideas, details, or stories to tell.

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

© Amanda Patterson

More posts from Amanda:

1. What Is Mood? 140 Words To Describe Mood In Fiction
2. 5 Essential Exercises For Writing Dialogue
3. What Is Fantasy Fiction? Plus A Fantasy Book Title Generator
4. 9 Essential Character Questionnaires Every Writer Needs
5. How To Choose A Book Title: 10 Things Every Writer Should Know
6. 10 Ways To Move Your Plot Forward
7. 10 Ways To Create Dangerously Nuanced Antagonists (With Examples)
8. The 4 Pillars Of A Memoir
9. Writing A Memoir? Narrow Your Focus
10. How To Write A Query Letter In 12 Easy Steps (With Examples)