Roger Wolfson is one of the world’s finest writers and whilst you may not know him by name, you will most certainly have heard or seen some of his work. Roger has lent his pen to many endeavors over the years including TV hits like Law and Order and Saving Grace, he has also worked as a columnist for the Huffington Post and within the field of law. Roger is the perfect person to gain inspiration from for any would-be writers out there and these are the core skills which people like Roger possess, and the skills which you are going to need too.
Perfectionist
Straight off the bat we can see that a great writer should be one who is obsessed with the details and the accuracy of what they have written. I can remember watching an interview with Stephen King who was talking about the number of minute details which he has obsessed over, which in actual fact aren’t even recognized by people. This is the level of detail which writers should go into and it is why they are usually people with a keen eye for imperfection.
Wordy
There is an interesting thing here when considering writers because they so often come off as clever, but many of them aren’t, at least not in the traditional sense. Equally the smartest people are not always good writers. What separates these men and women is the ability to play with words, to use words in the right way to communicate a message or to make a point and to grasp language in such a way which helps to deliver a story or a certain thought or idea.
Disciplined
There is a really discipline which writers have to have when it comes to getting their work done, and that is not always easy. Adding discipline to a creative field almost seems restricting or at the very least oxymoronic but the reality is that without structured hours and discipline, writers just wouldn’t get anything done. Whether it is for a publication, paid work or indeed a solo creation, a writer should always be disciplined in their craft in order to produce the work which they are capable of.
In-Depth
Even the best writers have to go through a rigorous research period in order to get all of their facts straight and to best deliver the story. Even the world’s most famous crime writers who have a history in law enforcement must do checks and investigations so that what they write is at the very lest in touch with reality. A story or a piece of writing must always be plausible and unless the genre is fantasy, it will be facts that give the piece of writing that necessary credence.
These are the very basic skills which one must have in order to become a good writer, there is of course much more to it but above all else, these are the skills to have.