1. Write. Write everything. Even if it's garbage, you can censor or revise it later. Writing is good practice and you never know what good ideas may come from it.
2. Write for yourself. If you write for the critics, you'll probably get writer's block. You'll end up with a story you don't even like. The writing process is difficult. If you love your story, then all the criticism and revisions will be worth it.
3. You need tough critics. These are the people who will tell you what is not working with the piece. Their advice, although sometimes heartbreaking, can push your story to deeper levels.
4. You need cheerleaders. Like a parent, grandparent, or imaginary friend. You want someone in your corner who will love your story simply because you wrote it. This helps to balance out the negative criticism and they'll talk you down off the ledge after a rough workshop.
5. After a workshop goes south, have a good cry, put the story away for a little bit (a few weeks, a month, however long it takes for the wounds to heal) and then return to it with a fresh set of eyes. You'll be surprised how much it has changed and what fresh ideas you bring to the revision.
6. Sentence Variation.
7. Dialogue is your friend. Maybe it's because I was raised by television and 99% of that entertainment is speaking/dialogue is the reason I like it so much and feel claustrophobic when staring at page after page of dense text. Let your page breathe.
8. Don't be afraid to do a little research.
9. Never delete. When revising, start a fresh draft by retyping your original draft by cutting what needs to be cut. I can't tell you how many things I've thrown out that yes, were probably garbage, but I miss.
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