When school is closed and everyone is supposed to study and
work from home, many teens spend their time lazying around, watch YouTube, or
play video games. You’d think with all that spare time, they can at least
squeeze an hour or two a day to do something useful, like writing.
4 Secrets to Motivating Teens to
Write
Many parents can vouch the difficulty in motivating their
teens to do anything productive with their time. If you’re one of them and you
in need help in getting your teens to start writing, then you need to follow
these tips:
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#1. Let them pick the topic, writing style, and tone
Teens perform better in a positive environment, right? Now
it’s time to put that knowledge into practice. It’s easier to get your teens writing
creatively when you give the freedom to pick the topic. Remember that they’re
not writing for you.
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Also give them the freedom to pick their own writing style
and tone. Most teens write to get it out of their system. More often than not,
they won’t be writing in a style you’re so accustomed and neither will their
tone. You know what? That’s great!
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Encourage your teens to find their own voice. It will do
wonders for their self-confidence.
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#2. Stop correcting every little mistake
When you’re obsessed with spelling and grammar, your teens will
hate writing. Don’t lose sight of your goal. Why did you want your teens to
write in the first place? To have them practice grammar? That’s not it, isn’t
it?
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It’s time for you to learn to accept imperfection. Just let
them write their heart out and save the spelling correction for much later. You
can also let them fix their own mistakes. Point them to a helpful tool such as
the online spelling and grammar
checker. It’s easy to use and your kids can do it if and when they want to.
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#3 Encourage them to read
Perhaps your teens are having writer’s block. There’s
nothing wrong with that. Even the most established writers often agonize over a
word. One easy fix is to let them read. By reading other people’s work they can
get new ideas easily.
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#4. Start listening
When was the last time you’ve had a good conversation with
your teens? Now is a good time, you know?
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Ask your teens why they’re so reluctant to write, but spend
more time listening than asking questions. Let them explain their ideas and
opinions. Go off-topic and ask how they’re feeling about current events. While
you’re at it, remind them gently on how they can pour what’s on their mind into
a written form.
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OK, that’s all for our simple steps to encourage teens to
write. Last but not least, please remember to keep your expectations
reasonable. Expecting your teens to flesh out an award-winning novel on their
first try is illogical. Let them take baby steps and motivate them to write
more. They’ll get there eventually. But even if they don’t, just help them to
write better. That’s what good parents do.
Keyword: web novel