Looking back over my writing (and comparing it to what I've read of other people's writings), it's unquestionable that I have a fairly distinctive writing style. The problem I have with it at times is that I'm not sure I like it.
I think I have a decent grasp on my strengths and weaknesses, or at least how I perceive them (though I'm not sure how it might come off to others):
I am good with realistic dialogue. I can make a character say something that they would conceivably say in real life, if they were that situation. I am capable of believable vernacular. On the flip side, when I'm writing humor, I apparently have enough witty one-liners and sarcasm that can carry the tone of the scene.
In continuance with that, I am good with comedic timing and punchlines. I do well with short scenes that make an impact, shaping up a few paragraphs of a situation to conclude with an - oh. A revelation, to either the character or to the reader.
I am not good with overarching plots, pacing, subtle transitions (or else I am too subtle and obscure and the reader will totally miss what I'm trying to convey), and natural development. I am impatient with writing because I like to know where I'm going, so I often have a roadmap of where I want a story to go in my head, and I end up forcing things along without taking into consideration the pacing becomes too abrupty. I overcompensate with what I feel is a lack of progression by throwing in too-subtle foreshadowings that I'm not sure people pick up on during the actual read (and may only seem like foreshadowing to me because I know what happens later on).
I get caught up in descriptions of what people are doing or what their body language is expressing when they're speaking. I don't let the dialogue stand for itself because I know, from personal experience, that people convey unsaid things with their expressions or other small gestures - unfortunately, these tend to bog down scenes with excessive description.
I'm also not very good at describing the setting or background environment of a scene in natural, non-conspicuous ways. I tend to infodump when I remember, oh yeah, I should put in some description of this room or that building or the sky. I should give people enough details for them to get a general idea of where things are taking place instead of throwing a paragraph of text at them, because everyone can use their imagination, right? On the other hand, sometimes I want to describe a particular environment that I know readers wouldn't otherwise imagine. It's a difficult balance. I struggle with that a lot.
Another trap I am guilty of falling into is an overuse of adjectives or adverbs. I'm usually pretty good about them when I am paying attention and at editing out unnecessary ones upon reread. This is why I have to reread. I also reread to get a feel of the general flow of things because I do a generous amount of time-skipping in between scenes and sometimes that jump is not obvious, or it's incongruous or confusing.
As for plot: plot is hard. I tend not to write long things because they require having a better idea or grasp of an overarching plot than I tend to; I'm best with scenes and stories developing organically as I write, which the control freak in me does not allow to happen with longer pieces. Longer pieces demand that I know in what direction I'm heading and it all just ends up driving me crazy.
Sometimes I struggle to find new ways to say old things. I'm not averse to idioms or "clichéd" phrases, as long as they fit into the flow of the narrative (or are apt in dialogue). But sometimes I want to be creative and sometimes that just doesn't work out very well, or I am creative with one particular phrase that I like so much I can't seem to ever think of a new way to express the same sentiment, and I feel like I'm rehashing my writing with the same descriptions or metaphors. Not good.
I also tend to meta in my writing, instead of telling a story. It works, sometimes. Other times it makes me grit my teeth in frustration, but if I have to meta, I would rather do it through a thin veneer of storytelling than in essay form.
Hmm... That's all I can think of to comment on for now, so I'll stop overanalyzing my writing (it comes from writing so much lately...) and actually get back to writing. Ugh, writing is hard. But I write to improve, right?
To paraphrase Stephen King: To be a good writer, you must do two things: read a lot and write a lot.
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