Writing Tips

I am currently writing a book with a friend. Well, more like a series. It started out as a fun project, but we ended up with a very exciting plot and some interesting characters. Right now we are writing the something that can only bee described as a first draft, though it's probably not even that. We are writing in English with the intend to sell it as an e-book when we finish. It's not going to be a great novel since nor my friends or my English is actually good enough. I have come a very long way and have still a very long way to go before I'll be a good writer. You can always improve yourself and your skills. While I am not a professional, I like to give some writing tips:

Know the genre that you are writing.
 Before starting to write, it is important that you know the genre. Read books from the genre and see how those authors have build there story. Some genres are more difficult then others. For example you will have to put a lot of time and effort in research if you want to write a historical story. It is not only important that you know what happened around the time your story is situated, but also the details: of what fabric were clothes mostly made? What kind of food did they ate? etc.
Fantasy (or Science Fiction) can be very tricky as well, especially if you are creating a whole new world. It is the world building that will make your story believable and again the details matter as much as the big picture. If you have absolutely no clue how to start world building, you still have a lot of reading to do. One of the most renowned world builders is J. R.R Tolkien. It's amazing how he created Middle Earth. George R.R Martin did a great job as well, though he didn't go quite as far as Tolkien in my opinion.
So read what you want to write! 

Practise as much as you can
If you can, write every day! Practise can only make you better!

Characters
When I started to write a had a lot of trouble writing believable characters and that is why I start writing fanfiction. I just had to create a plot and I could start writing without having to create characters. I absolutely hate flat characters or characters who are extremely good or bad in something. Every character has flaws and holy good or holy bad characters are utterly boring in most cases. To get inspiration for a character try not to long too far; people in your immediate surrounding can be a great source of inspiration. J.K Rowling has based Snape on bad teacher she has had during her school time. A great way to get to know you character is to interview them and let them replied in their own voice. What makes a character human, are quirks. Do be careful that you don't give too many (strange) quirks to your characters.

Plot
As a discovery writer, I barely ever plot things out. I have an idea were I want to go and what is going to happen, but what comes in between I will find out while I am writing. This way of writing causes me to have to rewrite certain things, but I don't mind. I can't plan things out, it starts to bore me. A good plot does not have to be complex. Some stories get their strength out of their plot (plot driven stores) , other from their characters (character driven stories) and others use a combination.

Inspiration
 I get my inspiration from everywhere. Music and books are my greatest inspiration. Life itself can be a great source of inspiration as well. I have discovered that I tend to give (some of) my characters feeling I had or project a part of me on them without actually realising it at first. Most of the time I make it a little darker or lighter. Writing is for me a therapy.