By Erin Smith, Assistant Editor

Just like athletics, mathematics or Paris Hilton's music career, the art and craft of writing isn't for everyone. In college, the amount of writing assignments and the degree to which they are scrutinized (or graded) is only going to intensify. Exams for many classes - not just English courses - are going to require detailed essay responses and 300-word answers, sometimes more. And you have to account for the 10-page research papers that are going to be assigned to you by multiple teachers.

Even if you enjoy writing, it can be easy to get overwhelmed. Anne Lamott's book, Bird by Bird, has suggestions on how to fi ght being overwhelmed by the blank page. Her book is a favorite of published authors but certainly has applications for beginners or even those writers who are just looking to refi ne their skills enough to squeeze out a few A's and B's in college. Here are some of her hints to help improve your writing:

Keep it Short
To help her when that overwhelmed feeling threatens to take hold, Lamott keeps a one-inch picture frame on her desk.

"It reminds me that all I have to do is write down as much as I can see through a one-inch picture frame," Lamott writes.

Break down your assignments into small, manageable pieces. Sit down and write the introduction of your piece. Don't worry about how you are going to end it, or the details of your piece. Just focus on the introduction and what you want that section to include.

Then take a break.
Do something else. Pat yourself on the back for roughing out the introduction.

When you go back, tackle the section that supports your introduction. Then focus on the conclusion. Doing this, you will fi nish your assignment one small piece at a time.

Lamott also uses this great quote by E.L. Doctorow to help put projects into perspective:

"Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far ahead as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way."

This advice can be applied to all kinds of writing, from research papers and admissions essays to written tests and short fiction. Small bites, little pieces, will make those research papers much less intimidating.

Bad First Drafts
Lamott's book also offers excellent advice on first drafts that will make every writer happy:

You can let first drafts be bad. Let them be really bad. Use run-on sentences, incomplete sentences and slang if you feel you have to. It's OK because this is the fi rst draft and no one has to see it.

"Almost all good writing begins with terrible fi rst efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start by getting something - anything - down on paper," Lamott writes.

Getting your ideas on paper is the most important part of the writing process. Even the worst fi rst draft in the world will help you out.

When you read your first draft, you may realize that what you wrote is not what you wanted to say at all. But by seeing the bad version, you'll know what you do want the piece to say. Then you rewrite it and it's much better.

Becoming a better writer can help you become a more successful and happy college student. It's challenging, but if you take it piece by piece and let yourself make a few mistakes the fi rst time around, you'll gain experience and be happier with the end result.