I know one way to guarantee failure in writing a good story: It’s by not writing it. Writers and would-be writers often say “I can’t write,” or “I don’t have anything good to say,” or “My grammar sucks.” Writing is not about great grammar. Often, it’s not about a great event. It’s about telling it, [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Writing’
Everyone Has A Voice — Find Yours!
Posted: September 28, 2010 in Articles, For WritersTags: Jennifer Aniston, Writing
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How To Achieve Mediocrity In Writing, Installment #3
Posted: September 7, 2010 in Articles, For WritersTags: Writing
One of the greatest ways to make a story, article or blog post miserable to read is to ramble. Maintain absolutely no focus throughout the writing, and instead spend your time making sure that your article is the longest it can be. I got a phone call like this earlier today at work. This woman [...]
How To Achieve Mediocrity In Writing, Installment #2
Posted: September 1, 2010 in Articles, For WritersTags: storytelling, Writing
One often-overlooked way to botch telling a story is to … forget to tell the story. “Just the facts, ma’am,” is a fun little phrase and surely has some excellent uses. But too often, articles focus so much on the facts that they miss the human side of the story. These are a few things [...]
How to Achieve Mediocrity in Writing, Installment #1
Posted: August 20, 2010 in Articles, For WritersTags: interviewing, story depth, Writing
An excellent way to ensure your story is not nearly as strong as it could be is to conduct your interviews by e-mail. You never know what story or information a source might have or be willing to share. Unfortunately, I see too many writers composing a list of questions, firing it off by e-mail [...]
When writing an article for a magazine or newspaper, keep in mind the reader — and thus the editor it must go through first. An editor’s primary responsibility is to manage the tone of the publication and make sure its readers are engaged. Handling that duty often entails cutting numerous words out of an article, [...]
All writers who are slightly afraid to put pen to paper should write in memory of John Stubbs. John Stubbs was a committed Englishman, loyal to his queen, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth I. He wrote one little pamphlet challenging a possible marriage between Her Highness and the King of France’s brother. And with one smack of the [...]
