Basics & Strong Writing

 Basics Make Strong Writing by Deborah Lyn Stanley

Writing as close as we can to the way we speak, tends to lead to lively, engaging and powerful sentences. Once that’s down, we revise and polish our composition.
I find the following list of revision tips helpful.

1.    Keep the focus, the theme of the piece consistent throughout,
2.    Sentence structure is a subject—a noun or pronoun, and a predicate/verb that explains what the subject is doing,
3.    Use nouns rather than adjectives (nouns: people, places & things—the info readers want.) Remove over used adjectives such as very,
4.    Verbs are where the action is—choose strong ones and avoid adverbs that diminish the strength of the sentence.
5.    Write shorter sentences for clarity; yet long enough to express the point—rather than long ones. Then vary sentence length within the piece.
6.    Write in a professional manner but make it personal to convey the message. Also, be specific, avoiding general statements which can be less useful.
7.     Choose common words that keep the flow, rather than fancy ones that slow the pace.

Sentences build paragraphs; utilize sentence emphasis. Here are tips to consider:
1.    Sentences close with emphasis through punctuation, the period, a pause. It’s the strongest point of emphasis.
2.    Lead a sentence with a strong statement, not a preliminary intro to launch it: in order to…
3.    Not every sentence needs emphasis. Some must be subordinate, use clauses effectively for this. Although, when, if, and because are useful for subordinate clauses.
4.    Grammar checkers don’t approve BUT, sentence fragments are instrumental in making a point. (Got it? Enough said?)
5.    Your topic has a coherent flow, now consider ending with the thought you intend to develop next.

Build Stronger Writing 
Enrich Your Everyday Practice

Helpful Tools:
Melissa Donovan’s 10 Core Practices for Better Writing
https://www.writingforward.com/books/10-core-practices-for-better-writing
Mastering the Craft of Writing by Stephen Wilbers
https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Craft-Writing-Clarity-Emphasis

Deborah Lyn Stanley is an author of Creative Non-Fiction. She writes articles, essays and stories. She is passionate about caring for the mentally impaired through creative arts.
Visit her My Writer’s Life website at: https://deborahlynwriter.com/   
Visit her caregiver’s website: https://deborahlyncaregiver.com/

Mom & Me: A Story of Dementia and the Power of God’s Love is available:
https://www.amazon.com/Deborah-Lyn-Stanley/
And at  https://books2read.com/b/valuestories

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Ghostwriting

 

By Mindy Lawrence
 
Many celebrities use ghostwriters to pen their biographies because they either don’t have time to do it themselves or don’t feel comfortable writing. Although the person needs his or her story out, they can’t do it themselves for some reason. This also goes for businesses that want to brand a product or service. Their solution is to hire a ghostwriter.
 
Here are the top five reason why writers use a ghostwriter.
•         Ghostwriters saves time.
•         Ghostwriters help build brand awareness quicker.
•         Ghostwriters are professional writers.
•         Ghostwriters know SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
•         Ghostwritten content Is authentic content.
 
Top ghostwriters make a good living. However, It’s not an easy line of work to break into. If you want to do this type of work, these are the areas where you need to have experience.
 
•         Become a good freelance writer.
•         Write your own book.
•         Create a network through your freelance work
•         See if old clients need work written
•         Join sites that have listings for ghostwriters
•         Work on your skills in collaboration with others
•         Maintain a good relationship with your clients
 
 
Informative Links:
 
How to Become a Ghostwriter. MasterClass staff
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-become-a-ghostwriter#how-to-become-a-ghostwriter
 
What is a Ghostwriter?
https://www.freelancewriting.com/ghostwriting/what-is-a-ghostwriter/
 
Ghostwriting 101:Tips from Bloggers Who’ve Done It
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/ghostwriting-tips
 
What is Ghostwriting – And What Does it Mean Today?
https://gothamghostwriters.com/what-is-ghostwriting-and-what-does-it-mean-today/
 
Top 5 Reasons you Should Hire a Ghostwriter to Write your Content, Ron Lieback
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/why-hire-a-ghostwriter/253219/#close
 
SEO For Beginners
https://nanos.ai/seo-for-beginners-a-guide-to-optimizing-your-website/
 
Ghostwriting Pros and Cons, Angelica Kate
https://www.authorangelicakate.com/2021/07/21/ghostwriting-pros-and-cons/
 

Mindy Lawrence is a writer, ghost blogger, and artist based in Farmington, Missouri. She worked for the State of Missouri for over 24 years and moved to Farmington in 2020.

She proofread the Sharing with Writers newsletter by Carolyn Howard-Johnson and wrote “An Itty-Bitty Column on Writing” there for ten years. She has been published in Writers' Digest magazine and interviewed by NPR’s All Things Considered.

Tips to Make Characters Real: Write Strong

 

 

Tips to Make Characters Real: Write Strong

Readers are looking for strong stories and narratives they can relate to; descriptive details are the driver. Readers want to meet our characters. It’s up to us to shape characters by describing the details of what they are doing, smelling, hearing, seeing, touching or tasting.

To make characters relatable and lively, choose the details that distinguish them. Ask, what makes that character catch attention? How can I give the reader more information that develops their impression of the character? Is he shy? How will I express his shyness, self-importance or anger?  Does she choose to wear a pantsuit or colorful huge flower beachwear? Describe how people react when they see or speak to him or her.

Bring the reader into the scene with emphasis. Does a fierce black dog charge him while rides his bike on the trail? Is a knock on the front door frightful and foreboding? How do people act when anywhere near his cigar smoke that chokes them? Oh, fresh baked bread at the coffee shop! Let’s go, s'il vous plaît!

Details will be brief if a character has a minor role in the story, but it may grow as the story unfolds.

I’ve heard about the fun practice of preparing a word basket (or jar) filled with scraps of paper—one word per scrap. The basket could become your go-to place for inspiring creative descriptions in a story or metaphor: paradox or poem. What words catch your attention? Grab it and add it to your basket. Consider sensory adjectives, strong verbs, and nouns. Here are some: flood, moon, glow, crack, sputter, knock, blossom, mirror, distort, dominate, negate, underpin, float, sink, water, precipice, or crag. Have fun; pull a random page from your dictionary to get started. My fav right now is s'il vous plaît.

Things easy to do— but best to avoid:
•    Beware of description dumps.
•    Traveling tangents—Stay on point.
•    Slowing down your story or narrative—Use whatever works for moving it forward.

Book suggestions for descriptive writing growth:
•    Understanding Show, Don’t Tell, by Janice Hardy
•    Make a Scene, by Jordan Rosenfeld
•    Word Painting, by Rebecca McClanahan

Earlier Post links in this series—Descriptive Writing for Fiction and Non-Fiction:
Tips for Character Driven Description: http://www.writersonthemove.com/2020/09/tips-for-character-driven-description.html

Senses & POV Tips:  http://www.writersonthemove.com/2020/07/senses-pov-tips-descriptive-writing.html

Deborah Lyn Stanley is an author of Creative Non-Fiction. She writes articles, essays and stories. She is passionate about caring for the mentally impaired through creative arts.
Visit her writer’s website at: https://deborahlynwriter.com/   
Visit her caregiver’s website: https://deborahlyncaregiver.com/
Available on Amazon --- Mom & Me: A Story of Dementia and the Power of God’s Love
https://www.amazon.com/author/deborahlynstanley
Facebook: Deborah Lyn Stanley, Writer    https://www.facebook.com/deborahlynwriter/?modal=admin_todo_tour

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