Tight Writing Skills

Writers love words. 
But too many words make writing obese and unhealthy.
Writers spend time finding the perfect words for their descriptions;  so, it can be hard to slim down words to make a better more succinct writing product which is, therefore healthier.  Good writing is a rich idea with an economy of words.  Since re-writes take time, a few healthy habits at the beginning of a project will improve writing.

Here are just a few rules that may help:
1)  Check for run on sentences.  Thoughts are difficult to follow when the sentence goes on and on. Short sentences are easier to read and keep the meaning clear.
2)  Words like there, it, those, and that are vague and indefinate subjects. They should alert you to a problem.  i.e That should be elimanated. BETTER--These combinations should be elimanated;  i.e.  It is a difficult read that has no specific subject.  BETTER--Sentences with no specific subject make difficult reading.
3)  Check for wordiness.  One  or two adjectives will get your point across. You don't need a string of words to explain.
4)  Check for "deadwood" -- a word or phrase that adds nothing.  i.e kind of, sort of, the fact that etc.

Hope this helps . . . have fun with your writing. 
(If you are interested, check out the tab at the top of the page called Small Stones.  These exercises are fun and help with writing skills.  Tomorrow's post will be a small stone.)

Common Writing Errors - Dictionary Use

Today, rather than discuss a grammar error, I want to discuss a discipline error.  "What?" you say! "You want to address my personal discipline?"  Well, yes.  A writer needs discipline and the first discipline he needs is to keep his dictionary handy.  The second discipline is for him to USE it!  I know, we have spell check to use these days, but  I want to encourage you to also use a dictionary.  You can use the old fashioned kind in book form or there are some very good online sites that will add the dictionary to your homepage, like iGoogle.  You might even opt for the Merriam-Webster site which has free resources.



Vintage Dictionary Art Print by littlebluebirdstudios on Etsy 



Often, when I am writing, I stop and ask my husband, "How do you spell . . . . ?"  He tells me his thoughts as I reach for the dictionary.  We confer on the word, arrive at a spelling and I go on with my writing.  It seems, sometimes that I spend a lot of time looking up suitable words to use.  But, this is a good discipline.  It helps me with my spelling, enlarges my vocabulary, and enhances my writing.  I learn something new every time I open the book.   If we use only the spell check, we are not challenging ourselves to use new words, that we can't spell, or explore new possibilities in our writing.  Just sayin'. 

Common Writing Errors - Sentence Variation

Today's tip is for all of us who write descriptions of our products on Etsy or Artfire. Most of us already know that writing a good engaging description is a key to good online salesmanship. It is very easy to be factual and straightforward in describing our items, such as starting our sentences with the same word or word structure, repeatedly. Try not to use the same successive sentence structure over and over, i.e. there is, there are, it is, this, the, we, I. Especially for myself, I tend to overuse these phrases, since I am trying to present my item with as many facts as possible. I want my item to be truthfully presented. But, occasionally changing the usual word order of subject + verb + complement will avoid monotony and will attract attention.

Sample:

Those who can sleep through a strong rain storm are fortunate.

Better:
Fortunate are those who can sleep through a strong rain storm.

Sample:

It is a lovely shade of lavender.
Better:
Lavender is the loveliest shade in this print.

Print fabric available from PruittSupply on Etsy.

Tip:

Sentences should usually be built with the most important idea at the beginning or end; or in places where the reader's attention is most at its peak. Where do you want to grab your potential customer's attention?

Now to go look at my own descriptions and do some re-writes!

Common Writing Errors #2

Apostrophe pin from tiarabuttons on Etsy

It's Saturday! It's April! Yay! Isn't Spring wonderful? Today's post is about possession! No, not like possessing wealth or property, or even being in control of the ball out on the field! It's (it is*)about using apostrophes. 1)Apostrophes can be used to denote the absence of a letter/s in a contraction i.e. can't, won't, I'll. 2) They are also used to indicate plurals of figures, letters or words designated as a plural word like: a Wheel of Fortune statement: "There are three t's in that sentence." But where most of us make the errors in our writing, is when they are used in the possessive case when writing about who or what belongs to whom. "I left the girl's room." Meaning: I left the room of one girl. The room belonging to one girl. "I left the girls room." Incorrect! "The page's focal point was . . . . " Meaning: the focal point belonging to the page seven's layout! "The pages' focal point was . . . " Incorrect! This way it literally means: the focal point of all the pages (plural) was . . . ? did you really mean that all the pages of the magazine had one focal point? Anyway, you get the picture! Tip of the day: There is a notable exception to the rule! Never use an apostrophe with the possessive its. "It's" is actually a contraction meaning 'it is'. *See an example in the first part of this post.