Writing Tips for the Grammatically Challenged: 5 Tricks That Will Turn Your Sentences from Sloppy to Savvy

Posted on by JannyS

There’s a rumor floating around that the English language was created specifically to confuse and frustrate innocent people and cause unnecessary stress every time a complex sentence is in need of construction. Whether or not that’s true, I will admit it takes time and a whole lot of patience to learn all the ins and outs of our complicated and beautiful language.

If you were lucky enough to have a few fairy godmothers for teachers—like I did—then you had inspiration floating around you like pixie dust every time a story was read aloud or a new book was assigned. And whenever it was time to practice complex grammatical subjects, you tossed the entire contents of your desk to find the precious red pencil that would help you work magic.

The Nerds Know

It didn’t take me too long to find my nerdy niche in life, and trust me, I embraced it fully, devouring book after book and finding joy in opening the dictionary to random pages to scour for obscure words. My point is this: it’s important to go to the right source when you’re trying to perfect a specific skill.

I suck at math…really, abysmally suck at it. I mean, I can do “sale math” like a whiz. I can figure out a pretty close total at a BOGO book sale or a 33% off shoe sale. I’ll walk away with a bargain, no doubt. But ask me to figure out how many gallons of gas a plane flying from Dallas to D.C. will need if the wind is blowing from the southeast at 12 mph, and I can guarantee that plane will run out of fuel and fall from the sky in a flaming blaze of glory.

You should definitely go to a MATH genius for that kind of hard-core brain pain.

Gather The Grammar Lovers

It’s true. The English language is daunting. It’s full of inconsistencies and irregularities that sneak up on every one of us and trip us up. The language makes itself pretty darned impossible, and unless you love to sit around and read grammar tutorials from cover to cover, it’s easy to step in a pothole every now and then.

Some might even say the English language is a painful mosh pit of confusion and illusion—but let’s not dwell on the negative.

Here are 5 super-easy tricks that will help you turn your sentences into masterpieces—no matter what you’re writing:

  1. Be you. It’s the easiest thing you can do. There’s no character study required, no pretending, no acting. Lay your writing onto the page as if you were pouring your words out of your soul. Don’t change yourself or your beliefs simply because a thought is going to be forever etched onto paper (or a digital platform) for all to see. Don’t change the words you need to write in light of—or in anticipation of—what others may think. Be true to you, be true to your words, and be true to your art. When it’s all said and done, you’ll end up coming out on top.
  2. Rearrange to sustain your writing mojo.  If you weren’t a sentence-diagramming nerd in school, armed with a red pen and an evil heart—ready to strike down every common grammatical mistake—then you don’t understand the thrill of the hunt. But there’s a way you thwart the grammar gremlins and still come out ahead. Simply rearrange or shorten convoluted sentences and turn them into powerful, grammatically-solid sentences. It’s perfectly ok to cover your ass by switching things up. Here’s a simple example:
  3. Mind your nouns and verbs. (prepositions throw this off) I know, just the thought of noun/verb agreement makes many of you break out into hives, but stick with me. When readers come upon a noun/verb situation that doesn’t agree, it’s distracting. Suddenly, instead of focusing on the plot line, they become focused on proofreading and editing errors in your writing—which is exactly the OPPOSITE of what you want.
  4. Punctuation matters. Double-check your punctuation. Then triple-check it. Not only can your choice of punctuation completely change the meaning of a sentence, it can also be distracting if it is incorrect or simply out of place. And while we’re on the topic, let’s talk about excessive exclamation points. Cut that out. If you find yourself constantly screaming at your audience with an overload of exclams, instead of making your point come across more clearly, you’re making yourself look hysterical. I mean, who goes around all day, every day just YELLING everything in excitement??!!!!! See what I mean?
  5. Double-check your homophones. Ah, good ol’ homophones…loved and hated by so many. Here’s the deal. There just aren’t that many of them, and if you can memorize the difference between craft beer and light beer, if you can learn how to book tickets online, remember all your internet passwords, and even remember to send flowers on your grandma’s birthday, then you can remember the difference between there, their, and they’re. A little effort in this area will improve your writing immensely.

Pro Tip: Prepositional phrases are often the culprits when it comes to subject/verb mismatches. Why? A prepositional phrase can interrupt the subject and verb, often appearing between the two. This means you must know your prepositions and be able to pull prepositional phrases from the writing to determine subject/verb agreement. The general rule—and a good test of your writing—is if you can remove a prepositional phrase, the subject and verb should agree when put together.

Example: The set [of moon and star stickers] was perfect for her new room décor.

The prepositional phrase is in brackets, so you can see that ‘The set was…’ naturally works together. A common error is to look at the word ‘stickers’ and assume it is the subject, therefore applying ‘were’ as the verb, which is incorrect.

And there you have it…just a few simple things to watch out for and pay attention to when you’re writing. Are there more? Ohhhh hell yes. But these always seem to make it into the list of perpetual writing sins, so they needed to be mentioned.

Your writing is important, so treat it that way. Give it the time and attention it needs to look it’s absolute best when it finally hits the web or goes to print. Nothing you do deserves to be done half-assed. Do it with your full ass, writer, and you’ll feel more fulfilled and rewarded with your work.

Life in 3 – The One About the Wisdom of Dogs

Posted on by JannyS

My dog isn’t a Mensa dog, but he knows a few very important things—3 things to be exact.

Dudley (aka Dumbley when he runs into walls or forgets how to escape from underneath a pillow, Muffin when he’s rolled into a nice, fluffy “pit ball,” and Hunky Monkey when he’s being my big, goofy chunk) is a good boy, and one of my favorite things to see is the look on his face when the lightbulb comes on and he realizes something awesome is about to happen.

He’ll just be going about his day and suddenly realize we’re going for a walk…and boom!…one of his floppy ears perks up and he gets that big pittie smile on his face and his tail starts whacking everything around the house like a prehistoric beast lashing a path.

Dudley doesn’t know a whole lot, but he knows 3 things—and those things are enough to make life pretty doggone good. Here’s what he knows:

  1. When in doubt, walk it out. When I say, “It’s your turn,” it means it’s Dudey’s turn to go for a w.a.l.k., so clear a path because this big boy will barrel straight toward the door and the hook where his harness hangs. He may not be a genius, but he’s figured out the value of a good stroll around the neighborhood. No matter what’s going on or how stressful a day may have been, there’s nothing a good walk can’t fix. (Hey, wait…I think I learned that from my dog.)
  2. A good nap can fix a lot. Feeling groggy, grumpy, frumpy, foggy? Need a pick-me-up or a calm-me-down? A nap is the best medicine in town. And trust me, Dudley has perfected the fine art of being able to sleep anytime, anywhere. Now that’s a pooch after my own heart!
  3. It’s important to show your friends you love them. Sure, when we walk in the door, Dudley is overjoyed, but it doesn’t stop there. At the vet, on the walking trail, at the park…no matter where we are, when Dudley runs into a friendly face, his tail wags at lightspeed and his slobber production goes into overdrive. If you run into Dudley, you may get covered in dog saliva, but you’ll know—without a doubt—that you’re loved.

Now that I think about it, maybe Dudley’s not so dumb after all. He’s getting to be a bit of an old man now, with gray around his eyes and a snore that can be heard through the house, but along with all that comes a bit of wisdom he’s sharing with us all.

Life in 3 – The One About Bravery

Posted on by JannyS

Today was about post-vacay recovery more than anything, so there was a lot of brain fog to burn off. Here’s what crossed my mind in the middle of unpacking mountains of dirty, wrinkly beach-worn clothes:

  • There’s a whole lot more “sweet” to “home sweet home” after being gone for a week. It’s amazing how much a great mattress, abundant ice cubes, and oh-my-god-I-thought-you-died dog excitement can remind you that paradise can be found right at home, too. When you think about it, everyone has a little bit of paradise they’re surrounded with…we just have to choose to appreciate it.

  • Being silly is a prerequisite to life. We get stressed a LOT. There are plenty of opportunities to worry, so when we run across the times when can goof off and act like we’re a couple sandwiches short of a picnic, we should go for it! I’ll never remember the 512,000 spreadsheets I’ve worked on in a lifetime…but GUARANTEED, I’ll never forget my daughters assuming their most “serious” explorer poses on the top of this volcanic rock formation. Get silly whenever and wherever you can.
  • Try a few things you think are weird. Sometimes what we think is weird is just unknown to us. My family went on a tour of a family-owned chocolate farm, and we learned so much! Did you know that chocolate nibs grow in a pod, on a soft membrane…and some people eat that membrane because it tastes a bit like citrus? Yeah, me either. Only about 6 people on the tour tasted the membrane, which is actually becoming a local delicacy. Will I ever eat it again? Maybe not. But I’m glad I stepped outside my comfort zone to try something new.

Happy exploring & happy stepping outside your comfort zone. In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson

Always do what you are afraid to do.

Life in 3 – The Hawaii Kickoff

Posted on by JannyS

I just returned from spending a week in Hawaii with my family…ALL my five kids, my son-in-law, and my husband. I told myself I was going to catch up on my reading and writing during that week. I did not do that.

Here’s what I did instead.

I freakin’ enjoyed every minute with the people I love! I forgot to carry my phone with me…numerous times. I didn’t check my work email. Hell, I barely checked my personal email. I made it my personal goal to have a margarita at every bar that had a beach view, and I took approximately 1,236 pictures of my kids.

Listening to the Waves

I got this idea while listening to the waves on Day 5. It also struck me while listening to the entire crew triage my daughter, who insisted on boogie-boarding…even though the surf was rough and the shoreline incredibly rocky. Here’s what I thought:

There are moments in life we never want to forget. Laughs & waves. Turtles & sunburns. Underwater gashes & triage on the sand.

And Along Came…

It’s an easy way for me to look back and laugh at our crazy antics…and well, if it can make one person laugh or give one person hope, then I guess finding 3 little reasons each day to reflect and learn isn’t a bad way to pass the time.

Vacay in 3

  • On day 1, I saw a baby turtle playing in the surf, I splashed in the waves with ALL my kids, my son-in-law, and my husband, and I saw an island rainbow.
  • We were all graced with turtles, manta rays, new coral growth, octopuses, and an ocean full of vibrant reef fish.
  • We met new friends (like Junior at Polynesian Tattoo, Ponyo and Ocean the octopuses, and the grandpa we all want to adopt at the chocolate factory) and learned to live the aloha lifestyle…simply relax and enjoy life!

Writer Checklist: Self Edit Before You Submit the Final

Posted on by JannyS

Dear writer,

Think it takes a long time to get your edited novel back?

There are many different things that go into an extensive line edit of your book, but you can help speed up the process. The stage and state in which your novel is received determines the length of time it takes an editor to comprehensively review your work.

Want to know how you can help? Check out the tips below to get your book in the best shape possible before it hits the editor’s desk:

  1. Read aloud for overall sound, cadence, and feel. If. All. Of. Your. Sentences. Sound. Like. This. Oh. My. God. It’s. Time. To. Revise.

Abrupt sentences are great for emphasis. They break things up and serve as interjections in long sections of text. Likewise, cool beans if you enjoy waxing poetic about your passion for life for paragraphs on end, but there’s a limit.

For the love of all the libraries in the world, change things up a bit. Excite us with a little variety. Trust me; it’ll keep us awake, and we’ll get your work back to you much faster.

The point of cadence and rhythm is to let things flow, to feel the language. Everything shouldn’t sound the same. If your book’s cadence is as exciting as the grandfather clock in my mom’s living room, I’m more likely to take a nap than continue reading.

2. Proofread every sentence for grammar. There are nothing more distracting that shitty grammar and speling. It’s difficult to follow even the most badass of storylines if I’m distracted by misplaced apostrophes and abused verb tenses.

Errors? We all make errors. Typo is my middle name when I’m ON FIRE with a great new idea, and that’s why proofreading was invented. We’re human. But when editors run across an entire manuscript full of errors, it tends to throw a wrench in the works. It slows us down until we’re being passed by turtles jogging through peanut butter. Want your MS faster? Give it a good old-fashioned proof before you submit.

Pro Tip: Spell check doesn’t catch everything.

Ex: She set her alarm so she could walk up early for her meeting with the shareholders.

3. Search for passive verbs and kill them. (Seriously, murder the shit out of them.) If you want your work to be interesting, riveting, and have the chance of keeping anyone awake past the rush-hour news, decimate the damned passive verbs.

She was driven to madness. (passive = weaker, not the doer of the action)

vs.

They drove her mad. (active = strong, doer of the action)

4. Tighten sentences and cut words that are unnecessary. Eliminate extra words in your writing to make it more concise and readable.

For all intents and purposes, the culprit was Joe, but the police questioned everyone for the purpose of eliminating suspects.

vs.

The culprit was Joe, but the police questioned everyone to eliminate suspects.

5. Check every paragraph. Do several of your sentences begin with the same word? Are they all short? Are they all long and complicated? If so, go back and restructure to make your writing more interesting.

It’s very easy to fall into habits; we do it every day in our lives. Why? It streamlines things, makes them easier. So, of course we do it with our writing, too. Be sure to challenge yourself constantly to ensure you’re finding new ways to express your ideas.

6. Question yourself. Before you send your MS to the editor, question the moves you’ve made:

  • Can everyone who picks up your book understand the terminology you’ve used?
  • Did you convey the message you wanted to convey when telling your story?
  • What IS your main message?
  • Have you written as plainly and simply as possible?
  • Have you checked every name for consistent spelling throughout your book?
  • Have you checked your MS format?
  • Have you checked for consistent style throughout?
  • Has someone else read your work?

When you feel confident you’ve covered all your bases and your work is solid—with as few errors as possible—then you’re ready to send it to your editor.

Remember, your editor will be most effective when they receive the cleanest work you can possibly give them. They are on the lookout for ways to improve character, pacing, and plot; as well as other issues that may arise. However, when there are fewer small issues, they have more time and brainpower to focus on the larger, overall aspects.

Bottom Line: Help your editor help you! We want you to succeed, but we also know you’re very capable of catching “courldn’t” with a simple spellcheck.

Love,

Editors everywhere

Hone Your Craft to Own Your Craft

Posted on by JannyS

The conversation went a little something like this:

“OMG, are you reading a dictionary right now?”

After glancing up and trying NOT to roll my eyes irretrievably into their sockets, “No, Hon, I’m actually reading a professional guide for editors to refresh my knowledge and see what’s new in the field.”

It was NOT, in fact, a dictionary. It was an editing style guide, thank you very much!

“So, like a dictionary, but worse?” Laughter and mocking conversation followed as the rest of the family got in on the joke.

“Har, har. You guys are hilarious.” I pushed my reading glasses back onto my nose and once more wielded my highlighter like the weapon it is.

The Importance of Staying Current

You know how our kids mock us when we say things like “groovy” or “psychedelic”? As writers, we spend a LOT of time focusing on speech patterns, slang, and even everyday activities of the younger generations. Why? It’s not because we enjoy watching exotic species in their natural environment. It’s because we need our writing to stay relevant—and, also, we don’t want to be mocked into a permanent room at Shady Acres just yet.

Writers today have many options. We’ve all seen the movies about hermits who decide to become lighthouse keepers on remote islands. They end up writing brilliant novels, and they never have human contact—except for that one captain who arrives in a rickety boat that crashes toward shore once per year with the basic supplies needed for survival. And who among us isn’t clamoring for that option?!

But—and this is just me going out on a limb—there are those writers who want to live an existence in modern society and write about current topics. And that means staying up to date with what is going on around them.

Collectors of Knowledge

We’re collectors and learners and hoarders of facts. And when you think about it, observing new trends, behaviors, and speech patterns are all ways of learning and collecting knowledge.

The intuitive and empathetic nature most creative people possess drives them to not only study and recall behaviors, but also try to understand how they fit into the context of the world surrounding them. All the human emotions and behaviors we learn about add to the worlds and stories we create.

But Why Study Grammar & Editing & Stuff?

The mechanics of our jobs—whether you’re a writer, an editor, a proofreader, or all of the above—are the supporting framework of the creativity we put out there. Think of the inner structure of a building, the weight-bearing support.

Is it all about grammar? Absolutely not. Is it about rule-breaking? Nope, not that either.

It’s about how everything works together to form a balance. It used to be all about grammar, but today I read style guides and grammar books to learn about updates and accepted uses.

THEN, I use my professional judgement, based on the text I’m currently writing or editing. True, there are still a few dusty, by-the-book rule followers who are likely growing apoplectic at reading this, but they are few and far between. Most writers recognize they’ll capture a larger and more invested audience if they “speak their language.”

Yeah, I’d Totally Read a Dictionary

When it comes down to it, I suppose I should apologize to my husband for being so appalled that he mocked me for nerding out while reading an editing guide…because it could have just as easily been a dictionary or a thesaurus. (#Guilty)

Why? I want my writing to be the best it can be. Likewise, I want my clients to get the very best work I can give them when I’m editing. That means they deserve the extra time I put in to stay abreast of current style guide updates and even the latest additions to Merriam-Webster.

P.S. Did you guys know that, as of 2021, “hard pass,” “@,” and “cancel culture” have officially been added to the dictionary? Don’t blink! Things change daily.

From Editor to Reader: How to Put Down the Red Pen and Read a Damned Book for Fun

Posted on by JannyS

Being an editor is great for so many reasons, but I’ll name just a few so we can all get back to writing and creating:

  • It’s nerdy. Cue eraser residue, chalk dust, and inspirational cat posters. As angsty as 6th grade was, there were still some pretty great moments—a lot of them in English class. While everyone else groaned about singing the preposition song, I annoyingly sang it AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY—for everyone who would listen. I eagerly diagramed and rewrote sentences and volunteered to recite poetry in front of the class. Others called in sick on ‘balcony day,’ but I perched myself atop my teacher’s rickety ladder and proceeded to Romeo & Juliet the hell out of a soliloquy. (Things like safety were of little consequence then. Now, you’d have a lawsuit on your hands before you could say ‘Dodgeball!’)
  • It’s methodical. Editors are a weird breed. (I probably don’t need to tell you that.) We’re writers, and we’re over-the-top creative, but we can also flip our analytical switch and focus solely on mechanics when necessary. The methodical nature of editing is quite relaxing and fulfilling. Maybe it’s the way all that red ink and those editing marks lend themselves to a feeling of accomplishment. An editor’s marks are a sign that an author’s work is nearing completion! After a long, hard road of research, drafts, rework, more drafts, and edits, a book finally takes shape—and it’s freaking amazing! It is worth all the hard work, sweat, and tears you put into it. Pretty great reason to love editing!
  • It’s nuanced. The little details of editing are especially appealing to grown-up geeks. Here’s why. Many of us would still be sitting in a musty university library somewhere researching the origins of the ampersand (originally the 27th letter of the alphabet, btw) if we didn’t need to make a living to survive. The great news is that, as editors, we sort of still get to do all that dank, musty research—except now we have laptops and Starbucks, both of which are way more en vogue than old-school card catalogs and micro-fiche.

Super-fun afternoon break idea: Choose a piece of writing and then decide as a group whether or not a specific pause in the writing is worthy of an em dash or if a comma will suffice! (SEEE, editors are FUN people, too!)

Hazards of the Job

If you’ve ever gone on vacation and attempted to NOT be an editor…

Hold on. I’m going to try to stop laughing before I finish that sentence. Starting again…

Editors don’t ever feel like they are on vacation; however, occasionally, they DO attempt to read books for fun. Weird, right? It’s sort of like explaining to kids that their teachers don’t actually live at the school. It usually goes something like this:

  • Editor arrives at beach with family and doles out 4 beach chairs, 2 totes full of everything needed in case of sudden apocalypse: water bottles, flip flops, hats, towels, sunglasses, water toys, shark repellant, snacks, kitchen sinks.
  • Trudges across sand, weighing option of continuing to struggle in flip flops vs. burning feet on boiling-lava-hot sand.
  • Plants chairs, towels, and umbrella in pristine location and shoos kids off to boogie board and avoid sharks.
  • Attaches sunglasses to face and pulls paperback novel purchased specifically for relaxing vacation reading out of beach bag.
  • Sinks into chair and opens to first chapter.
  • At exactly page 7, dog-ears page and works backward to see if protagonist’s name has been spelled consistently. Something seems off.
  • After verifying, returns to reading spot…only to discover accidental extra space before last sentence on page. Marks spot and digs in bag for pen.
  • Reminds self not to edit and ignores extra space.
  • Clears mind, checks on kids who are still safely playing, and flips to next chapter.
  • WHOA! Why is font size 2 pts. larger on this page? Unable to even more forward like this, closes eyes for a sunshine siesta.
  • Tries again later…only to encounter a typo and a factoid about a turtle that is really a tortoise.
  • Puts book down before heart failure sets in.

Ah, the Life of an Editor

If you haven’t yet been through the non-vacation vacation, don’t think you’ll avoid it forever. It will happen to you sometime in your editing career. You’ll sit down somewhere, yearning for unknown worlds and a blank mind—but instead you’ll end up getting a shitstorm of brain noise and the urge to mark all over things with a red pen. It’s unavoidable, so just remember it’s not your fault.

Every now and then, we have to remind ourselves that it all started with a story–and not with a whole bunch of grammar rules. Take a deep breath, order a margarita, sit back and have a good read. Take a vacation, dear editor, discover new worlds just for fun, and enjoy ALL. THE. VOICES.

Here’s What We Know

While vacay practically mandates at least one day of sandy, sunny, margarita-laden book reading with ZERO itinerary and an overload of cat naps, it’s sometimes hard to get our inner selves to cooperate. The pizza stain on page 87 of my new book is proof that I tried.

Before our latest trip, I delivered a mom mandate a little something like, “We’re all going on vacation, and we’re all GOING TO HAVE FUN.” I was determined to set the example.

But for the love of surf and turf, there were factors beyond my control! How was I supposed to kick back while staring at comma splices and run-on sentences? That’s no way to relax.

The Downtime Conundrum

Many people have an inner workaholic that refuses to clock out. For editors, it’s the constant flare-up of Sudden Onset Editor Syndrome that stops them in their tracks. (This should be listed on WebMD so we can research it while we’re up at 1:00 a.m. looking for new ways to kill off characters.) It’s very real and can be debilitating when it comes to reading material for enjoyment or informational purposes.

For example:

Sign at WalMart last weekend:

“All customer’s must wear masks.”

Me (after taking emergency hit off inhaler and tightening belt one notch):

“Honey, do you have a red pen?”

Normal people would be able to extract the necessary information from the above sample signage and then move on with their lives. Editors, however, have a gene that prohibits them from moving past such transgressions without righting the wrong.

Editors lose sleep asking themselves things like “the customer’s what?” and “If we don’t stop this, then who will?” after seeing possessives used to indicate plurals.

Work Your Just-for-Fun Muscle

Here’s what trips us up. The very things we critique for clients, friends, co-workers…anyone, really…are the things that pop up frequently in whatever we choose to read for fun. So just like we flip our switch from creative to analytic/writer to editor, it’s important to work the just-for-fun muscle, too.

After all, we’re not quitters. We will have fun reading, dammit. And we can ignore grammar mishaps for the sake of a good story. (We really can!) It might take modern pharmacological intervention, but we can do it.

There was a magical day when we all picked up a book and fell in love. And know what? That book probably wasn’t perfect. (Top secret insider info: none of them are.) But the story was fantastical, and we disappeared into our imaginations—and that’s what made us fall in love with the craft in the first place.

Let’s make a little more time for that. And keep taking time to look for the voices who are creating magic for future readers.

Your Readers Aren’t Bumblefucks: How to Tell They’re Smart & Treat Them That Way

Posted on by JannyS

I get it. It’s tough to give readers the benefit of the doubt when you’re talking about complicated subjects like snow, seafood, and shoes. As writers, we all fight a powerful inner force that drives us to explain things well beyond the point of clarity—often to the point of “Hey, in case you’re a dumbass, let me tell you what water is.”

Your readers will get tired of that faster than yesterday’s playlist.

Here’s a quick sample of what’s sometimes put in front of readers…and what they really think when we talk down to them:

Writer: Snow is white and cold.

Reader: No shit. There better be an inescapable blizzard trapping an entire town within the terrorizing clutches of an abominable snowman before you tell me more about this white, cold snow.

Writer: Seafood comes from the ocean…and often tastes (gasp!) “fishy.”

Reader: Unless you just pulled a megalodon from the sea, I don’t need the genealogy of the dinner you’re describing. However, if some prehistoric badassery is going down, then by all means, continue the explanation.

Writer: Shoes are utilized to protect the feet and often worn when leaving the home.

Reader: I’d really want to read more of this…IF the protagonist were running through a volcanic lava flow while wearing the latest lava-repellant footwear. However, I don’t need to be reminded every time Karen needs to slip on her Birks before leaving the house. Move on. We’re all well-versed in the role shoes play in our lives.

Remember…

Cut the filler. Cut the fluff. Get to the good stuff.

We don’t do it on purpose. But every now and then, we write one of those sentences that makes it seem like our readers have the mental acuity of a box of rocks. Take a look at the last couple things you wrote. Is there anything you can omit (either because the reader likely already has that knowledge OR because the reader would love the opportunity to build that picture up in their own mind)?

PRO TIP: Never make your readers feel like they don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground. If you’re planning on a long-term career as a writer, this is BAD for business.

Why Focus on Readers?

When you empower your readers, you create excited, confident readers. You produce readers of more books! Remember every time you had a great book-reading experience as a kid or young adult? What did you do? You went and found another book. As writers, that’s all we can hope for: readers who want to READ MORE BOOKS.

Your Readers Are Worldly, Intelligent & Insightful

Readers have life experience, and you can assume that if they’ve picked up your book, they have interest in the topics you’ve tackled. (That means they probably have at least a little bit of subject matter knowledge, and they’re engaged in your content. Bonus!)

Your Readers Wear Pants

And they drive cars. And they know that water comes out of water fountains. (See? Smart!)

This is momentous insight for writers, because it means you don’t have to tell readers what pants feel like or how they work! You also are not obligated to tell them that cars have steering wheels and four tires; nor do you need to tell them water comes out of fountains. Unless something utterly STRANGE and UNEXPECTED is happening with the aforementioned objects, your readers can paint those pictures all on their own. (And they LOVE doing that. It’s part of THEIR creative process.)

Why Readers Read

Readers are a huge part of your creative process. They are the recipients of your stories, and they turn the words you’ve written into entire worlds in their minds. The best writers, the writers we all return to, are those who create just enough story to intrigue us, draw us in, and challenge us to fill in the blanks. They paint the picture—just not the ENTIRE picture.

Challenge: Read your latest writing and look for signs that you’re accusing your readers of bumblefuckery. Avoid this at all costs, because nobody wants to be known as the reader who needed to be told that “the rain fell down.” (Well I damned well hope so. Tell ‘em something they didn’t know.)

Read the following encouraging signs to remind you that your readers are total BRAINIACS who just want to read some great writing. So let loose, sling some creativity, and stop second-guessing yourself about what they can handle.

5 Pretty Obvious Giveaways That Your Readers Are Smart

  • They are holding a book. And if they aren’t currently holding a book, they’re likely shopping for a book, telling another person about the book they just read, or reading book reviews online to decide which book to purchase next (probably while listening to an audio book).
  • They are alive. Meaning, they have experienced life things. If your reader has ever been through a breakup, they know it causes sadness, so get more creative than that when describing a similar situation in your writing. They know dogs bark, but a snarler evokes a completely different feeling. Small changes in your writing infuse more emotion AND give readers credit for being able to fill in some of the blanks.
  • They speak your language. This is fan-freakin’-tabulous news, because it means you don’t need to fluff up your writing with pretentious words readers don’t understand. They talk just like you do, so wa-bam! You can just start typing. Unless you’re completing a post-grad thesis, uptight writing will only make you seem stuffy and in need of a fiber supplement. Plus, readers will wonder why you’re making their brains hurt.
  • They can imagine. If you tell readers about the “scraggly, bony-fingered witch who mumbles to herself each time a well-dressed businessman passes by,” you’ll have 500 readers who come up with 500 different mental images of that witch. And that is AMAZING! Do more of that! Encourage your readers to be smart and creative and whimsical. This is what brings joy to reading…and therefore, potentially an inkling of job security to the lowly writers of the world.
  • They contribute. Yep, that’s right. Think you’re the only one contributing to your writing? Think again. You are setting up a platform that invites readers to enter, absorb, and then create worlds of their own—all by reading what you’ve written. You are dancing with the reader, and there is a fine balance between telling them enough and telling them too much.

Readers are brainy and creative. They are learners, and they want to be part of the adventures in the books they read. As a writer, it’s your job to bring the story into focus. Paint just enough of a picture to connect almost all the dots; and then let readers fill in some of the blanks to envision specifics. Part of the beauty of creativity lies in the give and take between writer and reader.

Now, get out there and write a literary masterpiece. Go…scoot! Before I am forced to tell you that grass is green.

Build the Thrill: Murder Lazy Verbs & Resuscitate Your Writing

Posted on by JannyS

Have you ever needed to sleep soooo badly, but you just couldn’t doze off? Maybe you had a crazy plot line on the brain, or you were reliving that all-too-real horror scene from Carnival Killers you just watched on Lifetime after everyone went to bed. Whatever kept you awake, the only thing that could possibly help you doze off was picking up a chemistry textbook, or maybe listening to a speech about tube socks…or even reading this:

He went to the park. He saw the man he wanted to talk to. The man was dressed in a drab suit and looked bored as he stood there with a newspaper and a cup of coffee. He paced slowly, waiting for someone, but not knowing who. He finally grew tired and sat on a nearby bench, observing the crowd.

Aaaaand, cut to snooze. Could that be any more nap-worthy?

Fiction writing how to revamp your writing to use more exciting verbs; update boring verbs; build the thrill
Powerful verbs can transform your writing.

Remember swooning over vocabulary lists in 6th grade with the two other geeks in school? Flash back to the bliss you felt when you learned words like penultimate or coddle. There’s a definite cool factor in play when we get to use powerful new words, and many of us learned that at a young age. (It’s an illness.)

The Truth

We’ve all written shit. Why? Because it’s easy to slide into the sludge pit of ‘went, said, did, saw…the end.’ It’s a super-simple formula to follow. We’re not necessarily looking for the easy way out, but sometimes we get tired or stuck, and occasionally, the private brain-thesaurus we depend on simply refuses to give up anything useful. So, we settle.

We’ve also written shit because WE ARE DOERS AND TRYERS. We refuse to give up because we love what we do, and sometimes that means experimenting our way through new techniques, challenges, and styles. Writers are bold and brave, and we go out on limbs—and everyone knows when you’re out on a limb, that’s when you can fall and bust your butt.

But those moments when we soar? That’s what keeps us going. There are times when we feel so good about our work that we sing the Evita theme song from the rooftops. (Oh wait, that’s just me. Disregard.)

The Writing Hangover

The day after you create something shitty (or even semi-shitty…which is just about every new piece of work ever), you will be rudely awakened by an unholy dose of sunlight, followed by a vague recollection of adverb abuse and verb catatonia (scientific phenomena found within the writing community). Welcome to the writing hangover phase wherein regret slaps you upside the head and you recognize the fact there’s now a shitstack of writing that needs to be reworked.

Grab some coffee, Shakespeare. You’re gonna need it.

The Rework

You’ll go to sleep with a masterpiece, but don’t be surprised when you wake up to a disaster. After sleeping on it, you’ll realize the amount of word-slop you glopped onto the page like an unapologetic cafeteria lady slinging a mystery casserole. And you’ll thank the universe you had the forethought to keep your first draft under wraps for the time being. (Don’t beat yourself up too much. We’re all paddling through our own word-slop oceans.)

How to Kill Your Words & Make Better Ones

Rest easy; it’s not as bad as you think. You probably have a phenomenal idea! It’s just camouflaged…behind a whole lot of anemic verbs (and other things we’ll discuss later).

It happens to everyone. It’s easy to fall into the trap of being too comfortable. If you’re a really good writer, it’s even easier. (WHAT?!) Yup, let me explain. As you get more proficient and efficient with your writing, especially if you’re doing it to make a living, it’s very inviting to fall into a pattern that repeats itself. Back to the formulaic setup:

Get up. Write words. Turn in words. Make money. Repeat.

We fall into this pattern in life, too. Get up, pack lunches, send kids to school, go to work, repeat. But be careful, because writing that gets too formulaic will start to look and sound the same. And eventually readers will get bored.

Porridge vs. Fajitas

As writers, we must continually think up new ideas and find ways to create new worlds for readers.

No one’s gonna sit around and eat a bowl of boring-ass porridge when they can have a platter of sizzling fajitas.

Be the Fajita Platter

The basic sentence-crafting formula is easy: Noun + Verb = Sentence. Boom! (In our sleep, right?)

But how do you come up with new ways to say things ALL. THE. TIME?

Fire up the GRILL and COOK FAJITAS, baby! Buckle down, focus, and make it spicy. It takes longer to go back and evaluate your word choices, but in the end, you’ll be glad you did. It takes practice, balance, and a whole lot of shaking things up to find your very own style and voice. But when you do? That’s seriously something to be proud of.

Sizzling Fajita Recipe for Writers

The secret to a great story: Finding a balance of all pieces and parts!

The Internal Battle

An internal battle will ensue. Your inner self will say, “Nah, it’s ok. The grammar is good enough, and the sentences are readable. I have other things to do, like take naps and eat sandwiches.”

But the writer in you will fight, proclaiming loudly that you did NOT need to use the same verb four times. And it will shame you into admitting you singlehandedly abused a pronoun enough times to be considered a menace to society.

Revamping Your Verbs

Here’s the down-and-dirty about revising, re-verbing, and revamping your writing after you’ve discovered the weak spots. First pass: Look at your verbs.

Instead of this:Try something like this:
lookglare, glower, peek, peer, glance, gaze, peruse, scrutinize, admire, notice  
walksaunter, tiptoe, skip, trek, trudge, race, hurry, amble, strut, stroll, slog, toddle, shuffle  
laughgiggle, guffaw, snicker, roar, shriek, chuckle, howl, sniggle  
sleepsnooze, doze, pass out, languish, dream, nap, drop off, conk out, nod off, hibernate  
sayscreech, yell, mandate, cry, weep, snip, comment, spout, lecture, drawl, drone, persuade, gossip, chant

Take an honest pass through your writing and look for verbs that are lackluster, repetitive, or just plain boring. Try replacing them with verbs that have a little more VAVOOM and see what that does for your writing.

Remember This

If you have a writer friend who critiques you honestly, fairly, and in a constructive way, that means they believe in you and your writing. (Otherwise, they wouldn’t bother.) Ask them for their input and advice, even if it’s for a quick chapter review. You’ll likely get some great direction that will help you as you move forward with your project. (Also, they’re a pretty good friend, so keep them around.)

We’re All Growing

The opposite of growth is decline or lessening, and I don’t know a single writer who wants to do that. Let’s keep growing, supporting each other, and improving so we can put our very best work out there.

It takes longer to go back and evaluate your word choices, but in the end, you’ll be glad you did. You’ll be a better writer, and you’ll gain more readers.

Wardrobe malfunction: writers, mind your hats

Posted on by JannyS

I know. It’s not nearly as exciting as other types of wardrobe malfunctions that have made the news, but if you’re a creative who switches gears often throughout the day (or the hour), you’ll understand what I’m talking about.

You know that project, the one you’ve had in your head for weeks but just haven’t started? The one you’ve been plotting and scheming and planning? The storyline is built out in your head. You know the characters. But when you sit down to write, you end up shooting yourself in the foot. Why? Because you sat down wearing the wrong hat.

Wardrobe selection is key

Recently, I’ve gotten into a habit of trying to write creatively while wearing my editor and proofreader hats—and let me tell you how that works. I sit down, take a sip of my caffeinated beverage of choice, crack my knuckles, belt out a couple of paragraphs—and THEN (this is where things go awry), I go back and read them, rip them apart, and rewrite them. Over and over and over again.

When I’m wearing my editor hat, I may as well type in red ink, because my story will undoubtedly be massacred as soon as the letters hit the screen. When I write with my editor hat on, I’m acting as judge, jury, and executioner to any idea before it even hits the page, when really what I need to do is just get the story out.

The fixing can come later

This is not an anomaly for writers, by the way. We’re all guilty of it. We all have a LOT going on, and some days, it’s really, really hard to be 100% present. We live in a time when it’s heroic to multi-task, it’s admirable to have a completely booked calendar, it’s the norm to eat dinner in the car between extra-curricular events. And it’s not really surprising that it’s difficult to separate all the jobs we do on a day-to-day basis.

In lieu of driving myself stark raving mad, I’ve written job descriptions for some of the various hats I wear, which will, ideally, help keep me on track (and working productively toward my goals):

  • Editor Hat: This hat gives me complete freedom to rip apart, change, and update copy in order to benefit the brand or story I am representing. With a focus on mechanics, readability, and seamless messaging, I take a line-by-line view of the content I’m editing and offer suggestions for grammatical corrections, as well as clarifications for consistency and style. The nerdy, sentence-diagramming girl in me really LOVES this hat.)
  • Writer Hat: This is a flamboyant, creative, might-only-make-sense-to-me hat. It’s a wear-it-with-sweatpants hat or a dress-it-up hat or a write-on-a-park-bench hat. All of these are ok, because right now, I’m the only one who’s going to see a single word that made it onto my screen. Half sentences? Run-ons? Rambling thoughts? Everything goes! (Honestly, they’ll make me angsty, and it will take every ounce of willpower I have NOT to correct things, but this is exactly where they belong…in the writing and creating phase.) This is the get-it-out phase, the fast-and-furious phase of getting words and plotlines into some semblance of a story. Everything does NOT have to be perfect at this point.
  • Idea Generator Hat: This hat is a hot mess. It has feathers and sequins with a dusting of glitter. It has a little bit of felt mixed with satin and wool, topped off with a glued-on band that’s partially falling off. It’s pretty much a hodge-podge of everything—an anything-goes hat. If an idea crosses my mind, it goes into the book or onto the list or wherever I’m keeping the latest compendium of evil plotlines. Absolutely NO editing or writing should happen with this hat. It’s a collecting hat of out-of-this-world ideas and what-if concepts. No correcting allowed.
  • Not Creating Right Now Hat: This could be the Mom Hat, the Family Hat, the Netflix Hat, the Shopping Hat…you get it. It’s the Don’t-Expect-Creative-Output Hat, the one that indicates it’s time to pay attention to other things and be fully present in equally important stuff that is NOT related to writing. (GASP?! What?) This hat’s pretty cool because it delivers a VERY necessary brain break—and it reminds you that it’s important to focus on all the really awesome LIFE stuff. BONUS: All that life stuff is what inspires our really awesome stories.

I’m hopeful that by choosing the correct hat for the task at hand, I can keep ME from sabbotaging myself! Very often writers find themselves going backwards in the middle of the creative process because they’re focused on the tiniest details of grammar and story construct, when really, what should come first are their personal insights, feelings, and learnings. Grammar and construct can be refined anytime, anywhere. Experience, nuance, and story are much more difficult to reconstruct.

Choose your hat

No more self-sabbotage for writers. More self-confidence. More finishing; fewer excuses. More moving foward; never backward. More confindence and pride in hard work. More excitement to begin again. More learning and listening. MORE CREATING.

Your hat—at any given moment—defines who you are, what’s important to you, and what you’re working toward. So, don your chapeau, author…it’s gonna be a helluva ride!