The Lifelong Learner         by Stanley Kubasek | About Me |

Excellent -- simple -- tips for better writing... I've read these before and generally try to follow them... but it's good to re-read them.

The Day You Became A Better Writer

I went from being a bad writer to a good writer after taking a one-day course in “business writing.” I couldn’t believe how simple it was. I’ll tell you the main tricks here so you don’t have to waste a day in class.

Business writing is about clarity and persuasion. The main technique is keeping things simple. Simple writing is persuasive. A good argument in five sentences will sway more people than a brilliant argument in a hundred sentences. Don’t fight it.

Simple means getting rid of extra words. Don’t write, “He was very happy” when you can write “He was happy.” You think the word “very” adds something. It doesn’t. Prune your sentences.

Humor writing is a lot like business writing. It needs to be simple. The main difference is in the choice of words. For humor, don’t say “drink” when you can say “swill.”

Your first sentence needs to grab the reader. Go back and read my first sentence to this post. I rewrote it a dozen times. It makes you curious. That’s the key.

Write short sentences. Avoid putting multiple thoughts in one sentence. Readers aren’t as smart as you’d think.

Learn how brains organize ideas. Readers comprehend “the boy hit the ball” quicker than “the ball was hit by the boy.” Both sentences mean the same, but it’s easier to imagine the object (the boy) before the action (the hitting). All brains work that way. (Notice I didn’t say, “That is the way all brains work”?)

That’s it. You just learned 80% of the rules of good writing. You’re welcome.

Reference
The Day You Became A Better Writer, The Dilbert Blog

I'm a goal oriented person, no question about it. I write and re-write my goals constantly. I think it's a great way to develop your vision; a great way to see yourself into the future; and a great way to continuously improve.

There are some additional things I started doing lately...

First, I started writing a journal. A personal journal. No you cannot see it. :-) A lot of successful people keep journals. And they had kept journals long way back. It's a great way to let out your feelings. It's a great way to reflect on what you did. It's a great way to remind yourself what you learned today -- I call it a learning log. It's a great way to become a better writer. I recommend you start. I have an online blog, which I password protected. I think it's important that it is private -- you have to free your mind completely. I think you can find a free service that let's you create a private blog; if not, buy a regular notebook.

Second, I'm really enjoying checking off my daily goals at JoesGoals.com. It's a very simple application: you define your daily goals, and you check them off throughout the day. There is something special about doing things this way. When I check off a goal, I feel good. I can also progress I made last week. Check it out.

That's it for now. I know that if you want to become better... you have to do new things or improve the things you are doing. Writing out your goals and keeping a journal is a good way to continuously improve.

Here's the task that the author of "Whatever" blog tried to answer in his blog entry: "Tell y'all how to write better without
you actually having to make an effort. Fine. Here's how I would do it." He did a good job, I must say.

The best out of the bunch?

• Speak what you write.


• With sentences, shorter is better than longer.


• Try to write well every single time you write.


• Read people who write well.


• When in doubt, simplify.

Reference
Writing Tips for Non-Writers Who Don't Want to Work at Writing

Related
I found all of these tips in the recent book I read, Roberts Rules Of Writing: 101 Unconventional Lessons Every Writer Needs to Know.

If you want to become a better writer: Write. Simple? Not really. But it gets easier when you persist. If you want to become a better writer, you have to force yourself to write, and write whether you feel like it or not.

The same applies to your career: Do what you like to do. Or as Ian Ybarra puts it, link below, "the best way to prepare for your career...is to start doing the work you want. Now."

The best way to prepare for your career by Ian Ybarra

I will give you two tips on how you can make your cover letter better.

One, make sure that it is actually read by the recipients. How? The answer is simple: Grab their attention right away. How do you do that? You need to put an attention-grabbing statement right away in the letter. (Did I grab your attention in the opening statement of this post?) For example, you might start (I like this one): "THREE reasons why I believe I may be the candidate you're looking for to fill [the position]." Read the whole article by Jimmy Sweeney here.

Two, include an attention grabbing P.S. (Post Script). I have to admit this is true, I'm jumping to a P.S. right away (have you read the P.S in this post, yet?). If not, I almost always read it. From now on, I'm going to use it to my advantage. :-) You'll find the whole article, also by Jimmy Sweeney here.

P.S.
The articles are taken from a net-temps.com newsletter I subscribe to.

Writing, Briefly by Paul Graham is a great set of tips and tricks on how to write better. I like to listen to the best and learn. I said it before, Paul Graham is one of the best writers I know. Listen to him and learn. Read his essays.

When she was home from her boarding-school I used to see her almost every day sometimes, because their house was right opposite the Town Hall Annexe. She and her younger sister used to go in and out a lot, often with young men, which of course I didn't like. When I had a free moment from the files and ledgers I stood by the window and used to look down over the road over the frosting and sometimes I'd see her. In the evening I marked it in my observations diary, at first with X, and then when I knew her name with M. ....

The above is a starting passage from The Collector by John Fowles. It illustrates the principle "Show The Story" very well. It is one of the major principles of writing. By showing the story, not simply telling, a reader is exploring it the same way as the author. The reader sees what the writer sees.

I recently listened to a book by Sol Stein, Stein on Writing. It is a book where Stein, master editor and a great writer, shows you how to improve your writing. He shows you. He doesn't just tell you the theory behind it. How? By giving you countless examples. It's a great book if you want to improve your writing.

The two principles from this book that I'm going to remember when I'm writing:

1. Show, Don't Tell
2. Use Distinctive Detail

To use distinctive detail, or to particulate, is to make the character, scene, or story unique. Make is so distinctive that you can actully see it in your eyes. You can visualize it.

Check out the book, or listen to it, and learn.