It is easy as we advance in our writing career to fall under the false presumption that we are experts who no longer need to improve our skills and technique. The truth of the matter is that even the most seasoned writer should still take the time to find ways to improve upon what he or she is doing. Our purpose here is to offer a number of writing tips, including a few general suggestions for all writers and a few specific tips based on area of expertise.
The second tip is to know your audience. Know the demographics of your readers. Writing a medical paper for medical professionals is different from writing for the lay person. You want to get the same information across, but you have to make sure that each audience will be able to understand the material.
Tip three, get rid of the adverbs in your writing. In school we are taught to write ''colorfully.'' You are supposed to write to convey emotion and intensity, and how are we to do that? By using adverbs. A writer understands that what you write is supposed to ''show and not tell''; adverbs are telling. You underestimate the intelligence of your reader when you use adverbs.
The fourth tip is to write what you know. Even the most worldly of writers will want to dabble in areas outside of their expertise, just to spice things up. This is fine, as long as you are going to take the time to educate yourself on the topic. The single most important aspect of writing is to be knowledgeable about your topic. Write about anything you want, but know what you are talking about.
It is equally important to know what the proper rules are for grammar and spelling, and then know when it is okay to break them. This is part of showing your readers that you are knowledgeable. While these are general tips for all writers, other writing tips are geared towards specific types of writing. As Jack Lynch once said, ''Arguments over grammar and style are often as fierce as those over IBM versus Mac, and as fruitless as Coke versus Pepsi and boxers versus briefs.''
For the purpose of this piece, we will focus next on a few writing tips for journalists. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, ''Put the argument into a concrete shape, into an image, some hard phrase, round and solid as a ball, which they can see and handle and carry home with them, and the cause is half won.''
The first tip for journalistic writing is to order words for emphasis. This means that you should place strong words at the beginning and the end of your sentences, not in the middle. You want to draw your readers in and direct them on where to go.
Opt for the simple over the technical. When a complex situation comes up in the story you are covering it is better for you to use shorter words, sentences, and paragraphs. Choosing words that the typical reader avoids using but understands also helps, even if you are covering a serious story.
Varying the length of sentences and paragraphs will also help influence the reader’s speed. When you are covering a topic that is of a serious nature, practice understating, and when the story is less serious, exaggerate. This is known as the art of knowing when to back off and when to show off.
Here is a list of a few of the most overused words, phrases, and clichés. The purpose of including this list is to help you avoid using them:
- ''Like'' — this is one of the most annoying words as well; it is worse than other filler words such as ''um.'' Using ''like'' conveys to your reader that you lack the self confidence you should have to be writing on your topic.
- ''You know''
- ''Whatever'' — use of this word gives the impression of contempt. It is considered the verbal equivalent of rolling your eyes.
- ''My two cents''
- ''Literally'' — this word is not just over used, it is misused. You should use the word ''literally'' when you are saying something should not be interpreted figuratively. This is not a word that should be used for emphasis.
- ''But wait!'' — already you sound like an infomercial.
- ''Think of the children'' — this is a stinky political cliché that is meant to make your readers feel guilty.
- ''Only time will tell'' — just give the information up front.
- ''All walks of life''
- ''Bitter end''
- ''Calm before the storm''
- ''In the nick of time''
- ''Nipped in the bud''
- ''Winds of change''
- ''Writing on the wall''
This list could go on for a while, but this is sufficient to get the point across. Most people write because they love to write; it is their passion. Isaac Asimov said that, ''If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn't brood. I'd type a little faster.'' The purpose of writing is never to make money, but making money with your writing helps. To make sure that you are able to make money doing what you love, follow these tips to constantly improve your skills and technique.
