One trick I learned from a friend of mine who
is a writer is to make your writing work for you. This means, take one
idea and use it several different ways. One idea can be an article, a
devotion, a blog entry and material for a chapter in a book. In this
way, no writing is wasted and is used to its fullest capacity.
For instance, I have an idea on "being
grateful" that I am working on right now. I will make the key idea a
devotion for Proverbs 31, I will change my focus a bit and make it a
parenting article (not sure where I will submit it), I might list my
main points in a blog entry with a personal story, and finally, I will
take whatever I write and file it for a chapter in a book I am working
on.
I think many times as writers we write our
hearts out for an article and don't think about how we can expand the
idea to be used in other venues. I wrote an article on "balance" for
womensministry.net's weekly newsletter. It was a very brief listing of
ways to balance your life. Then I took the article I wrote, used those
same ideas and expanded them and honed the focus to fit the book
proposal I was working on. This article I wrote became material for a
chapter and boy did my word count go up fast when I dropped that info
into my writing! What a great feeling! I also do this alot with what
I write in my blog. I will use stories from my life that I wrote on
the blog and can just cut and paste that way. Easy! Quick!
One more way to use your writing is to take
main points and fit them into topics for speaking. For instance, I
feel certain I will use the "balance" points I came up with in my
speaking this fall at some point. So, again, my writing is expanded
and used to its fullest potential. More bang for my buck, so to
speak.
Well, I hope this helps all you writers out there to think outside the box. I hope I have inspired someone!
I found some funny Rules of Grammar over at ClassicalMichele's blog and thought all of the writers might enjoy them! They are from Fumblerule's of Writing by William Safire of the New York Times. Enjoy!
1. Always avoid alliteration. 2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with. 3. Avoid cliches like the plague--they're old hat. 4. Employ the vernacular. 5. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc. 6. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary. 7. Parenthetical words however must be enclosed in commas. 8. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive. 9. Contractions aren't necessary. 10. Do not use a foreign word when there is an adequate English quid pro quo. 11. One should never generalize. 12. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know." 14. Comparisons are as bad as cliches. 15. Don't be redundant; don't use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous. 16. It behooves you to avoid archaic expressions. 17. Avoid archaeic spellings too. 18. Understatement is always best. 19. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement. 20. One-word sentences? Eliminate. Always! 21. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake. 22. The passive voice should not be used. 23. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms. 24. Don't repeat yourself, or say again what you have said before. 25. Who needs rhetorical questions? 26. Don't use commas, that, are not, necessary. 27. Do not use hyperbole; not one in a million can do it effectively. 28. Never use a big word when a diminutive alternative would suffice. 28. Subject and verb always has to agree. 29. Be more or less specific. 30. Placing a comma between subject and predicate, is not correct. 31. Use youre spell chekker to avoid mispeling and to catch typograhpical errers. 32. Don't repeat yourself, or say again what you have said before. 33. Don't be redundant. 34. Use the apostrophe in it's proper place and omit it when its not needed. 35. Don't never use no double negatives. 36. Poofread carefully to see if you any words out. 37. Hopefully, you will use words correctly, irregardless of how others use them. 38. Eschew obfuscation. 39. No sentence fragments. 40. Don't indulge in sesquipedalian lexicological constructions. 41. A writer must not shift your point of view. 42. Don't overuse exclamation marks!! 43. Place pronouns as close as possible, especially in long sentences, as of 10 or more words, to their antecedents. 44. Writing carefully, dangling participles must be avoided. 45. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is. 46. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky. 47. Everyone should be careful to use a singular pronoun with singular nouns in their writing. 48. Always pick on the correct idiom. 49. The adverb always follows the verb. 50. Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors. 51. If you reread your work, you can find on rereading a great deal of repetition can be by rereading and editing. 52. And always be sure to finish what
A couple of weeks ago Laurie posted an entry about the importance of getting an outside source to edit any of your work.
I was just wondering how many of you offer editing services or would like to recommend an editor. I'd also like to know what kind of books or websites you all use in editing things. I recently asked the Managing Editor of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine about what book she uses as a reference. She suggested The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th ed..
So let us know what editing resources you recommend, use or provide.
P. G. Wodehouse,and English comic writer, once dedicated a novel to his young children, without whose constant love and affection this book would have been finished in half the time.
That's the truth of it. We all have to deal with distractions while we're writing. I have read before on Lisa Whelchel's site that she spends a few days in a hotel room when she needs to get serious on a writing project. That sounds awesome, but most of us don't have that luxury. We have to learn how to deal with the distractions that are called life and just keep writing until the project is complete!
"Even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there." Will Rogers
Try to set aside some quiet time for your writing and let your family know how important it is not to disturb you.
Discover your most productive time and writing environment. When do the ideas seem to come rolling in? Early morning? Late at night? Work during your peak creative times if at all possible. If you keep finding yourself stumped sitting at your desk, try going outside or to the library to write. Maybe a change of scenery will help.
Don't allow yourself to become distracted during your writing time by email, phone calls, surfing the internet, etc.. While you might tell yourself that you're searching for inspiration, you might be better off with just the quiet of your thoughts.
Remind yourself of why you are writing. Many writers procrastinate because of fear of rejection. At that point, you just have to push on. Write as if you knew that your project was going to be accepted and appreciated. In other words, Go For It!
And finally, let's never forget the power of prayer. The Author of Each Life Story has a purpose and a plan for your writing project. He can certainly help another author out. Remember, I can do all things through Christ who strenghens me. Phillipians 4:13
Wishing you all quick progress with your writing projects!
~Nancy Carter Senior Editor of HSB Managing Public Relations Consultant The Old Schoolhouse Magazine www.TheHomeschoolMagazine.com
The Homeschool Marketer is the place to gather all your tips about homeschool marketing and public relations! Whether you are considering marketing to home educators, are a homeschooler attempting to spread the word about your business efforts, or just want to know the news from the busy bees at The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, this is the place to get the "buzz".
Gena Suarez is the co-publisher of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC. She and her husband Paul (the other "co") reside in the foothills of the beautiful Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. The magazine, found in Borders and Barnes and Noble bookstores, is a family affair and is run out of their home.
Dena Wood, Schoolhouse Store Manager, is a homeschooling mom of five, freelance writer, and Co-Owner of Trigger Memory Systems, home of Times Tales and other creative, non-traditional learning products.
