Ink Spots, or Writer's Rules of Thumb

Okay...so some have read this topic and not responded. Why not?

I have another, "Writer's rule of Thumb" to add just the same.

Remove useless words which clutter up a sentence such as: that which, at that time, which were, etc. Anything that does not directly serve a sentence's purpose can divert the train of thought and purpose of it.

3.) Witch hunting. hunting for the words most often used wrong....or in mundane manners...remove them substituting them with either a word with true meaning, or with nothing. Some of these words are: that, which, found, issue, thought, felt, feel, like, that were, etc.......

editing our works require much more thought and time than the initial writing itself!!!!!!!!!!

Like the Mona Lisa.........an artist never feels their work is completely finished.........

Avoid the "not un" construction. It's better to say something is "likely" than "not unlikely".

I like that one...count it as number 4.)

Writing is easy, like speaking. But, writing a book is unlike speaking. (wink) Useless wording often clutters the meaning and cannot be taken back by further oration.

tnx for the contribution, roger....I like your avatar.....cute rat.

A Writing Rule or Suggestion:

Avoid passive verbs: was, went, had, got, etc.
For example:

Passive voice: She got her purse and went to the store.

Active voice: She snatched her purse and stomped to the store.
She fetched her purse and skipped to the store.
She claimed her purse and escaped to the store.
She hunted for her purse and dashed to the store.
She hoisted her purse and trudged to the store.

that's all!

Very good Carlotta......I have trouble with the word "had" and also "found" or "feel"...these are the words that after "brainstorming" a story or chapter, I hunt them down and replace them with more meaningful words. Thanks for the input.

me agapi

Allow a draft to simmer for at least twenty-four hours so that you can distance yourself from the sweat you expended and focus only on the story.

And that reminds me. Know what the story you're trying to tell is. I did a rambling 5 page essay, and after consultation with one of the better English teachers in my life, trimmed it to a much better two page story.

Noddy reminds me, be ready to cut the parts you love if they don't further the story as a whole. I always hated that part hen I was serious about writing short stories. I'd lovingly craft a section that was just lovely, and then would eventually figure out that it just didn't fit.

The good news is that some of them became the kernel of a new story. Though there were a few that were cut, became a kernel, and then were cut from the *new* story... poor things.

A Word About Viewpoints

Usually sorting out the viewpoint in a story or novel is a crucial element of smooth writing.

There are three types of viewpoint:

First Person, Past Tense. This is me telling the story in the voice of my main character. I relate the story as it happened in the past. Example:
"I began the day as usual with bagels and lox and a thick mug of black java when the phone rang. 'Detective Dick? Help! Murder!'"

This is an intimate, authentic style, but tricky. The author cannot ever relate something that the main character doesn't see or feel. One can never jump into the viewpoint of another character, or read their minds.

A variant on this is First Person, Present Tense. Telling the story in the present as if it were happening in real time. Very Tricky.

Third Person, Past Tense. This is the easiest and most popular style of writing. Various view points are allowed, but seldom in the same paragraph. Sticking to the view point of one character for a whole chapter, or segment of a chapter, is usually best. Example:

Detective Dick rubbed the stubble on his chin and sighed. Another murder to investigate, and so early in the day. He cradled the phone between shoulder and ear and grabbed his notebook. "All right, lady," he said. "Give me the facts, and nothin' but the facts."

(note viewpoint jump)

The caller, Monique Femdefatale, would have hung up on the rude gumshoe, but she had no choice. "My husband, the incredibly wealthy industrialist, Phil T. Lucre, is lying on the floor with a pair of silver scissors in his back. What should I do?"

Omniscient Viewpoint: The All-Knowing Narrator. This is an old-fashioned and distancing style of writing. Example:

How was Detective Dick to know, when he heard the dulcet voice of Monique Femdefatale, that he would soon be swept into a scenario of greed, deceit, embezzlement and murder. And passion, the last thing that thrice-divorced Dick needed to complicate his life. Dick would learn the hard way that a murderess can be deadly.

That's all. I'll bet there are others with tips on viewpoint and tense.

Ta

If one adjective won't do the job, adding one or two more won't help.

Never make up new words, as it will only conflabulate the reader.