Estrella.Editing. Writing Tips

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Roxanne Freeman
5 years ago
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1 Estrella.Editing Writing Tips

2 Writing can be easy or it can be difficult. There are those who seem to have all the right words in just the right order, at just the right time. They are envied by the other group of writers who struggle to come up with a plot, with a story, with characters, and with just the right trajectory. You may classify yourself as person 1, or person 2, but know this, there is really no way to classify the number of writers that exist in the world. Though each writer may be leading a separate and different life to all others, they can all benefit from some sage advice. I don t mean to say I m a sage but I do have some advice in the form of writing tips. The next few pages are full of tips that may help you as a new writer to improve the logistics of your writing, or maybe your mindset on the process. I hope you get something out of this short list of tips and advice that I ve compiled for you as a new author.

3 Introduction In writing, there are so many rules to share. I will not share all those rules of writing in this small pamphlet. However, I will ensure that you have a good foundational understanding of the basic writing skills that seem to be lost, forgotten, or never learned. This section will address many of the errors that I see most commonly in editing manuscripts and essays. Read on to see what you should remember as you write the next bestseller or greatest essay of all times.

4 Tip Number 1 Commas Commas trip up many beginning and even some seasoned authors. There are some simple rules that will get you going on the right track regarding this complex little punctuation mark. a. Use a comma if the two parts of the sentence are full sentences, use a comma: a. I wanted to go to the store, and I wanted to go to the bank. b. Use a comma if the beginning clause is a prepositional phrase. a. On the other hand, I think I ll avoid the bank today. c. Do not use a comma if the two parts are not full sentences. a. I wanted to go to the store and the bank. d. Do not use a comma for an end of sentence prepositional phrase. a. I wanted to go to the store when I got home from work. There are many more rules regarding commas, but these are common errors in most writing, both book and essay. Keep them in mind as you write!

5 Tip Number 2 Me or I? There is a great deal of confusion regarding when to use I and when to use me in a sentence. Here is a great rule of thumb that will help you choose wisely. a. If the word me works without the other names, use me. a. Do you want Jim and me to go to the store? b. Do you want me to go to the store? b. If the word I works without the other names, use I. a. Terry and I are going to the book store. b. I am going to the book store. Just remove all the other names and whatever sounds right between me and I is what you would use in the list.

6 Tip Number 3 And, But These words are conjunctions. They link two sentences or sentence fragments together to create a full sentence or full thought. Do not put and or but at the beginning of a sentence. It is alright in dialogue if you have a person speaking, but it should never be in the narration, nor ever put at the beginning of a sentence in a college essay. Remember you want your audience to enjoy what they are reading. If you begin sentences with and or but too often you ll lose your audience to your very basic grammatical error.

7 Tip Number 4 Sentences and Paragraphs Sentences have a point, a thought, a few modifiers and then they end. There is nothing more breath-taking (and I don t mean in the good warm-fuzzy way) than trying to read six sentences all merged into one. Paragraphs are important, too. A full story with one paragraph makes for one exhausted (and very confused) reader. a. When you ve changed points of view, change paragraphs. b. When you change characters, change paragraphs. c. When you change scenes, change paragraphs. Paragraphs are important, but so are headings to break down each part of your essay or story. It helps the reader to know what they are about to read and helps to keep the mind clear.

8 Tip Number 5 Repetition There is nothing more mundane than to read the same words used over and over. There are many places to get new words: a. You can ask anyone to help you find new words. b. You can join a writer s group on your favorite social networking site. c. You can use the old standard a Thesaurus! There is a conveniently free one online at

9 Tip Number 6 Tense? Tense comes in all forms. There is tense from too much stress and worry. There is tense when you ve worked out too hard and your muscles are strained. The tense I speak of here is not that kind, though. This is tense in past, present, and future. Stick to one tense. If your story takes place in the near or far future, make sure the entire story sticks to that tense. If you ve written a contemporary story, don t go through time unless it is pertinent to the story.

10 Tip Number 7 Write to your Audience So, you have a Ph.D. in Creative Writing. What good is that wonderful degree if nobody wants to read your work? Write to your audience. If your audience is other Rhodes Scholars, then use that vocabulary nobody on the street would want to hear. However, if you are writing a Y/A (young adult) thriller about vampires who fight ghosts for a living, do not use those college-level words. Be sure that your content is full of interest, intrigue, or romance, but also be sure that it is in a voice that others want to hear.

11 Tip Number 8 It isn t all That It is a little word, that, but it is also overused to the point of ridiculousness. You can almost always delete the word that and your sentences will flow better and not be the worse for it. Also, when speaking of a person, they are who, not that. Mary is a person who is very likable. Another word like that which is overused is had. Avoid words that are unnecessary because your reader will be mentally correcting your prose instead of enjoying your wonderful story and meeting your fascinating characters. You can also eliminate the following words: Really / Very On the other hand In order to Start to / Starting to Seriously / Actually

12 Tip Number 9 Contractions Contractions are contentious: If you are writing an essay for your college class, do *not* and I repeat do *not* use contractions. All your words should be spelled out. Conversely, if you are writing a book, manuscript, or script, do use contractions. People speak in contractions and they read in contractions. If you don t put them in your story, it will come across stilted and dry. You want good reviews, right? Then, be sure to include contractions in your book.

13 Tip Number 10 Which -vs- That for Commas More commas. Yes, I know. Here is the rule: If you use that, do not put a comma. If you use which do put a comma. I went to the store that was closed last week. I went to the store, which was closed last week. Easy, right?

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