Write Well in the New Year!

Regardless of whether you are writing a simple note to a friend (and people still do like to get hand written notes, not just emails or Facebook messages), or you need to turn in a major research paper (see research sites at the end of this entry), write well. That seems like a simple request, but truly we have become such a fast-paced society that we don't stop to weigh the meaning and sound of our words ... the impact they can have in our writing. I'm so impressed when, in a television show, a World magazine editorial, or even in recent Christmas cards, weighty words are selected. Weighty words are ones that make you stop and think and consider their meaning, words that linger.

I came across this poem today and I hope it will encourage you to do "all things" (including writing) well for the NEW YEAR!

Another year is dawning;
Dear Father, let it be
In working or in waiting,
Another year with Thee;
Another year of progress,
Another year of praise,
Another year of proving
Thy presence all the days.

Another year of mercies,
Of faithfulness and grace,
Another year of gladness
In the shining of Thy face;
Another year of leaning
Upon Thy loving breast;
Another year of trusting,
Of quiet, happy rest.


Another year of service,
Of witness for Thy love,
Another year of training
For holier work above.
Another year is dawning:
Dear Father, let it be
On earth, or else in heaven,
Another year for Thee.

RESEARCH PAPER TIP: Use resources such as World Digital Library (wdl.org/en/), the New York Public Library, which contains 700,000 images, (kigitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/index.cfm), and - for South Carolinians - scdiscus.org (password: findit), which has hundreds of periodicals to pull from.

Don't Forget Your Thesis

I've been editing many essays lately. Often when I'm finished I'm left wondering what was the point of the essay. The most important element - the thesis - was missing. I read a multitude of interesting facts, quotes, and arguments, yet still I'm perplexed as to what was the main reason for the paper. That main reason is called the thesis. If a paper launches right into explaining something, but fails to give the reader a clue as to what will be explained, the reader is left scratching his or her head in confusion. I have to write a sort of thesis every time I write an article for a magazine. In beginning writing, this is called a topic sentence or an introductory sentence. It basically gives readers a clue as to what they will learn - or, in some cases, what argument will be made - throughout the writing. The thesis might be considered the destination, with the elements in the essay (or article) being the road map to get to the destination. Often, in an essay, the thesis needs to be restated in some way at the end - so that you're reminding readers what it is they just learned. Without the thesis, the writing is just ramblings that take the reader here, there, and everywhere without ever reaching a destination. The following websites actually provides a much better and clearer explanation than what I am attempting here: www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/thesis.html

Avoid Snoopy's fate in "Snoopy's Guide to the Writing Life." In one comic strip by the late Charles Schulz, Snoopy writes the title of his book as "A Sad Story." When Lucy reads it she says, "This isn't a sad story. This is a dumb story." Snoopy responds, "That's what makes it so sad."

Brainstorming BEFORE Writing

When I conducted a writing workshop at a friend's home a few summers ago, there were students there representing all of the major private schools in the Columbia, S.C., area. All of the students expressed that they "hated" to write and their glum expressions on their faces conveyed  that they would rather be anywhere during their summer break than there. What I quickly learned is that the reason they "hated" to write was because they really didn't have any writing skills. Their schools' teachers were assigning them book reports, research papers, and essays on vast topics, without teaching them where to start. They expressed that they would sit, frustrated and resentful, staring at the blank sheet of paper or at the computer screen. Therefore, when I gave them their topic, they first learned one of the key skills required to write - brainstorming. Students had liberty (yes, freedom) to write anything and everything that came into their minds regarding the topic - be it frivolous or ludicrous. I asked them to put some words down that would help the readers experience their writing - words that conveyed sight, sound, taste, smell, touch - if applicable. "Really?" they expressed. Writing wasn't supposed to be fun, but suddenly they began to see that it could at least be somewhat enjoyable. They shared the words - nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs - they were coming up with some enthusiasm, seemingly amazed that the more they wrote down whatever came into their brains, the faster their brains came up with more words. From their brainstorming list, they learned to zero in on some words, or ideas, that would help tell their story. They then created an outline for their story, and eventually began pulling from the words/ideas to write that first paragraph. Those initial brainstorming words stimulated other ideas as they wrote. By the end of our writing workshop three days later, students were proudly sharing their finished works. And, when asked if they still "hated" writing, their comments were much more positive. They learned that brainstorming, just getting words from our brains to the paper, is the essential first element to good writing.

As Edith Wharton said at the end of her autobiography, A Backward Glance, "... there are always ... new books to read (and I hope, to write), a thousand little daily wonders to marvel at and rejoice in ... The visible world is a daily miracle for those who have eyes and ears;"

Transitioning (or, How to Keep Your Paper from Reading Like a Bunch of Choppy Thoughts Strung Together)

We learn much about how to write an opening sentence, fill in the paragraph with details that will support the opening sentence, and then close the paragraph. We learn little about how to TRANSITION from one paragraph to another. As a result, our paragraphs read as if they should stand alone - floating around like separate bits of information that have nothing to do with one another. To create a flow in a research paper, essay, letter, etc., we need to use transitional words and/or phrases. Here is a helpful list:


(Avoid “but”, “and”, “then”, and “so” if possible)

Also
Another
Moreover
Similarly
Although
However
In spite of
On the contrary
Nevertheless
On the other hand
Still
Yet
As a result
Because of ...
Consequently
Since
Therefore
After
At last
At once
Before
Eventually
Finally
First
Meanwhile
Next
Thereafter
Lastly
Mainly
More importantly
To begin with
Furthermore
Surprisingly
In contrast
Comparatively
Interestingly

“ly” (adverbs) words and prepositions often work to open sentences, transition from one thought to another, and generally move the writing along.

You can also use these transition words to move from one thought to another in the sentence. To HEAR where you need to insert them, READ YOUR WRITING OUT LOUD.

You will be amazed how your writing flows!

"There are few human pursuits more fascinating than the study of words." (unknown)

September 27, 2010

Redundancy can kill writing. Who wants to read the same words over and over again. The Second Edition of the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary contains full entries for 171,476 words in current use, and 47,156 obsolete words. Can't figure out different ways to express that someone has "said" something? There are at least a dozen choices in Roget's Super Thesaurus. Pick one: utter, speak, tell, assert, give, voice, mouth, pronounce, vocalize, remark, phrase, state, articulate.

What reads best? He said he was going to the store; or, He mouthed to his wife as she was intensely conversing with her best friend on the phone, "I'm g-o-i-n-g to the s-t-o-r-e." Which one gives you a clearer picture?

The words are there. Use them. When I edit my writing or the writing of others, I go through it and circle any words I see more than once in the same general area. If you're using the same word on the first page of a report and then again on page 5, no big deal. But if you have the same word in every paragraph - or worse, in sentence after sentence after sentence - please choose something else. Your readers will be grateful - whether they are your parents or a publishing agent.

LABOR DAY - September 6, 2010

"So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God's fellow workers." 1 Corinthians 3:7-9

Writing is a labor of love for me. Math is not. We all have our gifts. That we recognize those gifts and do them with joy and diligence and (sometimes) passion will only glorify God. It is when we berate ourselves for the gifts we do not have (calculating numbers, for example) that we begin to veer down a negative path away from all that He can and will do with the abilities He has given us.

I encourage those writers who do have a natural gift to cherish it and enjoy it, and those of you who don't to do your very best and realize that God is fine tuning you in other wonderful areas. Let us never LABOR in vain!

TIP FOR THE WEEK:
The New York Public Library recently made available for free its online digital archives containing over 700,000 images - historical maps, postcards, photographs, advertisements, etc. Users can print copies of the images or order prints from the library. Great source for research! Go to www.digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/index.cfm

Don't be Shy with LYs

Too often we focus on modifying the nouns, but don't give a thought to modifying the verbs. I've learned while teaching IEW (Institute for Excellence in Writing) that the "ly" words completely (there's one!) enliven writing. A good exercise is to have kids write something simple like: Jill jumped.

Then, challenge the student to add as many adverbs as possible to change the meaning of the sentence: Jill jumped quickly. Jill jumped quietly. Silently, Jill jumped. Steadily Jill jumped. Seriously, Jill jumped. Jill jumped triumphantly!!

Don't be shy with your "lys." Using them can transform otherwise boring sentences.

Writing Tip #1:
My first magazine editor gave me some invaluable advice that - after 25 years - I still follow. It is the same advice I give my students: Read every completed writing project OUT LOUD. It is amazing how much jumps out at you - both good and bad -when you actually hear the words you have written spoken. You may have read an essay or a poem or a book report a dozen times silently. However, when you read it out loud, you hear those repetitious words, those poorly described nouns, those pauses where you should have put a comma. At the same time, on a more positive note, you also hear the sentences that work - and they are music to your ears. Read it out loud alone, or read it out loud to friends or family; an audience often helps to pinpoint some mistakes as well.

Quote for the week: "There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." Edith Wharton

My friend and computer whiz, 11-year-old Anna Katherine Daley, was kind enough to bring me into the 21st century this morning and set up a website and blog site for this antiquated writer. I am a huge fan of Edith Wharton's and daydream sometimes about what it must have been like when there were few women writers, when writing was all about selecting the most beautiful and well-intentioned words to grace the pages of a hand-printed, leather or fabric covered book, and when writers hung out with other writers all day and eloquently discussed their prose. But, alas, I am in the high-tech, fast-paced, modern world and I must adapt. Thus, my goal for this blog is to effectively communicate with other writers, with those who want to write, and with those who aspire to teach writing. I will plan to have some weekly writing tips available and will strive to answer questions based on any "writers blocks" that any of you experience.

Quote for the day: "Your word as my text, each circumstance your pen, my heart as your page," Beth Moore.