Hopeful authors and would be writers have come to me for advice over many years. They started asking me for help long before I was ready to offer it. I mean, I didn’t feel qualified. I was just whittling out a career for myself in the world of writing and publishing—what did I have to give others?
In time, however, I began responding to questions posed and was rather surprised, at first, to discover how much I knew—how much I had learned about this profession while working in the trenches as a freelance article writer and published author.
Fast forward 35 years—where does the time go? I now earn part of my living advising, counseling and mentoring writers and authors who are at various stages of their involvement in this industry. I love helping a good writer with a fabulous project move forward toward success. But sometimes, the story does not have a happy ending. Sometimes, the writing is not good and the project is not fabulous and I have to pop a hopeful writer’s bubble.
I think long and hard before I tell a writer something that is less than encouraging about his work. And I always try to share any potentially discouraging news (opinion) with some positive, supportive words.
This week a lovely gentleman brought me a true story he wrote—and I have to tell you this happens often. He described it as a heart-wrenching story—one that is filled with emotion. I read it and felt nothing. I could see the story among the words, but I could not feel it. I explained that the story was a good one—it had potential, but that the writing was off a little. I tried to make the writer understand that the emotion was missing—that the story was presented in reporting/journalistic style rather than storytelling style. It was a fact-filled piece rather than one that touched the heart of the reader.
He didn’t quite get it, so I suggested that he take his manuscript to a local writing critique group for their help. There are usually some good writers in attendance who know how to turn a mundane narrative into a remarkable, touching story.
Of course, I could help get a writer going in a better direction with a project like this, but this writer didn’t have the funds for my fee. Hopefully, I will get another chance to look at his story once he has reworked it.
When others read your story are they touched or do they feel as though they are reading something as bland as instructions for putting together a child’s toy? What is it that makes the difference? Adjectives (descriptive words). You want to paint pictures with words as you write your story. Rather than, “Sally had the ball,” try “Sally held fast to the ball, fearful that Billy Bully would snap it out of her trembling hands again.” Instead of, “Bert entered the room,” say “Chards of glistening light streaming through the stained glass illuminated the room as Bert cautiously entered.”
There are many, many ways to dress up our writing—to create images and emotions such as fear, anticipation, anger, irritation, joy, etc. I invite you to share your before and after sentences. Leave them here as comments.
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