Nobody Likes A Rambler

We all know people who ramble. They include every boring and insignificant detail, speak in five-minute-long sentences and take forever to get to the point. When they finally reach the end of their story, most people have either walked away or lost interest.

If you were reading their words, would you read right to the end? Or would you find something more informative, less boring and shorter to read?

We all have a tendency to ramble. It's natural. And the more excited we are about a subject, the more likely we are to ramble.

Unfortunately, if we ramble in writing, our readers may not get to the "good stuff." And if that "good stuff" is your website, your byline or a product you wish to promote, your rambling has just cost you money.

Now, I certainly don't want to curb your excitement, and I don't even want to thwart your tendency to ramble.

Instead, I want you to get wildly excited about your topic. I want you to ramble as much as you like. Then I want you to edit.

When you edit, try to cut as many words from your article as possible. The number of words cut depends on the length of your first draft and the desired length of your finished article. That said, you should usually try to cut your word count by at least 20 percent - and the more words cut, the better. If that leaves your article too short, try rambling on for even longer before you get to the editing stage.

I don't have the room here to list everything that helps cut down the words in your article, but I will share some key points:

Identify your points and sub-points. When we ramble we tend to go from one point, to another point, then back to the first point, then to an unrelated sub-point. You get the picture. By identifying points and sub-points you can structure your article and ensure each point and sub-point is only addressed once.

Indicate the importance of each point and sub-point. I like to use a highlighter for this. Pink for very important, yellow for fairly important, and so on. When you run out of colors, ask yourself if the material left is important enough to be included, or whether it can be cut.

Get to the point. Ramblers take forever to get to the point. First, they will tell you what they were wearing, what the weather was like and why Cousin Sue happened to be there at the time. If you're taking a lot time to get to the point, cut the beginning from your article. This goes for paragraphs, too.

Say what you want in the shortest possible way. You all know the sentence about the quick brown fox. This sentence not only uses every letter in the alphabet, but it says what it needs to with as few words as possible. A rambler would write "The fox, who was very quick, and happened to be brown, ran up to and jumped over the very lazy dog." I'm sure you'll agree that the original is much better.

These items won't cover everything you need to look at when reducing your word count, but they do provide a good starting base. If you want to remember them, just think of the biggest rambler you know and the things you would like to say to him: "You already said that." "Is the weather important?" "Get to the point." "I have to go soon. Can we hurry this up?"

Readers won't wish they could say these things to you. They'll just find something else to read. Keep your word count low and you'll keep your readers with you right to the end.

About The Author

Liz Palmer is a freelance copywriter and editor, based in Australia. She works with businesses and writers, offering a range of proofreading, editing and copywriting services.

palmer19@austarmetro.com.au

MORE RESOURCES:

Course shows companies what NOT to put in writing - Reuters

Coens nominated for writing prize - BBC News

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/08/AR2009010802356.htmlcid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNEgDQ4E5GkFHSYHDxggJQ8No8wBmQimg src=http://nt0.ggpht.com/news?imgefp=eP_HonB-ivoJimgurl=media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/photo/2009/01/08/PH2009010802357.jpg width=59 height=80 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Washington Post/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-0fd=Rurl=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7817304.stmcid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGx77QQzGmgHhbXWnk3QjDyu8J8TACoens nominated for bwriting/b prize/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBBC News,nbsp;UKnbsp;-/font nobr11 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Film-makers Joel and Ethan Coen have been nominated for a prize at the Writers Guild of America awards for their movie Burn After Reading. b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-1fd=Rurl=http://www.animationmagazine.net/article/9411cid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNH1vHWn-ESvSU_IaJ-WSANfLgwuMwWGA Nominates Bashir, Chicago 10, Dark Knight/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrAnimation Magazine/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-2fd=Rurl=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/burn-milk-up-wga-screenplay/story.aspx%3Fguid%3D%257B4B251FC1-2BEF-474F-8C29-F0D30CA43027%257D%26dist%3Dmsr_1cid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNFf09oNU0gPaug5P9jiUIsdxo0LGA#39;Burn,#39; #39;Milk#39; up for WGA screenplay award/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrMarketWatch (press release)/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-3fd=Rurl=http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gOFzJ8bKNlq6OOK73s530RLS40rwD95II3380cid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNHGMXykwKpokFRsFXf7Tb-Y26q0ow`Dark Knight#39; bags WGA screenplay nomination/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrThe Associated Press/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-4fd=Rurl=http://www.ifmagazine.com/new.asp%3Farticle%3D7385cid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNFDZE5fRCGoYUXqK1uhoN0RYbAjcQnobriFMagazine/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-5fd=Rurl=http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20090108.BUZZ08-1/TPStory/Entertainmentcid=1287788727ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNFIxMdznFGmbpcwoXOC-0eShM3ScAnobrGlobe and Mail/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1287788727hl=ennobrall 486 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Gonzales writing book on years in Bush administration - Austin American-Statesman

Children#39;s creative writing class is Saturday at Writers#39; Gallery - Yucaipa/Calimesa News Mirror

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-0fd=Rurl=http://www.newsmirror.net/articles/2009/01/08/news/07news.txtcid=1287879816ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNHNrlqEEDj1FdG3-WlHRppLguDspAChildren#39;s creative bwriting/b class is Saturday at Writers#39; Gallery/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fYucaipa/Calimesa News Mirror,nbsp;CAnbsp;-/font nobr13 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The Writers#39; Gallery in Yucaipa will present a Children#39;s Creative bWriting/b Class on Saturday, Jan. 10, from 10 am to noon. This class will be taught by b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-1fd=Rurl=http://www.berwick-advertiser.co.uk/leisure/Writers-with-murder-in-mind.4851777.jpcid=1287879816ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNH6ayGWrrd-3bAjd7NoKQoI1G2CCwWriters with murder in mind/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrBerwick Today/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1287879816hl=ennobrall 2 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

The Flat Stanley Project gets kids reading, writing, and learning ... - Examiner.com

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/4i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.examiner.com/x-562-Book-Examiner~y2009m1d7-The-Flat-Stanley-Project-gets-kids-reading-writing-and-learning-geographycid=1287811701ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGUk8JjnnUzsWPl5D50mNDMFoPvIwimg src=http://nt2.ggpht.com/news?imgefp=Nj8BWNePNEUJimgurl=image.examiner.com/images/blog/author/img530michelle_kerns_photo.jpg width=80 height=67 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Examiner.com/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/4-0fd=Rurl=http://www.examiner.com/x-562-Book-Examiner~y2009m1d7-The-Flat-Stanley-Project-gets-kids-reading-writing-and-learning-geographycid=1287811701ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGUk8JjnnUzsWPl5D50mNDMFoPvIwThe Flat Stanley Project gets kids reading, bwriting/b, and learning b.../b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fExaminer.comnbsp;-/font nobr17 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1b.../b could scarcely have imagined that decades later his quirky creation would be used in bwriting/b and geography projects for schoolchildren around the globe. b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Russia says will restore gas when monitors in place - guardian.co.uk

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/news/2009/01/090107_gas_russia_sl.shtmlcid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNH8SaJbWSvzEnfI-9Gnxhp3KHgRsAimg src=http://nt0.ggpht.com/news?imgefp=FJWUN8y0pygJimgurl=www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/assets/images/2009/01/090107slovak_gas_afp_187.jpg width=80 height=53 alt= border=1brfont size=-2BBC News/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-0fd=Rurl=http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/8216731cid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNH3yV6__RbEmWZyGGJOQCiKTgmBrgRussia says will restore gas when monitors in place/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fguardian.co.uk,nbsp;UKnbsp;-/font nobr3 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1b.../b Faulconbridge in Kiev, Marcin Grajewski in Brussels; Martin Santa in Bratislava; Jan Lopatka in Prague; bWriting/b by Jon Boyle; editing by Ralph Boulton)/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-1fd=Rurl=http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DWDaHAtQVYSIcid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNG5X0fbdDa1cLANsHGiCRcZ93vTOgVideo: The gas crisis in Europe online/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrfrance24english/nobr/fontobject width=448 height=356param name=movie value=http://www.youtube.com/v/WDaHAtQVYSI/paramparam name=wmode value=transparent/paramembed src=http://www.youtube.com/v/WDaHAtQVYSItype=application/x-shockwave-flashwmode=transparentwidth=448height=356/embed/objectbr/fontfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-2fd=Rurl=http://www.kyivpost.com/world/32802cid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNEFP6c8TcacHXARsjchdQ1XV-xNqQGazprom: Yushchenko should work instead of bwriting/b letters/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrKyiv Post (subscription)/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-3fd=Rurl=http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSBRU00715620090108cid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNFQoE_onD0u1_jQcqZ7cxTbSdAHogGazprom refuses to agree to EU gas monitoring plan/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrReuters/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-4fd=Rurl=http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKPRA00230820090108cid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGGTe13-B67EfI_WrOFEb9sLRTf5QnobrReuters/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/5-5fd=Rurl=http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSL84569920090108cid=1287643687ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNG4b9TgTXMiTM7Piqerv84B3LLdoQnobrReuters/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1287643687hl=ennobrall 6,733 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Ex-broker guilty of writing bad check - Billings Gazette

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-0fd=Rurl=http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2009/01/08/news/state/55-badcheck.txtcid=1287866693ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGhhTezexSz6bpjIziKbzThcCjTnQEx-broker guilty of bwriting/b bad check/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBillings Gazette,nbsp; USAnbsp;-/font nobr12 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1By LINDA HALSTEAD-ACHARYA Jeanne Rizzotto, a former Red Lodge real estate broker, pled guilty Wednesday in District Court in Red Lodge to bwriting/b a bad b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-1fd=Rurl=http://www.kxmb.com/News/317363.aspcid=1287866693ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNHLIWgA5oCccJBtQH-2lX_pzCt__gRed Lodge woman pleads guilty in bad check case | KXNet.com North b.../b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrReiten Television KXMB Bismarck/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1287866693hl=ennobrall 5 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

The business press: The horror of writing your own obit - BloggingStocks

Manhattan Public Library holding art and writing contest for MLK ... - KTKA.com

How about if Steve Jobs smoked a pipe? - guardian.co.uk

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9i-0fd=Rurl=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7812705.stmcid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNEXxHbAStvvnBiNvUXhGk2uWTkjbAimg src=http://nt0.ggpht.com/news?imgefp=CDEqzk5CuXkJimgurl=newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45348000/jpg/_45348330_jobs-death-body.jpg width=80 height=60 alt= border=1brfont size=-2BBC News/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-0fd=Rurl=http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/jan/08/apple-macworld-dullsville-pipecid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGfuDvU9__gE3ekgQLorQE7GD8Y6wHow about if Steve Jobs smoked a pipe?/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fguardian.co.uk,nbsp;UKnbsp;-/font nobr5 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1For the first time in more than a decade, it looks like I#39;m bwriting/b a letter. Unfortunately, my apparent absence in the latest version of Microsoft Office b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-1fd=Rurl=http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DOT3eybWjJaAcid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNGJ8i_pGIKdJCUf2scYUXSMz-lLjAVideo: Steve Jobs Weight Loss Due to Hormone Imbalance/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrAssociatedPress/nobr/fontobject width=448 height=356param name=movie value=http://www.youtube.com/v/OT3eybWjJaA/paramparam name=wmode value=transparent/paramembed src=http://www.youtube.com/v/OT3eybWjJaAtype=application/x-shockwave-flashwmode=transparentwidth=448height=356/embed/objectbr/fontfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-2fd=Rurl=http://www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/iphone/showArticle.jhtml%3FarticleID%3D212701038%26cid%3Diwhome_art_iPhon_mostpopcid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNEPsDZqllRxBOk_UNJySbRdKu2N2wMacworld: Apple Rewards The Faithful/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrInformationWeek/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-3fd=Rurl=http://www.macworld.com/article/137945/2009/01/iwork09.html%3Ft%3D201cid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNE9uNbR1iHu7hGamq_hdSP8KmmTFQExpo: Apple adds productivity features to iWork/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrMacworld/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-4fd=Rurl=http://www.thestandard.com/news/2009/01/06/apple-updates-iwork-web-based-document-sharing-and-more-productive-pricecid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNF89VQyYuh3v5qGIXOuG_qA_jGqKgnobrThe Industry Standard/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-5fd=Rurl=http://www.dailycamera.com/news/2009/jan/07/the-odd-world-of-the-cult-of-apple-ask-dave/cid=1287230517ei=8mxmSfLSF8GPmAeW5Z3CBAusg=AFQjCNFB2NnIVxg6OcmoGyVsiXXXiS25BwnobrDaily Camera/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1287230517hl=ennobrall 2,618 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Writing - Google News

RELATED ARTICLES

Business Letter Etiquette
Business etiquette is fundamentally concerned with building relationships founded upon courtesy and politeness between business personnel. Etiquette, and especially business etiquette, is a means of maximising your potential by presenting yourself positively.

COULD YOU (not) REPEAT THAT PLEASE?
I recently read a book where everything was akimbo.� Arms were akimbo, legs were akimbo.

How to Break In and Succeed as a Screenwriter
Screenwriting is a competitive trade. To distinguish yourself as a prize-winning writer you need to master organizational skills, take creative risks, and learn how best to present your final product.

Writing Is Not Life-threatening
Some writers complain that writing is arduous work requiring long hours and little pay, which is often true especially for freelance fiction writers. Today, everyone wants to be a writer and with word processors and computers it is easy to put thoughts down, but it is not always effortless to be published unless one self-publishes or uses a vanity press.

Writing - Copyrights and Trademarks Protect You
When most people consider writing a book, they don't thinkabout Trademarks. However, I highly recommend that youleverage your writing for multiple purposes, and that's whyregistering a Trademark for your concept is a good idea.

Writing Query Letters
A QUERY LETTER is written to an editor or agent to describe a piece of writing to ask if they'd like to see it. It is sent in lieu of an unsolicited (unasked for) manuscript.

Going On A Word Diet
There are three ways to write a first draft. One is to ink whatever surfaces, in whatever order without regard to grammar, spelling or staying on topic.

Write That Down! Compulsively Collecting Content for Your Writing
Have you ever read someone else's writing and thought one of the following things:Where did he get such great stories?Why can't I think of examples like that?How does she always develop amazing illustrations?The answer is: content.In writing, content is KING.

The Top Five Mistakes That Companies Make with Regard to Technical Documentation
I've seen it time and again. One of the most common weaknesses that I've seen in engineering companies-indeed, an almost universal fault-is the lack of proper technical documentation.

Five EASY Ways to Improve Your Business Writing
Have you ever wondered why some people can make millions writing books, and others (maybe you) can't even complete a simple business letter worth reading? Sure, natural talent probably accounts for some of their writing success. But really the best-selling authors achieved that level of success by devoting serious time and effort to perfecting their craft.

In Your Own Words
More Tips For New Writers (Part I)Explain in your own wordsFamiliar phrase? Yes, we have all heard it many times in many different situations. This little phrase is used to convey subtly different meanings depending upon the circumstances in which it is used.

Top Ten Tips (Part 1)
The following rules are essential if you want people to take you seriously.Be yourself Know your subjectBe interested Punctuate proudlyRespect the apostropheGet great grammarSpell well Keep to the pointRead and reviseSleep on itPay attention to detailBe yourselfWrite from the heart or the head or the gut, depending upon the type ofwriting you are doing.

7 Reference Books for Your Desk
I hate to admit this, but I rarely get an original idea. That's bad for a writer.

The Power of Punctuation
Punctuation, when used creatively, is powerful. Note, however, that when I say 'when used creatively', I don't mean that you can make up the rules.

How To Write Your Book Within A Week
Everyone has a book inside them, or so the saying goes. But few people get that book out.

The Run-on Sentence: From Here To Eternity
If you find your sentences filled with commas, and they wend from one topic to another, then you, like many people, may be guilty of writing run-on sentences.The run-on sentence is annoying.

Writing HI-LO Material (High Interest, Low Ability) for Slow Readers
To write books for readers at an elementary reading level (for either adults or children) you start off exactly the same way as you do any other book: you work out a strong plot and people it with interesting characters.Your primary concerns:To write a story that will seize the interest of the reader immediately (reluctant or emergent readers aren't going to waste time on a story that doesn't look interesting)To try to stick to one idea per sentence.

The Writing Life
In the 7th grade I wanted to be an architect but it turns out math is involved. Who knew? My 8th grade English teacher talked me into working on the school newspaper and I was hooked.

Rules for Getting the Story Down
1. Write it fast, fix it later.

New Year Resolutions for Writers - The Best Kind to Make and How to Keep Them
On the first day of a bright and shiny new year, stretching out ahead of us full of possibilities, it's so easy to feel a sense of determination. ("This year I'm DOING it! I'm going to write a book / lose weight / take more time for myself.