The Write Slice: Write or Wrong

Let's face it: writing is an exceptionally time-consuming process, and we are in a world of little available time. There are countless methods of revision we can employ in our writing - and we should use a variety of techniques. But there is one technique I have found that gives me the most improvement with the least time (but not necessarily effort). This technique is actually contradictory to what most novice writers believe. Most writers believe that the more adjectives and adverbs you add to your writing, the more sophisticated it becomes. Actually, the opposite is true. The most effective technique is to focus on choosing strong, specific nouns and verbs. That's it. That's all you've got to do for stellar writing. (Ha, if only it were really that easy.) Let's look at some examples: John went to the store. Boring. There's no intrigue or emotional involvement. There's no interest in the sentence. So how can we fix it? Let's look at our ver

I was recently introduced to an article in the May 2015 issue of The Atlantic entitled "How to Graduate from Starbucks." This article was very interesting as it described the partnership between Starbucks and Arizona State University for Starbucks' employees to earn college degrees. It discussed all the different techniques these two businesses are using to encourage success. But the one thing that seemed to set this program apart from other programs was proactive mentoring. Students found the support, information, and encouragement they needed to continue their college educations. So what does this have to do with writing? Actually, it has a lot to do with life. Try to think of one area of your life where you have been successful that you accomplished completely on your own. There was no support from parents, friends, spouse, siblings, teachers, no one except yourself. Hard to think of? Perhaps impossible? Writing is no different. In many aspects, writing is a solit

I read a lot of books this year, and I'm going to give you a sampling of my favorite ones. Many of these are full series.  (A lengthier post, so feel free to skip around a bit as needed.) Alcatraz Series: Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians (Book 1) by Brandon Sanderson MG Fantasy This is perhaps my most-recommended series for a long time. It is written as a middle-grade novel, but younger and older can fully enjoy it. I listened to the audio book version with my 7-yr-old son, and he absolutely loved it. (The reader - Ramon de Ocampo is amazing.) I was entertained by the story as well as the allusions and writing advice Sanderson sprinkles in. The basic premise is that Alcatraz (yes, that is his name, which is explained in the book) is a foster child with a talent for breaking things -- literally. He receives a mysterious bag of sand from his father on his 13th birthday. What ensues is an magical/technological adventure against evil librarians intent on controlling information a