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Tag: how to improve your writing

  • Netflix and Write? 5 Reasons Writers Should Watch More TV

    Netflix and Write? 5 Reasons Writers Should Watch More TV

    Confession: Sometimes, I close a book just so I can open my laptop to watch Netflix.

    Yes, I’m a writer — and yes, I often prefer watching TV to reading books.

    Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy reading. Is anyone arguing against writers reading books to provide us with creativity and inspiration? The more you read, the better you write.

    But sometimes I grow weary of reading yet another blog post preaching that writers should constantly be reading in our free time. Even if the points those bloggers make are legitimate, people are beating a dead horse when they remind me to read, read, read.

    I grow even more testy when I read pieces advising Americans to just stop watching TV in general. Let me do what I want!

    I watched the entire first season of Stranger Things in one night. I have a hardcore crush on Special Agent Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks. Thanks to Parks and Recreation, I have a Leslie Knope and/or Ron Swanson quote for every life situation.

    And that’s okay.

    In fact, it’s good for writers to watch television. Maybe doing so can actually benefit you. Here’s why.

    1. You can write about what you watch

    That’s right, watching TV can actually lead to getting published. And hopefully publishing those pieces can lead to making moolah!

    There are numerous online publications that pay freelancers for pieces focusing on TV programs, including Buzzfeed, Bitch Media and Paste Magazine.

    You aren’t limited to publications that focus on media, either. Think outside the box. If you’re a personal finance writer, pitch a piece about how to access discounts on monthly network subscriptions. Travel writers can write about the best foreign programs on Amazon Prime.

    Start counting all the dollars you earn as a direct result of your TV obsession.

    how to improve your writing

    2. You can use TV to add color to your pieces

    A vital aspect of writing a strong piece is connecting with your readers. And guess what? Most of your readers probably watch TV, just like you.

    While you may not necessarily write about TV shows, you can throw in a reference to a program that will automatically connect a reader to you, the writer. For example, if you type, “We were on a break!” then countless of 90s kids who rooted for Ross and Rachel all those years will understand your reference and crack a smile.

    You may want to be careful, though. Throwing in absurd references may actually isolate you from your readers. Always take your audience into consideration. If you’re writing for a publication aimed toward teens, few of them are likely to understand your Touched by an Angel shout-out.

    3. You watch shows to unwind

    Yes, I write every day. And, yes, I read every day. Even bad writing!

    However, reading doesn’t come as naturally to me as it does to some people. I’m a slow reader, so while I enjoy it, in some ways it still feels like work. Reading for an hour doesn’t necessarily relax me, so I need to find an alternate way to unwind after a long day.

    In order to be as productive as possible when you write, you need to create margins in your life. If you constantly work, stress, sleep for four hours per night, then wake up and start all over again, you will burn out. You need time to decompress.

    Relax. Do something for yourself. Pour yourself a glass of wine and watch the episode of Jim and Pam’s wedding. Again.

    4. You learn about character development

    It’s worth mentioning that writing for TV shows is vastly different from writing novels, memoirs, blogs or magazine articles.

    However, watching TV can definitely provide you with insights about storytelling.

    TV writers have the advantage of extended time to develop people’s personalities and backstories. This may not always be the case with film writers, who have to pack everything into two hours.

    Like TV writers, authors usually have space and time to allow characters to progress. Maybe that’s why movie remakes never seem to be as good as their book counterparts. Come to think of it, should we be making more books into TV programs?

    5. Anything is worth writing about

    Your everyday life may not always feel interesting, but nearly every aspect of your day can be written about.

    You shouldn’t just sit in your office and write all day, every day. Your daily life becomes your writing material. From getting your kids ready for school, to shopping for bathing suits, to troubleshooting your computer, to watching TV.

    Everything is writing material, even if you don’t know it yet.

    No, sitting on the couch to binge-watch TV four hours per day probably isn’t the healthiest habit. (Although, I’ll admit, that’s exactly what I did last night after a terrible day at work.) However, there are plenty of reasons to finally give in and jump on the Game of Thrones bandwagon.

    How has watching TV helped you with your writing process?

  • Think Like a Journalist to Improve Your Writing (Trench Coat Optional!)

    Think Like a Journalist to Improve Your Writing (Trench Coat Optional!)

    As a teenager, I felt in the very core of my being that I was destined to be a newspaper reporter and probably a Pulitzer Prize winner.

    I was already reporting for my middle school newspaper, “The Saghalie Skyhawk”, on crucial issues of the day like lunchtime panhandlers itching to satisfy a Cool Ranch Doritos craving, and writing horoscopes littered with alliteration.

    What more could a girl want from a career?

    I stuck with it, continuing to try on the journalism hat while writing for school newspapers in high school and in college.

    I graduated with a degree in Journalism from Seattle Pacific University in 2005, around the time when prospects for career journalists were looking dire.

    The digital age was taking hold, and the future was, at best, extremely uncertain for traditional media outlets. Even my professors were anxious.

    Ever the pragmatist, I decided to abandon my childhood dreams of whiling away the hours in a real live newsroom for a broader communications career, though I had little more than an inkling as to what that meant in the workplace.

    Once I finally joined the ranks of ye olde working worlde, I discovered my journalism education had prepared me exceptionally well for a veritable cornucopia of writing styles and mediums, and, even more importantly, I knew how to communicate with people.

    But you don’t need a journalism degree to apply the basic principles to your writing. When you think like a journalist, you will become a better writer.

    Here’s how you can use 10 tenets of journalism to improve your writing, no matter your genre or industry.

    1. Remember the 5 Ws

    Journalists can never forget the 5 Ws: Who, What, When, Where, Why (plus the sixth unofficial W: Why should I care?).

    These are not only the building blocks for a news article, they also serve as a baseline for a corporate communications plan, as a sketch for a customer profile and as a starting point for a novelist’s character chart.

    2. Know your audience

    Who are you writing for? What’s on their to-do list? What keeps them up at night? What television shows do they watch? What do they read? What are their political views? Do they have children? What do they want most out of life?

    Imagine you are writing for one person. And don’t write a single word until you know who that person is, and why they will want to read what you have to say.

    3. Refine your lead

    Okay, okay: journalists would call it a lede.

    It’s the same concept: your hook, your sizzle, your selling point. Your primary summary of what’s happening.

    Figure out, first and foremost, what will engage your audience and motivate them to read more.

    Human beings are wired for storytelling — so tell a story.

    If you can add human conflict to the mix, all the better.

    4. Show, don’t tell

    Memoirists, novelists and journalists are equally familiar with the idea of showing, not telling.

    It’s the art of painting a picture with words. It’s setting the scene. It’s using specific examples to engross the imagination.

    For example: “She put on another pot of hot coffee” is rather generic.

    However, “As she ran out the clock on the last 14 minutes of her 12-hour shift, the waitress reluctantly refilled the industrial coffee pot for perhaps the thousandth time that day” is not only more specific, it also conveys the mood of the scene.

    Another trick is to weave in the five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell — just don’t try to force all of them into the ultimate run-on sentence.

    5. Trust, but verify

    Whether you’re writing a competitive analysis for a business, doing research for your latest book or interviewing a subject for a magazine, you need to carefully evaluate your information sources.

    Err on the side of the reliable, the reputable and the truthful. Stay away from drama and speculation.

    Know the difference between an established news outlet or a qualified subject matter expert and a random online commentator.

    Double-check your facts and vet your sources.

    6. Strategically structure your writing

    Imagine a pyramid.

    Your most important, catchiest and most interesting content belongs at the very top of the pyramid.

    Attention spans are shockingly short — you have mere seconds before your reader moves on.

    Thus, it makes sense to arrange your writing from most important to least important, in case the reader jumps ship halfway through.

    7. Mind the details

    Details matter.

    Names, titles, punctuation, dates, capitalization, citations and other minutiae (can anyone out there spell minutiae without the aid of Spell Check? I can’t.) can make or break your story.

    If you demonstrate that you can handle the small details, you’re more likely to find more work, book deals and future clients.

    Remember that accuracy, paired with consistency, lends credibility.

    8. Aim to stir emotions

    Writers write to connect with people. And people connect via their emotions and their shared experiences.

    Read your writing out loud.

    Does it feel flat and monotone? Try again until the words start coming to life.

    Picture the scene playing out in a movie.

    If you want your writing to have a lasting impact, make it your goal to evoke emotion: amusement, horror, nostalgia, anger, inspiration, or whatever is appropriate for your audience and your writing.

    9. Trim it up

    Throw out anything that doesn’t serve the primary purpose of your writing.

    Sometimes diversions from the topic at hand can provide fodder for another blog, article, or book.

    But if it doesn’t belong, or confuses the narrative, it’s got to go.

    Take it from Mark Twain:

    “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very:’ your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.”

    Extraneous information and commentary weaken your work rather than improve it.   

    10. Focus on the human element

    I love this technique for dealing with data.

    Data byte: According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Americans consumed 140.43 billion gallons of gasoline in 2015.

    So, what? Do a bit of math to bring the point home to your readers.

    Try this: Americans consumed enough gasoline in 2015 to fill more than 212,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

    Now you’ve made an impact and created a visual for your reader.

    Anyone can think and write like a journalist.

    Journalism is essentially the pursuit of truth, and truth can be expressed in innumerable forms: poetry, fiction, art, music, investigatory journalism, cultural commentary, blogging, and children’s books, to name a few.

    Start and end with the search for truth, pay attention to the world around you, and you’re on the right path.

    Trench coat optional.