10 top writing tips and the psychology behind them

ESC Online Writing Center The writing process is never done--it is only finished when you need to hand something in or voluntarily discontinue working. If you were to pick up a piece of writing that you completed two years ago, you undoubtedly would see ways that you could improve it. Two years later, you could do the same thing. How to Write with Style: Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Keys to the Power of the Written Word Find a Subject You Care About Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. It is this genuine caring, and not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style. I am not urging you to write a novel, by the way — although I would not be sorry if you wrote one, provided you genuinely cared about something.

5 Ways to Get Rid of Your Damn Empty Modifiers I discussed the need to get rid of empty emphatics when I gave you 8 words to seek and destroy in your writing, but just saying that you should get rid of a thing doesn't say much about the right way to do so. Today I'm going to show you a few of my favorite ways to get rid of your empty modifiers. What exactly is an empty modifier? Data Mining Novels Reveals the Six Basic Emotional Arcs of Storytelling Back in 1995, Kurt Vonnegut gave a lecture in which he described his theory about the shapes of stories. In the process, he plotted several examples on a blackboard. “There is no reason why the simple shapes of stories can’t be fed into computers,” he said. 8 Words to Seek and Destroy in Your Writing Creating powerful prose requires killing off the words, phrases, and sentences that gum up your text. While a critical eye and good judgment are key in this process, some terms almost always get in the way. Here are eight words or phrases that should be hunted down in your story and deleted with extreme prejudice. "Suddenly"

Kids explain how banned and challenged books helped them and even saved their lives / Boing Boing By Joan Bertin and Millie Davis Banned Books Week has come and gone but we can be sure of one thing: the coming year will be marked by challenges to the same kinds of books that were controversial this year, and in years past. report this ad Controversies over what books are taught in class or shelved in the school library typically start when an adult—usually a parent or community member—feels that a book selected by teachers and librarians is inappropriate, offensive or objectionable. Dissertation Writing: The Importance of Alignment By: Dr. Ron Jones As an instructor, one of the greatest challenges is teaching students the importance of directly addressing the topic, discussion questions, or assignment. Aligning the response with the topic would appear to be a simple task, yet my experience in the classroom indicates the process is difficult for many students. Personal opinions take precedent over proven facts and well-grounded theories. Rambling and off-topic remarks replace intently focused writing concentrated on the assignment subject matter.

10 books that will make you a better writer (and why) Last week, I wrote about 25 habits that will make you a better writer. This week, I thought — let’s dive into books. After twenty-plus years writing, I’ve collected some resources that I absolutely couldn’t do with out. I love borrowing books. But there are some books that a writer really should have in their own personal for-keeps libraries. Free E-Book : Can YOU Read Me Now? How to Use Readability Formulas to Write for Your Target Audience What causes low literacy or poor reading with many readers? Statistics show that many adult readers are not literate enough to comprehend most text above a fifth-grade reading-level. This may be true, but it is not the reader’s fault for failing to comprehend certain texts – rather it is the writer’s fault for failing to write for his readers.

Iraqi Refugee Empowers Youth To Share Their Stories With 'Narratio' When Ahmed Badr was 8 years old, his family fled Baghdad in the midst of the Iraq War. Writing helped him process his experience, so he started the website Narratio to give other young people the same opportunity. Ariel Edelman hide caption Secondary Sources (aka How to Cite a Source You Found in Another Source) by Timothy McAdoo You’ve probably heard that you should avoid secondary sources when possible. It’s true—if you find great information being quoted or paraphrased somewhere, it’s well worth your effort to track down the original source so you can read it for yourself and therefore cite it directly.