RULE 1
Never use too many adjectives and adverbs in your writing. This can be very wordy and nauseating to the reader.

RULE 2
Never use a $20.00 word if a 10 cent word will do. Keep it simple and natural. Do not overwrite.

RULE 3
Mean what you write and write what you mean. Be clear and concise..

RULE 4
Write with strong nouns and verbs. Colourful, tough nouns and verbs make good writing.

RULE 5
Avoid dull words like pretty, nice, beautiful, weird, good, a little, sort of, big, kind of, and very.

RULE 6
Avoid overuse of the verb TO BE in all its tenses. De-emphasize the "BE" verb!

He was not an honest person. The dishonest person swept into the room.

This lawyer is talented. This talented lawyer argued the case successfully.

RULE 7
Be careful when using the thesaurus. Synonyms may have slightly different meanings or connotations than the word you are looking for.

Rule 8
The verb "said" is overused at times. See the list below for some other ways of saying "said."

responded
retorted

shouted
mumbled

laughed
replied

joked
answered

insisted
agreed

cried
begged

screamed
pleaded

trembled
quaked

preached
dictated



Some quotations on writing

  • There are few things, apparently, more helpful to a writer than having once been a weird little kid. - Katherine Paterson.

  • Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly. -ROBERT F. KENNEDY, To Seek a Newer World.

  • If you want a place in the sun, you've got to expect a few blisters. - Anonymous

  • I've done as many as eighty drafts of one poem . . . I've found students shocked to learn that it can take me three years to finish a poem. - CAROLYN FORCHE, poet, quoted in The Writing Business: A Poet & Writers Handbook

  • "I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead." - Mark Twain

  • Being a writer is like having homework every night for the rest of your life. - Lawrence Kasdan

  • You can't rely on inspiration. I don't even believe in inspiration. I just believe in working. - David Long

  • I write for the same reason I breathe, because if I didn't, I would die. - Isaac Asimov

  • Successful writers are not the ones who write the best sentences. They are the ones who keep writing. They are the ones who discover what is most important and strangest and most pleasurable in themselves, and keep believing in the value of their work, despite the difficulties. - Bonnie Friedman