by: Scott Lindsay
The point of view in any story is important because it provides a guide to manage the execution of your story. Most works of fiction use one point of view although a second perspective can be brought into the story for a short period of time.
Third Person Perspective is the most common method of conveying a work of fiction. This method allows the narrator to have at least limited omniscience. The narrator has limited access to the knowledge and feelings of the characters in the story and can take the reader from one character setting to another easily. There is no questioning of how the narrator knows so much about each individual; it is a premise that is simply accepted by most readers.
Unlike first person perspective that conveys the story from the perspective of a cast member, third person perspective narration does not allow the narrator to actually participate in the action. They are simply the mechanism that operates outside the story to bring the various story threads together.
If a writer were to give the narrator full access to all feelings and thoughts of the cast of characters the story would be a little flat because nothing would be left to the imagination.
Third person narratives can be spotted by the predominate us of words such as they, he, she and it. The narrator talks about others - never about himself.
The least common perspective is Second Person Perspective. Very few novels can utilize this approach throughout an entire work.
This type of fiction relies on words like you and you're. The use of this type of perspective either assumes you will connect with the story as if it is written to you or that you will understand you are reading a private story written to and about someone else. It is rare to find a full manuscript that uses this perspective although an Epistolary Novel such the C.S. Lewis masterpiece “Screwtape Letters” may likely be considered second person perspective in its entirety.
The trouble many writers get into is an unintentional shift in perspective. This can be used effectively under certain circumstances, however the shift in perspective needs a breaking point to allow the reader to gain some understanding that a shift has taken place. Without a break to qualify the shift in point of view the story becomes confusing because the reader has to work hard at discovering who is actually telling the story.
About The Author
Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of FaithWriters (http://www.faithwriters.com) and many other web projects. FaithWriters has grown to become one of the largest online destinations for Christian writers. Please visit the website at: http://www.faithwriters.com.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Readers: Are They Involved?
by: Scott Lindsay
There are two specific, yet lofty goals writers strive for every time they commit words to paper. That goal is to write in such a way as to draw their readers into the written word.
If this goal is in fictional writing the author wants the reader to become so absorbed in the story that they are both satisfied, yet sad to see the story end.
If this goal is in non-fiction the writer accomplishes the objective by relating details in a way that leaves the reader interested in the subject and with a desire to learn more.
For the successful fiction writer the term most often applied to this principle is Active Participation. When a consumer steps up the book display they are looking for certain things such as cover design, color schemes and just enough information to allow them to make their choice in thirty seconds or less. Once the reader has the book in hand they desperately want to be an active participant in the work. They want to identify with your characters and involve themselves in the plot line. They want stay up till 2 o'clock in the morning loosing themselves in a world you created. They simply want to know if you are going to be able to make that possible for them.
For the non-fiction writer the goal is to connect the reader to Active Learning. This process has seen non-fiction books include bullet points, ‘did-you-know’ segments and a link between facts and famous individuals that were involved. School textbooks are full of color and sidebars as they try to connect with students to bridge the gap between factual information to innovative ways to encourage active learning.
It is possible for both Active Participants and Active Learners to approach the written word with an inborn desire to learn and/or participate in the storyline. In this scenario the majority of the work is already done.
If a student comes to a textbook with a refusal to learn, then the best textbooks available may not be able to break through the student's self-imposed learning barrier. Similarly, if an individual purchases a novel with an 'impress me' mentality and are only interested in finding any inconsistency or flaw they may have difficulty participating in the work of fiction. Then again, they didn't really come to participate.
Ultimately what this means to the writer is there is a need to work hard in the removal of any stumbling block in an effort to allow your readers to become the active participant and active learner they want to be.
About The Author
Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of FaithWriters (http://www.faithwriters.com) and many other web projects. FaithWriters has grown to become one of the largest online destinations for Christian writers. Please visit the website at: http://www.faithwriters.com.
There are two specific, yet lofty goals writers strive for every time they commit words to paper. That goal is to write in such a way as to draw their readers into the written word.
If this goal is in fictional writing the author wants the reader to become so absorbed in the story that they are both satisfied, yet sad to see the story end.
If this goal is in non-fiction the writer accomplishes the objective by relating details in a way that leaves the reader interested in the subject and with a desire to learn more.
For the successful fiction writer the term most often applied to this principle is Active Participation. When a consumer steps up the book display they are looking for certain things such as cover design, color schemes and just enough information to allow them to make their choice in thirty seconds or less. Once the reader has the book in hand they desperately want to be an active participant in the work. They want to identify with your characters and involve themselves in the plot line. They want stay up till 2 o'clock in the morning loosing themselves in a world you created. They simply want to know if you are going to be able to make that possible for them.
For the non-fiction writer the goal is to connect the reader to Active Learning. This process has seen non-fiction books include bullet points, ‘did-you-know’ segments and a link between facts and famous individuals that were involved. School textbooks are full of color and sidebars as they try to connect with students to bridge the gap between factual information to innovative ways to encourage active learning.
It is possible for both Active Participants and Active Learners to approach the written word with an inborn desire to learn and/or participate in the storyline. In this scenario the majority of the work is already done.
If a student comes to a textbook with a refusal to learn, then the best textbooks available may not be able to break through the student's self-imposed learning barrier. Similarly, if an individual purchases a novel with an 'impress me' mentality and are only interested in finding any inconsistency or flaw they may have difficulty participating in the work of fiction. Then again, they didn't really come to participate.
Ultimately what this means to the writer is there is a need to work hard in the removal of any stumbling block in an effort to allow your readers to become the active participant and active learner they want to be.
About The Author
Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of FaithWriters (http://www.faithwriters.com) and many other web projects. FaithWriters has grown to become one of the largest online destinations for Christian writers. Please visit the website at: http://www.faithwriters.com.
First Time Novelist Faux Pau
by: Scott Lindsay
Those who venture into fiction writing often fall prey to certain avoidable, yet highly normal faux pau's with their first book.
Many of these novels are grand experiments. Often chapters unfold without advance direction or character notebook, sometimes there is a multitude of point of view shifts and there is often a desire to try to pack as much into the story as possible.
One of the key difficulties for new novelists is to track down inconsistencies in their work. For instance if you mention that your character grew up in Ohio it is bad form to mention Chicago as their hometown later in the novel. This can be a somewhat innocuous detail in the book and most people will probably missed it, but the inconsistency is there nonetheless and may detract from the flow of the story is the reader questions the veracity of the claim.
Most authors believe that because the work is fictional the details are less important, but as an author you are creating an entire world for your readers and that world has to become as real as the world in which they live. Since novels have a unique escapist quality to them the last thing you want is to shut down your reader's link to the book because they are stumbling over inconsistencies.
Another point where first time novelists get into trouble is the addition of gratuitous violence or other points of gratuity. The author often wrongly believes that if they can shock the reader it will cause the book to be more memorable for the reader.
Many readers simply see this as a means to mask a weak storyline. This is not to say that there is no place for violence in a novel, but it must be in context of a superior storyline - not as a means of increasing the chances that your reader will recommend the book to their friends.
Most readers see gratuitous elements in a novel for what they really are and this knowledge provides an instant ‘turn-off’ factor. If you have someone who is willing to read through your manuscript ask him or her to check for anything they consider gratuitous and any inconsistencies they may encounter.
Avoiding a couple of significant potholes on the road to publishing your first novel will provide an advantage with both publisher and reader alike.
About The Author
Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of FaithWriters (http://www.faithwriters.com) and many other web projects. FaithWriters has grown to become one of the largest online destinations for Christian writers. Please visit the website at: http://www.faithwriters.com.
Those who venture into fiction writing often fall prey to certain avoidable, yet highly normal faux pau's with their first book.
Many of these novels are grand experiments. Often chapters unfold without advance direction or character notebook, sometimes there is a multitude of point of view shifts and there is often a desire to try to pack as much into the story as possible.
One of the key difficulties for new novelists is to track down inconsistencies in their work. For instance if you mention that your character grew up in Ohio it is bad form to mention Chicago as their hometown later in the novel. This can be a somewhat innocuous detail in the book and most people will probably missed it, but the inconsistency is there nonetheless and may detract from the flow of the story is the reader questions the veracity of the claim.
Most authors believe that because the work is fictional the details are less important, but as an author you are creating an entire world for your readers and that world has to become as real as the world in which they live. Since novels have a unique escapist quality to them the last thing you want is to shut down your reader's link to the book because they are stumbling over inconsistencies.
Another point where first time novelists get into trouble is the addition of gratuitous violence or other points of gratuity. The author often wrongly believes that if they can shock the reader it will cause the book to be more memorable for the reader.
Many readers simply see this as a means to mask a weak storyline. This is not to say that there is no place for violence in a novel, but it must be in context of a superior storyline - not as a means of increasing the chances that your reader will recommend the book to their friends.
Most readers see gratuitous elements in a novel for what they really are and this knowledge provides an instant ‘turn-off’ factor. If you have someone who is willing to read through your manuscript ask him or her to check for anything they consider gratuitous and any inconsistencies they may encounter.
Avoiding a couple of significant potholes on the road to publishing your first novel will provide an advantage with both publisher and reader alike.
About The Author
Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of FaithWriters (http://www.faithwriters.com) and many other web projects. FaithWriters has grown to become one of the largest online destinations for Christian writers. Please visit the website at: http://www.faithwriters.com.
Writing & Publishing Tips: How To Get a Top Literary Agent & Sign That Coveted 6 Figure Deal
by: Susan Harrow
Top literary agents get about 400-1000 unsolicited queries every month from hopeful book authors. Publishing houses sometimes juggle 5000. Most of my private clients and participants in my seminar, How To Get A Six-Figure Book Advance, ask me “how is an author supposed to get an agent’s attention when there is so much competition?”
First of all, don’t write a book -- write a book proposal. Publishers buy ideas not books. To capture a reputable literary agent’s attention you’ll need to show that you’re a media star, or a star in the making. Good writing can be bought but star power can’t.
Here are 5 more tips to landing a top literary agent & a six-figure advance:
1. Do your research.
Literary agents specialize in very specific interests. For example, my agent loves tearjerkers but won’t take on books that involve children in peril. You want an agent who has represented books similar to yours, who sells books on a regular basis, who is devoted to you, and has the time to give you a little guidance through the literary labyrinth.
Sometimes a newer, less experienced literary agent who is hungry for business is more dedicated and has more time to spend with you than an established one with a reputable cadre of authors. I recommend 2 ways to find the literary agent right for you:
- Look in the acknowledgements of books similar to your topic. A happy author always thanks his literary agent. Once you’ve located your ideal agents become familiar with their tastes, learn everything you can about their interests, pet peeves and preferences, and review their websites for submission guidelines. Show that knowledge in your query letter or initial phone conversation.
- Read Publisher's Weekly, Publisher’s Lunch, and Variety to see who sold what and for how much. You will get a sense of an agent’s sensibility and be able to speak knowledgeably about the types of books they prefer when you know what’s happening in the industry in general and in your area of expertise in particular. You’ll know more than most people who submit proposals as you’ll be apprised of books that aren’t even published yet and movie deals in the making. And you’ll get a sense of market trends.
2. Write a book proposal that reads like a thriller.
After you’ve located the agents you want to approach, the next step is to complete your book proposal. Once interested by your call or query letter the very best literary agents move at hyper speed. They’ll want to see your book proposal--now. They’ll either ask you to Fed Ex or email it.
There is a real art to writing a best-selling book proposal that makes the literary agent you’ve chosen say, “I want this person as a client”. To make your book proposal read in one sitting you’ll want to write in short paragraphs with strong headlines. Be sure to give the chosen agent an immediate impression of how your book will read by writing the proposal in the same style as your book.
Find unusual, quirky, provocative tidbits about your subject that will entice the literary agent to say, “Wow, I never knew this.” Imagine the kind of tips that a terrific magazine article would include. When an editor at a top New York publishing house is reading your book proposal they are thinking, what kind of media exposure will we be able to get for this book? Can we get magazine feature articles, newspaper pieces, radio shows? Will the subject matter and the author interest the producers of Good Morning America, the Today Show, CNN, or Oprah?
3. Prove you have a platform.
The one thing that thrills a New York publisher the most is your platform. Your platform is simply your reach. How many people are influenced by your ideas worldwide? To simplify this even further, a publisher wants to know one thing and one thing only (once they are interested in the subject matter of your book), and that is...how many books are you going to sell and to whom. You’ll need to demonstrate that you’re a great media guest, that you have an audience eager to snap up your books and that you have a proven track record for selling your books or wares.
4. Reveal how your past performance predicts future behavior.
Map out each venue and determine how many people are in attendance and how many of those people will buy your book. Include workshops, seminars, fairs, media appearances, book signings, keynotes, teleseminars, webinars, events, newsletter lists, blogs, partnerships etc. Quantify everything in great detail. Estimate and base potential sales on past sales you’ve completed.
5. Show you are the one.
Show that there is a clear need for your book and that you are the only one who can write it. In other words what problem are you solving and why are you the undisputed expert? What gap in the market are you filling? One of my clients whose topic was about how to be the very best at what you do and who you are, had a black belt, was a concert violinist and had given seminars at The White House. She walked her talk, and lived her words. You need to have top-notch skills in order to gain the interest of a high caliber literary agent.
Follow these tips, and you can land a top literary agent and a six-figure deal. I hope to see your name on the New York Times bestseller list!
About The Author
Media coach & marketing strategist, Susan Harrow, can help you get paid $100,000 or more for your book. For over 17 years, she has helped speakers, authors and entrepreneurs get 6-figure book advances. In her book, Get a Six Figure Book Advance, Susan explains the 15 steps to making big money on your next book proposal. Buy it now and receive $450 worth of free bonuses at: http://prsecretstore.com/sixfigurebookproposaljanal.html
Top literary agents get about 400-1000 unsolicited queries every month from hopeful book authors. Publishing houses sometimes juggle 5000. Most of my private clients and participants in my seminar, How To Get A Six-Figure Book Advance, ask me “how is an author supposed to get an agent’s attention when there is so much competition?”
First of all, don’t write a book -- write a book proposal. Publishers buy ideas not books. To capture a reputable literary agent’s attention you’ll need to show that you’re a media star, or a star in the making. Good writing can be bought but star power can’t.
Here are 5 more tips to landing a top literary agent & a six-figure advance:
1. Do your research.
Literary agents specialize in very specific interests. For example, my agent loves tearjerkers but won’t take on books that involve children in peril. You want an agent who has represented books similar to yours, who sells books on a regular basis, who is devoted to you, and has the time to give you a little guidance through the literary labyrinth.
Sometimes a newer, less experienced literary agent who is hungry for business is more dedicated and has more time to spend with you than an established one with a reputable cadre of authors. I recommend 2 ways to find the literary agent right for you:
- Look in the acknowledgements of books similar to your topic. A happy author always thanks his literary agent. Once you’ve located your ideal agents become familiar with their tastes, learn everything you can about their interests, pet peeves and preferences, and review their websites for submission guidelines. Show that knowledge in your query letter or initial phone conversation.
- Read Publisher's Weekly, Publisher’s Lunch, and Variety to see who sold what and for how much. You will get a sense of an agent’s sensibility and be able to speak knowledgeably about the types of books they prefer when you know what’s happening in the industry in general and in your area of expertise in particular. You’ll know more than most people who submit proposals as you’ll be apprised of books that aren’t even published yet and movie deals in the making. And you’ll get a sense of market trends.
2. Write a book proposal that reads like a thriller.
After you’ve located the agents you want to approach, the next step is to complete your book proposal. Once interested by your call or query letter the very best literary agents move at hyper speed. They’ll want to see your book proposal--now. They’ll either ask you to Fed Ex or email it.
There is a real art to writing a best-selling book proposal that makes the literary agent you’ve chosen say, “I want this person as a client”. To make your book proposal read in one sitting you’ll want to write in short paragraphs with strong headlines. Be sure to give the chosen agent an immediate impression of how your book will read by writing the proposal in the same style as your book.
Find unusual, quirky, provocative tidbits about your subject that will entice the literary agent to say, “Wow, I never knew this.” Imagine the kind of tips that a terrific magazine article would include. When an editor at a top New York publishing house is reading your book proposal they are thinking, what kind of media exposure will we be able to get for this book? Can we get magazine feature articles, newspaper pieces, radio shows? Will the subject matter and the author interest the producers of Good Morning America, the Today Show, CNN, or Oprah?
3. Prove you have a platform.
The one thing that thrills a New York publisher the most is your platform. Your platform is simply your reach. How many people are influenced by your ideas worldwide? To simplify this even further, a publisher wants to know one thing and one thing only (once they are interested in the subject matter of your book), and that is...how many books are you going to sell and to whom. You’ll need to demonstrate that you’re a great media guest, that you have an audience eager to snap up your books and that you have a proven track record for selling your books or wares.
4. Reveal how your past performance predicts future behavior.
Map out each venue and determine how many people are in attendance and how many of those people will buy your book. Include workshops, seminars, fairs, media appearances, book signings, keynotes, teleseminars, webinars, events, newsletter lists, blogs, partnerships etc. Quantify everything in great detail. Estimate and base potential sales on past sales you’ve completed.
5. Show you are the one.
Show that there is a clear need for your book and that you are the only one who can write it. In other words what problem are you solving and why are you the undisputed expert? What gap in the market are you filling? One of my clients whose topic was about how to be the very best at what you do and who you are, had a black belt, was a concert violinist and had given seminars at The White House. She walked her talk, and lived her words. You need to have top-notch skills in order to gain the interest of a high caliber literary agent.
Follow these tips, and you can land a top literary agent and a six-figure deal. I hope to see your name on the New York Times bestseller list!
About The Author
Media coach & marketing strategist, Susan Harrow, can help you get paid $100,000 or more for your book. For over 17 years, she has helped speakers, authors and entrepreneurs get 6-figure book advances. In her book, Get a Six Figure Book Advance, Susan explains the 15 steps to making big money on your next book proposal. Buy it now and receive $450 worth of free bonuses at: http://prsecretstore.com/sixfigurebookproposaljanal.html
Writing Tip: Why Nouns and Verbs Are Your Friends
by: Lisa Silverman
"The wearily handsome, nervous, stubble-chinned man slowly and carefully got out of bed when he heard the soft, mysterious sound of footsteps in his apartment."
OR
"The ex-con bolted up, rubbed his eyes and then the stubble on his chin, and crept out of bed. Those footsteps didn’t belong in his apartment."
Look at the above sentences, and see if you can figure out why the second example is better written than the first. If you still don’t know, look above that. At the risk of stating the obvious: nouns and verbs are the backbone of any sentence, and thus of all writing. I could have made my title really long and added “. . . and Adjectives and Adverbs Are Your Enemies,” but I like to keep it short.
It’s not only about eliminating adjectives and adverbs so that your writing contains few words that aren’t nouns and verbs. After all, if we did that to the first example, we’d be left with:
"The man got out of bed when he heard the sound of footsteps in his apartment."
Not very exciting, is it? That’s why it’s important to focus your writing not only on nouns and verbs, but on interesting nouns and verbs. I began my second example with “The ex-con,” but of course, I’m inventing a sentence that has no manuscript surrounding it--no context. If we’ve already met the character, use his name or a more descriptive noun such as mine. If you’re introducing a new character, use the best noun possible. “The businessman” would evoke a completely different image in your readers’ minds, and it would be a stronger image than “The blond, well-groomed, middle-aged man.”
Why is one noun stronger than three adjectives (and one verb stronger than three adverbs)? Sure, we can picture a guy who’s blond, well-groomed, and middle-aged, and we might guess from that description that he’s a businessman. We can picture a “wearily handsome, nervous, stubble-chinned man” and perhaps guess that he’s an ex-con. But using the noun rather than a string of adjectives accomplishes two important things: First, it adds action to the character’s description. “Ex-con” not only calls forth a set of physical attributes, but also, by definition, tells you something about the guy’s life outside of this moment: he’s trying to recover from his time in the slammer and go straight. A “businessman” probably looks a certain way, and presumably spends his days doing business.
Then again, maybe the guy isn’t trying to go straight. Maybe he wants to return to a life of crime. Which brings me to the second advantage: involving the reader’s mind in the storytelling. If you string together a list of adjectives, you’re feeding a character to your readers without allowing them to draw their own pictures. Part of the fun--and the fascination--of fiction is the fact that everyone who turns the final page of a book has read a different one. And the more you allow people to be cocreators of your characters, your settings, etc., the more enveloped in your novel’s fictional world they will become.
Or in your nonfiction book’s world--nonfiction writers must leave less to the reader’s imagination, but editing using this principle will make nonfiction stronger as well. As with any other tips, customize it to your writing. It’s also, as I mentioned, about brevity. I don’t need to explain why “crept out of bed” beats “slowly and carefully got out of bed.”
Of course, adjectives and adverbs have their places. Otherwise languages wouldn’t contain so many. You might even find a few in this article (only a few). Again, customize this editing technique to your writing. Read a few pages and see if you find yourself using dull nouns such as “man” or “thing” a lot--chances are they’re surrounded by adjectives. If not, the potential book sitting in front of you may be dull indeed. Don’t go crazy with your thesaurus looking for obscure nouns to replace “man,” but do use this technique as a way to vary word choice. And, if you don’t have a thesaurus, for god’s sake, get one. The thesaurus in Microsoft Word, or anywhere online, won’t hold a candle to the old-fashioned bound kind.
Replace adjectives with more interesting, descriptive nouns, and watch your writing become streamlined, subtly evocative, laced with intrigue, varied in word choice… Oops, those are all adjective phrases. Just think of this noun: “bestseller.”
"The wearily handsome, nervous, stubble-chinned man slowly and carefully got out of bed when he heard the soft, mysterious sound of footsteps in his apartment."
OR
"The ex-con bolted up, rubbed his eyes and then the stubble on his chin, and crept out of bed. Those footsteps didn’t belong in his apartment."
Look at the above sentences, and see if you can figure out why the second example is better written than the first. If you still don’t know, look above that. At the risk of stating the obvious: nouns and verbs are the backbone of any sentence, and thus of all writing. I could have made my title really long and added “. . . and Adjectives and Adverbs Are Your Enemies,” but I like to keep it short.
It’s not only about eliminating adjectives and adverbs so that your writing contains few words that aren’t nouns and verbs. After all, if we did that to the first example, we’d be left with:
"The man got out of bed when he heard the sound of footsteps in his apartment."
Not very exciting, is it? That’s why it’s important to focus your writing not only on nouns and verbs, but on interesting nouns and verbs. I began my second example with “The ex-con,” but of course, I’m inventing a sentence that has no manuscript surrounding it--no context. If we’ve already met the character, use his name or a more descriptive noun such as mine. If you’re introducing a new character, use the best noun possible. “The businessman” would evoke a completely different image in your readers’ minds, and it would be a stronger image than “The blond, well-groomed, middle-aged man.”
Why is one noun stronger than three adjectives (and one verb stronger than three adverbs)? Sure, we can picture a guy who’s blond, well-groomed, and middle-aged, and we might guess from that description that he’s a businessman. We can picture a “wearily handsome, nervous, stubble-chinned man” and perhaps guess that he’s an ex-con. But using the noun rather than a string of adjectives accomplishes two important things: First, it adds action to the character’s description. “Ex-con” not only calls forth a set of physical attributes, but also, by definition, tells you something about the guy’s life outside of this moment: he’s trying to recover from his time in the slammer and go straight. A “businessman” probably looks a certain way, and presumably spends his days doing business.
Then again, maybe the guy isn’t trying to go straight. Maybe he wants to return to a life of crime. Which brings me to the second advantage: involving the reader’s mind in the storytelling. If you string together a list of adjectives, you’re feeding a character to your readers without allowing them to draw their own pictures. Part of the fun--and the fascination--of fiction is the fact that everyone who turns the final page of a book has read a different one. And the more you allow people to be cocreators of your characters, your settings, etc., the more enveloped in your novel’s fictional world they will become.
Or in your nonfiction book’s world--nonfiction writers must leave less to the reader’s imagination, but editing using this principle will make nonfiction stronger as well. As with any other tips, customize it to your writing. It’s also, as I mentioned, about brevity. I don’t need to explain why “crept out of bed” beats “slowly and carefully got out of bed.”
Of course, adjectives and adverbs have their places. Otherwise languages wouldn’t contain so many. You might even find a few in this article (only a few). Again, customize this editing technique to your writing. Read a few pages and see if you find yourself using dull nouns such as “man” or “thing” a lot--chances are they’re surrounded by adjectives. If not, the potential book sitting in front of you may be dull indeed. Don’t go crazy with your thesaurus looking for obscure nouns to replace “man,” but do use this technique as a way to vary word choice. And, if you don’t have a thesaurus, for god’s sake, get one. The thesaurus in Microsoft Word, or anywhere online, won’t hold a candle to the old-fashioned bound kind.
Replace adjectives with more interesting, descriptive nouns, and watch your writing become streamlined, subtly evocative, laced with intrigue, varied in word choice… Oops, those are all adjective phrases. Just think of this noun: “bestseller.”
About The Author
Lisa Silverman is a freelance book editor and works in the copyediting department at one of New York's most prestigious literary publishing houses. She has also worked as a ghostwriter and a literary agent representing both book authors and screenwriters. She founded http://www.BeYourOwnEditor.com in order to provide writers with free advice on both writing and the publishing business.
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