The Insanely Simple Tip That Might Make You Mad

ONE OF THE SIMPLEST TIPS FOR BETTER WRITING INVOLVES…NOT WRITING

Do you want to be a better writer?

This is the simplest possible tip you will ever get on how to achieve that. 

It’s so simple, it might make you angry. 

You might even lash out at this piece of writing and hurl it across the room against the wall. 

Since you are probably reading this on a high-priced digital device of some kind, such a reaction is not in the best interests of said device. 


If you want to be a better writer, do this:

Become a better reader. 

It doesn’t matter what kind of writing you want to do. Reading with an analytical eye helps you make your own writing better. 

This is especially useful (and dare I say easy?) when it comes to dialogue. 

Some writers required to create radio read this screed. I know they feel themselves challenged by the task of putting words into the mouths of their characters. 


“But isn’t listening to well-written dialogue important?”

Yes.

But so is seeing it on the page.

(We’re talking about the script page. If you're writing scripts, reading literary dialogue is something else altogether.)

Reading anything with an analytical eye helps reveal things like the structure, pacing and word choices that make writing come alive like Frankenstein’s monster on a thunderstorm night charged with verbal lightning. 

That was a stupid sentence. And reading it, you can get a quick lesson in how not to behave on the written page.


Does your job require writing to persuade?

If so, reading the writing that persuades you is a good first step.

It’s how you hone the blade of that pen that is ostensibly mightier than the sword. 

And something else happens when you read good writing: where before there may have been only a fear of the blank page, you find something new and thrilling.

You’ll feel the thrill of motivation. 

Read. Write. Be free. 
Cheers,

Blaine Parker
Your Lean, Mean Creative Director in Park City
 
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