Writing
To me this is the fun part of all we will learn, not to sound arrogant but this part is where we can feel like gods. I mean, as authors we create life, death, places and times. In some cases, we even create worlds if you’re writing sci-fi. The most important part about this section, the writing is relaxing and clearing your mind. Now vision how you want the reader to see the story. You want the reader to feel it’s them in the story as if they were seeing things through their eyes. Or you want the reader to feel as if they are there hearing it from someone else. Either way it is all in how you choose your words.
For example:
I stood in the doorway of the old Victorian house. I looked around at the beautiful bright polished wood trim and the highly polished wood floor. To my left, decorated with lace curtains and big fluffy cushioned couches and chairs, was the parlor. On my right, hand carved stone laced the front of a fireplace. Chair’s surrounded an oval-shaped coffee table centered in front of the fireplace. In front of me leading to the second floor, curved, as it looped up, was the most beautiful staircase I ever saw. When I stepped forward to the first step the hard soles of my boots clunked on the wood floor. I stopped at the bottom, hesitant to climb the stairs. Suddenly, before my eyes, the stairs started melting, molding into one solid mass, each stair pouring into the other, in a puddle of goo. At my feet the oozing puddle formed a mound and rose to my height. Suddenly, two hands grew out of the molting mass attached to dripping arms of wood and paint. The hands clasped around my throat, squeezing out all of my air. Losing conciseness from lack of air, I didn’t notice the house now was old. Broken wood, chipped paint, and big holes in the walls surrounded me.
Now by changing some words and a little on how we describe things we can give the impression the reader is seeing it through someone else.
For example:
Greg stood in the doorway of the old Victorian house. He looked around at the beautiful bright polished wood trim and the highly polished wood floor. To his left decorated with lace curtains and big fluffy cushioned couches and chairs, was the parlor. On his right, hand carved stone laced the front of a fireplace. Chair’s, surrounded an oval-shaped coffee table centered in front of the fireplace. In front of Greg leading to the second floor, curving as it looped up, was the most beautiful staircase he has ever seen. When Greg stepped forward to the first step, the hard soles of his boots clunked on the wood floor. He stopped at the bottom, hesitant to climb the stairs. Suddenly before his eyes, the stairs started melting, molding into one solid mass, each stair pouring into the other in a puddle of goo. At Greg’s feet the oozing puddle formed a mound and rose to his height. Suddenly, two hands grew out of the molting mass attached to two dripping arms of wood and paint. The hands clasped around his throat squeezing off his air. Losing conciseness from lack of air, Greg didn’t notice the house now was old. Broken wood, chipped paint, and big holes in the walls surrounded Him.
When writing you want to put the reader there, but don’t bore them, painting a picture without being too, or over descriptive. An author needs to stimulate the reader let their brain work a bit.
For example:
The yellow rope around Greg’s neck, tied to a heavily barked oak tree branch left dark purplish blue bruises.
Here in this sentence we got our point across Greg is hanging from a tree. Two things with this, to descriptive, we know what color rope is so let that be filled in by the reader and trust me the brain will automatically add on. Second, without saying it we know Greg’s unfortunate situation. So let’s see if it works better like this.
The rope around Greg’s neck, tied to an oak tree branch left large bruises.
See the same image just letting the reader fill in the details.
Summing it all up: all I’m saying here is in whatever voice you write in, whatever way you write, keep this in your mind, “Write it as if you are the reader.” If you remember that no matter if you successful or unsuccessful you will have written a master piece. Remember my motto:
“I write to entertain the world one page at a time.”
Ok, back on track, so far to this point we should still be adding to our outline if you’re using one. We should know what type book we are writing and for what age group and have an idea to write about. We also should have our word processor configured to manuscript settings.
Every story has three parts no matter what you write. Part one, or beginning, introduces to the subject of the story. Part two, brings us to the reason why we wrote the book. And of cores the third part is the conclusion.
Ok, let’s look at the example at the beginning of this lesson and say it’s our story we are writing.
Right off I gave you the main character and the subject the house, then I give the problem or the reason of the story the house has unnatural forces in it. From here to the end will be the solution. Same works for non-fiction, let’s say we are writing about the hazards of cigarettes,
The majority of lung cancer victims in the world are due to cigarette smoke.
Here again I gave you a problem and a subject right at the beginning, so we can roll on with other cigarette causing problems, until we get to our goal, which should be a solution. So here is an equation; Solution=conclusion. In this case we might talk about all the quit aids and support groups.
The other important thing is try not to use real big fancy words unless your non-fiction requires it. If the reader has to stop to look up a word it will break the flow and their concentration.
What we need to touch on now, is writing as if the story is taking place now, again it’s in the way you word things. Like in the opening sentence of the first example in this lesson
I stood in the doorway of the old Victorian house.
That gives the reader of the story the sense that it is happening now. Let’s change it to already happened.
I was standing in the doorway of the old Victorian house.
With the change of words it gives the feel of it already happened
Lesson overview:
Decide what voice your writing in (how you want the reader to see the story)
Have the subject, (beginning), the problem, (middle), the solution, (conclusion), solution=conclusion.
Use descriptive words. But not too descriptive,
Don’t use large, big words (unless necessary)
Write as if the story were happening now
Thank you, see you for lesson four.
