Comments on: 4 ways to be a better writer

By: larak

larak — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:36:52 +0000

Thanks, Jamie – I’m installing it this weekend. And I’ll Tweet you about this too, to be sure you know I saw it!

By: Jamie Grove - How Not To Write

Jamie Grove - How Not To Write — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 01:23:14 +0000

@Lara I can empathize! By the way, you ought to get the subscribe to comments plugin installed. Just happened by this evening. Otherwise I would have missed your comment!

By: larak

larak — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:45:49 +0000

@Jamie, thanks for the visit and for your great and inspiring blog. Now if I can just get myself to write in this blog every day. My goal is three times per week but even that is hard at times!

@Debba, thanks for coming by – I absolutely love your Girlfriendology site. I look forward to meeting you as well and I’ll see if I can come up with anything witty or wise for your presentation. I’m still new at this blogging stuff and I haven’t tried my hand at podcasting yet.

By: larak

larak — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:59:36 +0000

Leo, that is awesome advice – and marvelously well written, I might add! Thanks so much for sharing that here. By the way, we haven’t seen much of you on Twitter lately. I’m guessing you’ve either been traveling or very busy or both!

By: Debba

Debba — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:09:15 +0000

Lara – first, thanks for following me on Twitter. Backatcha! And, I look forward to meeting you at PodCampOhio next week! I’m doing a session for women in new media. Any great lessons/thoughts from blogging/podcasts that you’d like to share?

Great blog on writing. I love the ‘how to’ exercises – fun ideas!

See you in Columbus on Saturday – Debba / http://www.girlfriendology.com

By: Jamie Grove - How Not To Write

Jamie Grove - How Not To Write — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:42:16 +0000

I keep writing by sitting down each day and doing it. That pretty much sums up my method and there’s no surer way to write like writing.

Thanks for the link, Lara! All four tips in this post are great.

By: Leo Bottary

Leo Bottary — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:21:27 +0000

Lara, in addition to what you all have said, let me offer an excerpt from a post I wrote on this subject:

How many times have you picked up the newspaper and read beautifully crafted letters to the editor? In most cases, they’re not written by professional writers, but by everyday people who understand what they want to say and are passionate enough to put it in writing. They’re naturally persuasive. They tend to use the active voice and be unequivocally clear.

In most cases, a badly written piece isn’t bad because the writer didn’t understand the rules, it’s bad because the writer either didn’t know what he was talking about or didn’t really understand why he was writing the piece in the first place.
Write with understanding, conviction and purpose. Learn the rules and learn when and how to break them. But more importantly, be curious. Ask good questions. Listen. Formulate clear strategies for solving problems. Write to your heart’s content. Use sentence fragments! Then practice, practice, practice!

By: Sameer Vasta

Sameer Vasta — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 10:47:15 +0000

Hadn’t noticed before, but now I’m blushing! I’m truly flattered, thank you.

By: larak

larak — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 02:58:53 +0000

@Alisha, thanks for your comment and I hope you like those links.

@David, I appreciate your insights on this as well and I certainly enjoy your writing.

@Catalysta, did we just find yet another thing we have in common? I had no idea you were a reader. I just finished my first Jodi Picoult book, Change of Heart, and loved it – what else have you read by her? As for J.K. Rowling, she and her characters will always have a special place in my heart.

Nate, thanks for the visit and if you do join Twitter, please look for me @LaraK.

Sameer, you are too kind as always. And did you happen to notice you were one of my writing inspiration links in this post?

You guys rock. Thanks for being part of this blog.

By: Sameer Vasta

Sameer Vasta — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 02:23:48 +0000

Fantastic post Lara, and I’m extremely glad you put reading on that list. Too many times I’ve seen tips that say “write, write, and write” but forget to mention that the best way to get inspiration and learn about best practices is to read.

And not only read the best, of course. Read everything. Read blogs, articles, books, good and bad. There’s no end to what you can learn, even from the most dismal of pieces of text! =)