How to Improve Your Writing Style, Part 1
When it comes to style, it seems like some people just have it, and well, some don’t.
I can tell you from 13 years teaching of high school English, style is hard to teach. There are some people who just have that ‘it factor’ in their writing….the same way some people have that ‘it factor’ in their fashion style, their personality, their charisma. They just got it.
In writing, grammar is one thing (and a very important one), but style is another beast altogether.
All hope is not lost, though. There are really are some techniques you can incorporate to better your writing style. You’ve seen What Not to Wear? Same idea – just applied to writing. Sure, it’s great when it’s natural, but style can be learned.
Some years ago I went to conference by Mary Ellen Ledbetter. She was a teacher as well and had the same issues with her students and writing. She decided to do her own research and study the classics – the books we love and revere and are drawn to…those magnetic authors that just draw us in. Were there any common denominators? Any techniques that these writing icons used?
Well, actually, yes, there were. She introduced them to her students as ‘Smiley-Face Tricks’ because she would put a smiley on their papers when they used one of those techniques.
I introduced them to my students some years ago. At first, of course, the protests, the eye-rolls, the sighs. They complained that it felt forced, unnatural. My counter-argument was that nothing really feels natural when you first start. Think about playing an instrument or practicing lay-ups or learning how to dance. At first, it’s all awkward. But after enough practice, it begins to look and feel natural.
Now, I can tell instantly when my students are using them. It’s like watching wilty impatiens suck in water after being neglected in the sun too long (don’t ask me how I know this); their writing perks right up.
There are 8 ‘tricks,’ and in my best-teacher-voice, I tell you, give them a try if you want to perk up your writing. I’ll cover 4 in this post and the next 4 in another.
1. Magic 3 – This is 3 groups of words with parallel phrasing, adding a lyrical element to your writing as well expanding what the reader envisions.
Example: The sneaky child is always fabricating elaborate stories, embellishing the facts, and cleverly lying her way out of trouble.
Here, you can see the groups of words, and you can see the verb phrasing. Instead of just saying that ‘The child is dishonest,’ now you have really elaborated in a lyrical, balanced way.
Why this works: Sometimes, this forces me to expand details. Sometimes, when my draft only has 2 groups or my descriptions are a little….um…non-descript, I’ll see if there is more information I can elaborate on. Also, if I have adjectives (or some other part of speech) in one group and not another, Magic 3 forces me to balance out the phrasing to have a more lyrical flow of ideas.
Warning: A Magic 3 is not just a list of 3 items (‘She ate ice cream, pizza, and chips.’) It’s 3 groups of words, with parallel phrasing.
2. Figurative Language: Ok, think back to high school English…similes, metaphors, personification, hyperboles – all of them. Figurative language is a fast way to add some color to otherwise flat and stale writing.
Example: Instead of ‘My fear of dying pops up at all kinds of unexpected times,’ try ‘My fear of dying is a terrorist that takes me by surprise and hijacks my peace and sanity, holding them hostage.‘
Why this works: Figurative language gives the reader something they can compare. It takes an abstract concept and gives it some concreteness, something the reader can identify with and imagine.
Warning: Figurative language only works if you stay away from cliches. Cliches come pretty naturally to us, so beware. On the other hand, be careful not to ‘overreach,’ making bizarre comparisons. The goal is originality, not weird.
3. Specific Details for Effect: This is good, old-fashioned imagery. The five senses. Create a word-picture for your reader. What does the scene look like? Smell like? Sound like? Feel like? Taste like? The more you can recreate the scene through words for your reader, the more you will draw them in.
Example: Instead of ‘I was so happy to see him!‘, try ‘As he rounded the corner and came into my view, I let out a high-pitched squeal and sprinted to him, throwing myself into his arms.’
Why this works: We have a little phrase we use -‘Show vs. Tell.’ Don’t tell me how happy you were; show me. What would I see? How would I know? What would I hear? You get the idea. Using imagery, you are giving the reader something he can actually imagine seeing, hearing, tasting, touching or smelling.
Warning: It’s hard to go wrong with this one. My one warning would be don’t overdo it. Readers sometimes get lost in long paragraphs of descriptions. Shorter paragraphs or breaking it up with dialogue goes a long way!
4. Expanded Detail: Certain parts of our narratives contain those dramatic, climactic moments – the parts that, if it were a movie, the background music would build and the scene would go into slow motion. When we are writing, we have to create this effect with our words. Sometimes, we rush past a moment when, really, we should be slowing down and expanding the scene to let the readers experience it.
Example: Instead of: ‘The bride walked into the church and walked down the aisle to meet her groom.‘
Try: ‘The last bridesmaid made her way down the aisle as the processional music slowly faded out. There was a dramatic, slightly-awkward pause just before the first strains of ‘Canon in D’ echoed through the church. All eyes were on the back door, and slowly, the double-doors swung open, revealing the radiant bride on the arm of her father. A collective gasp was heard as the crowd absorbed the magnitude of this moment. Her nervousness was evident on her face, but as her eyes searched and then found the eyes of her groom, pure joy replaced any self-consciousness. The groom looked giddy as he watch his bride walk toward him. Everyone else in the room disappeared as their eyes locked – and then their hands locked together at altar.‘
OK, this is a little dramatic, but you get my point. Adding those important details paints a picture that you don’t want your readers to forget. It invites the reader to the wedding – or any moment you are describing.
Why this works: Rather than squash all that emotion in one sentence, stretch it out in a scene that can really make the reader feel like he/she is there. Dialogue works great here, too – especially if it is a significant or memorable conversation.
Warning: Pick and choose carefully which moments to expand. If you expand too many moments, the story can get tedious. Think of the moments you really want your reader to remember; expand those. The incidentals you can breeze over. Also, as above, beware of melodrama.
Stylistically, these tips won’t make you the literary version of Heidi Klum overnight – but these are small, accessible changes you can make immediately to improve your writing. It might feel forced at first, but soon it will be feeling like you’ve been doing this all your life.
If you try these, let me know how it works for you. What tips work well for you?
[Photo Credit: Wikipedia]
I love this post! Great tips. Thank you for sharing!
ALW
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THese are great tips! Loved this…excellent post.
Thanks, Kristen! I really hope this will be helpful for you! 🙂 Thanks for coming by! 🙂
Katie – I clicked on this link as I so desire to improve. What a surprise & joy to find you! Loved this post. Found it most helpful. I am grateful to have read it & am saving it. Have a great weekend, friend!
Thanks, Joanna!! I love how we keep ‘finding’ each other on SITS! Cracks me up! I’m glad that this was helpful for you! I’m always trying to be a better writer, and this definitely makes it accessible for everyone!
Thank you so much for this awesome post! I need this and I’ve pinned it to refer back often.
Visiting from SITS!
Thanks so much, Jessi!
i am so glad that it helped! I definitely need to make mental notes to remember these tips as well! But they have been really helpful for me, also! Thanks for coming by! 🙂
Great tips. In my other life, I was a scientist and it’s difficult to let go of the clinical, detached style of an acedemic paper.
Thanks, Lydia. I can definitely be a little flat in my writing first run-through. Lots and lots of re-writing! Thank you for coming by!
Wonderful! The Magic Three tip reminds me of something I learned as an actor – the best playwrights also create in threes… not necessarily groups of words, but they construct their dialogue that can easily be chopped into threes. I diagram my scripts not unlike I used to diagram sentences in my sixth grade English classes! So glad I found you on the oh-so-full SITSSharefest linky. I am going to repin this one and share it with my writing students (as well as practice the techniques myself!
Thanks for coming by, Julie! I agree about the 3s…it really works well in so many ways! I see it in literature a lot, too! Thanks so much for pinning and sharing – that means so much! I will def. be by to see your site! (And I LOVE diagramming sentences! My students – not so much, but it’s my favorite!) Looking forward to connecting, Julie! 🙂 Glad SITS connected us!
This is great! Figurative language is the tricky one for me, and I love your warning; original, not weird!
Dropping in from SITSSharefest!
Thanks for coming by, Ginny! Yes, I agree. FL can be tough when you try to think about it. It’s good when we kind of have the image in our head right there. Practice, practice!! Thanks for joining in! 🙂
Great Tips! I need to work on writing properly but with some style.
Thanks for coming by, Ginger. I think every person has room to grow in writing, but it’s little by little. These tips really helped me a lot (when I pay attention!) Thanks again! 🙂
This is an awesome post as it reminded me of everything that captures me when I’m reading great writing. Sometimes I forget that writing is about causing words to come alive for a reader. Using these tips appropriately is a part of moving from a good essay to an incredible work of imagery that won’t be forgotten. Visiting from The Sits Girls Saturday Sharefest!
Thanks for such a thoughtful comment, Elizabeth! I agree…a lot of time, we focus on ourselves as the writer, but we aren’t always thinking about how we are coming across to the reader. But I’m convinced that good writing will keep people coming back! All the tricks help them find you, but I think it’s the content that keeps them coming back!
Great posts! There are a lot of “how to improve your blog” posts out there, but there are very few that focus on writing. I always find that fascinating, since that is the meat and potatoes of all blogs. Thanks for the very useful tips! 🙂
It’s so true! Those other posts def. are helpful, but if the writing is lacking…well, then…something doesn’t quite ring true, right? I know that not everyone blogs b/c they love to write – but I def. do! I think anyone can get better, though! Thanks for coming by and sharing!
I can safely say I still use all of those tricks today.
I know you do! And you are good at it! And one of my best students 🙂
Great ideas! I love the smiley face technique, and when I get back to teaching, I wouldn’t mind trying it. As to your last tip, I’ve heard this idea called “exploding the moment.” I think giving your students these concrete ideas is so valuable, especially for a subject whose mastery can be so elusive. Indeed, you are right: Some writers just “got it,” and some don’t. Still, I had students who didn’t naturally “have it,” per se, but they were all-around good students, and they could write A-papers by getting extra help and working extra hard at it. So style can definitely be improved!
Love having this discussion with a fellow English-teacher! Yes, I’ve heard of ‘exploding the moment,’ too. I definitely don’t feel like I am natural – not the way some other writers ( and even some of my students) are. They are amazing…but I really think we can get better, become the best writers that WE PERSONALLY can be. That’s the goal. It has really helped lots of students. I hope these tips helps the bloggers who aren’t really English people but just want to write.
These are all great tips – I try to do this upon editing my draft before posting. I love playing with words and finding new ways to say the same thing – I don’t like repetition or starting the two sentences with the same word. Lighting up your paragraphs with descriptive words to make sentences pop and your statement come to life is what makes all of this fun! Great post and great tips Katie! Happy Monday! -Iva
Thanks so much! I love that you do this and I love that you love words, too!! One of the best parts of blogging! I ‘try’ to do these, but clearly, I don’t all the time! It’s a lot of work, but so is good writing, I suppose! So glad we are ‘kindred spirits’ here 🙂
These are fantastic tips! I have to constantly back up and look at my writing – this gives me more lenses through which to look
Glad it helped! I have yet to write part 2 – it’s in my head, just needs to find its way to my blog! 🙂
Lovely article, yes the aspects touched brought by you are very insightful…”Writing is Wonderful” and the question of “Writing vs. Blogging”, how to write in blog-sphere…style is the question that remains in constant debate!!!
Writing is bliss. Writing is harmony. Writing is satisfaction. Writing is inspiration. Writing is imagination. Writing is emotion. Writing is romance. Writing needs patience. Writing needs practice. Writing is wandering in the world of self-discovery…all encompassing and profoundly embracing.
Looking forward to your perspective on …
http://nrpin.wordpress.com/2014/08/19/writing-is-wonderful/
http://nrpin.wordpress.com/2014/08/24/blogging-vs-writing/
I enjoyed Writing Style, part 1. I look forward to reading part 2. Any thoughts on when you might further enlighten us with the rest?
These are wonderful tips and tricks! I can’t wait for part 2 to come out! 🙂
Heya,
Just stumbled on this post and honestly, it’s really REALLY improved my style and I’ve just started using it. Is there a part two… (I’m also really bad at searching so it might be me.
I just read a little more on your site, so you might be super busy (and super happy) Congratulations on your babies. I’ll keep my eyes open for part 2 🙂
Heya,
Just stumbled on this post and honestly, it’s really REALLY improved my style and I’ve just started using it. Is there a part two… (I’m also really bad at searching so it might be me.
I just read a little more on your site, so you might be super busy (and super happy) Congratulations on your babies. I’ll keep my eyes open for part 2 🙂
Thanks, Paula! Part 2 isn’t written yet, but I’ll be getting back to blogging in a week or so, and that is at the top of my list! lol My boys are keeping me busy, but it is all good! I’m glad those tips helped! 🙂