A Short Essay on Writing

In the 20 years that I've been writing professionally I've covered all sorts of different markets. So, I suppose, that gives me some authority when it comes to telling people "How to Write". (Not that I'm a fan of "authority".)

Beginners in writing are always looking for that elusive formula that will transform them from a quivering wreck in front of the blank page (or screen) into that righteous giant "The Writer".

The problem, of course, is that there is no "Right Way", certainly not with capital letters, and there's no magic formula.

However, there are the basics: You need to know how to spell. You need to know grammar. A good vocabulary is helpful. Knowing how to type is a huge advantage (I wish I did).

But let's go back to the original question...

When I worked in a big office I was always being asked: "Steve, how do I say this?" Well, you know, the clue is in the question.

In answer to that question I would always say "What do you want to say?" and then they would tell me, and I'd say "That's how you write it." And off they'd go, happy as Larry.

There is no secret to writing or authoring skill. You have to get the words down, get them out of your head so that you can look at them. Yes, you can spruce them up afterwards, knock off the rough edges ... the very least you can ask is: "How would I feel if someone sent that to me?" and that will tell you how well you've done.

Yes there are tricks, yes there are styles, there are mechanics which can help but the key to writing is this: WRITE!

(And switch off the grammar and spelling checkers, at least until later, and don't assume that everything they tell you is right because it often isn't.)

Steve Turnbull