Advice is constructive criticism at its best. It’s hard to accept, but common to receive. It can be amazingly accurate, or an insulting stab to the heart. Proper advice for writing is rare to come across, that’s what makes it so valuable. In my continued years of writing essays, papers, stories, and poems, I have received both constructive criticism and flattery.
However, I’d be lying if I said none of them helped influence my writing today.
1: Drowning in Dialogue
“Hey, wait up! You’re going to fall!” I say between hushed giggles.
“I’m alright with that if you’re here to catch me.” He says from a cloud above.
“But what if I drop you?” I say, arms spread out wide below him.
“Then we’ll say I fell for you.” He says.
Yes, the plot could be intriguing and the characters just as interesting, but if the dialogue is stalling the story, less is more. By far one of the best pieces of advice I’ve received was from a video I watched in eighth grade. A speaker stressed the importance of staying clear and concise, which I struggle with (topic for another blog entry) but paid mind to nevertheless.
They explained how dialogue doesn’t need to end with “____ said,” with each and every comment. In essence, the readers should be able to determine who is speaking, assuming that they are paying proper attention to the story. The only time I absolutely must alternate between the “he said”, “she said”, “they said”, etc, is when I add additional actions or context to the story.
Editing the same example written in italics,
“Hey, wait up! You’re going to fall!” I call out into the night sky between hushed giggles.
“I’m alright with that if you’re here to catch me.” He whispers, barely audible from a cloud above.
“But what if I drop you?” I challenge, now standing directly below his fluffy lounge, arms spread out wide.
“Then we’ll say I fell for you.” He says before flipping off the cloud and falling over 400 feet to the ground.
The dialogue flows significantly better now that I’m explaining what’s happening in the story, even if I’m still using “____ said”. Also, using synonyms for “says” or “said” can make the story sound more natural and less “talk talk talk, halt. Talk talk talk, halt.”
2: Me, Myself, and I
I’m honored to thank all those who have helped me pursue my dream. My journey certainly had a rough start but I persevered and I couldn’t have done it without you. As I retrace my steps to the first moment I watched people perform on stage. The passion, the elegance, all of it captivated me and inspired me to experience it myself.
Nine, ten, eleven, ah- done. Four sentences and a count of eleven self-references. That’s over 2 mentions of me, my, myself, or I! Whenever you’re writing a speech or thank you letter, it’s important not to use “me, myself, and I” excessively. The overuse of personal pronouns can make you sound conceited or insensitive, even if that isn’t your original intention.
My father had given me this advice prior to writing a significant graduation speech. This was a skill he had learned from experience, and one any audience can recognize within the first few minutes of your speech. Hearing someone talk about their life can seem irrelevant, to put it plainly, but there are other ways to reword a speech.
There’s no avoiding referring to yourself, especially if you’re applying for a job or college. Frankly, you cannot not talk about yourself. Usually, I’ll use the words “we” or “ours” to speak for my class as a whole, not just myself. Or I’ll start a sentence with a conjunction or adjective instead of the noun.
For example, “Although the journey certainly had a rough start, we persevered, and I can’t imagine doing it without you.” Self-reference counter: 1 Learning to check my writing for these words can be difficult, and re-wording them can be even harder, but it’s important. Counting how many times I mention myself in writing is a skill I’m still working on but definitely grateful to know.
3: Positive Repetition
We were dancing around the park like lightning on a stormy night. The time read three in the morning, but neither of us seemed to care. We didn’t care how far we were from each other. We didn’t care what the others might think. We didn’t care about the time or the distance. And we couldn’t care less about the weather. The only thing that mattered, was that we cared for each other.
My sixth-grade literature teacher had requested we read our prompt responses out loud. After presenting mine, the class was silent. I suspected that I had misread a word or heard the prompt wrong, but it was nothing of the sort. My classmates were stunned silent, and my teacher slow-clapped before explaining to the class what I had done. What had I done? Even I was unsure, all I did was answer the prompt earnestly!
Looking back on that prideful moment, I can see how that experience shaped my writing today. As my teacher explained at that time, using repetition excessively is not recommended in writing. If you start the sentence the same, say “and” over five times in a single sentence, or use the same adjectives over and over, that’s considered excessive. However, using the right words multiple times to enunciate a point or argument can prove to be powerful. Especially when the content written will be spoken in a speech or, in my case, in front of the sixth-grade class.
In the example I’ve written in italics, I use the words, “we didn’t care” repeatedly to express how much the character didn’t care, and all the things they didn’t care about. I listed how they didn’t care how far they were, what others thought, time, distance, weather, etc. But to end with a lasting impact, I switched gears and explained what they did care about; each other.
Of course, both advice, constructive criticism, and flattery are all helpful in the world of writing. But what’s worth knowing the skill if you’ll never use it? Writing is a hobby and subject we all use in our daily lives. It could be as complex as completing an assignment, or as simple as typing a text. Therefore, writing advice isn’t as rare as we think, applying that advice to our lives is what counts.
Comments