The Practice of Writing

Virgil, the great Roman poet, wrote "Practice and thought might gradually forge many an art." From this we can assume that practice comes before thought, and so it is with present day writers.

What must be practiced? If one is to be a successful writer then one must be able to practice good grammar. In order to practice good grammar, a writer must know the rules of good grammar and therefore must study the rules of good grammar. Most editors reject quickly those writers who do not know how to construct a proper sentence with at least a subject and predicate.

Besides knowledge of a simple sentence, a writer must use compound sentences, complex sentences, and compound-complex sentences. In order to perfect the ability to use these sentences, one must practice their use until it becomes second nature.

Once a writer-through practice-has mastered the sentence then it is time to work on the paragraph. Again, composing a unified, effective paragraph requires practice so that it has unity, coherence, rhythm and acceptable syntax.

English syntax can only be learned by practice, particularly the practice of reading. A "wannabe" writer must be a reader-one who reads voraciously and eclectically so that good syntax will come naturally. However, this reading must be done studiously with awareness of the writer's style and composition, because syntax is the way in which one puts the words together. Now the writer must practice and develop his own style of syntax.

This brings us to the next practice: the use of the dictionary and thesaurus-not the dictionary and thesaurus that are found with most word processors. Although they are helpful, they are not as beneficial as a complete and unabridged dictionary or thesaurus. If a writer depends completely on the dictionary and thesaurus found with most word processors, one's writing will be full of mistakes.

Finally, but not the least, is punctuation. Although most punctuation is a personal preference, there still are basic rules that should be learned and practiced.

In all case of grammar, vocabulary, punctuation, and syntax, the writer must know the rules before he breaks them. Moreover, the only way to become proficient in their use is by continual practice.

Once the basics are acquired, then the writer can proceed to writing fiction or non-fiction in poetry, articles, essays, short stories, etc., again practicing until one has develop a personal voice or style.

Charles O. Goulet has a BA in English literature and has written several novels that are available through Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, and other online bookstores.

His website is: http://www.telusplanet.net/public/go1c

---

Could Your Book Idea Be the Next Best Seller?

Everyone has a unique story to tell. From explaining business... Read More

Do The Unfamiliar To Keep Your Writing Going

One of the best ways to blow someone's winning streak... Read More

How To Build A Successful Freelance Editorial Career

In the current job market, many editorial freelancers have turned... Read More

How To Write to a Word Count

You've finished your story, and you're pretty happy with it.... Read More

Pairs/Groups Of Words Often Confused - Part 1 of 6

ACCEPT, EXCEPT Not commonly seen even from unpublished writers, who... Read More

How To Filter Description Through Your Characters

How do you describe a scene without slowing down the... Read More

Imagine The Imagination

Imagine a three hundred page book was in the author's... Read More

Writers Block is No Longer a Problem

"If you're like me, than I'm sure you're pretty familiar... Read More

Become an Instant Author by Playing Well with Others

You wrote a tips booklet. Maybe more than one. Oh... Read More

How to Build A Success Freelance Career (Part 2)

Part 1 of this article discussed the experience you need... Read More

Writing Made Them Rich #4: Paulo Coelho

Paulo Coelho was born on August 24th 1947 in Rio... Read More

Good Writing

Good writing is like sex. Two people are involved ?... Read More

Tell the World About You

You have a new website, or a new business, or... Read More

COULD YOU (not) REPEAT THAT PLEASE?

I recently read a book where everything was akimbo. Arms... Read More

Writing is a Discipline

If a writer considers writing to be a task, he/she... Read More

Screenwriting ? The Lone Wolf Story Structure Template

Story Structure Templates are the fastest way to write screenplays.... Read More

Write That Down! Compulsively Collecting Content for Your Writing

Have you ever read someone else's writing and thought one... Read More

How to Use Textpad to Write Articles Faster

It's a good idea to use TextPad because all opt-in... Read More

Write a Letter, Make a Difference

Today I took the dog for a walk and realized... Read More

To Write Successful Business & Academic Communications, Learn the Architecture of a Story

Human beings seem to be born with a gene for... Read More

14 Tips On Writing The Short-Short Story

The short-short story has been likened by some as being... Read More

The Writers Identity: Exploring the Writer Within

Les Edgerton writes in his book, Finding Your Voice, that... Read More

How To Co-Publish For Profits!

The Benefits of Co-Publishing There are a number of publishers,... Read More

How To Write Your Way To A Fortune

We've all seen those ads that grab our attention and... Read More

How To Identify Your Own Style Of Writing

This article is to help identify which style, technique or... Read More

Editing Secrets

Once you've plotted out your book, developed the characters and... Read More

Screenwriting ? Five Golden Insights

Originality emerges from structure. Once you have a story idea,... Read More

Writing Made Them Rich #5: Peter Mayle

Peter Mayle was born in England in 1939.His fascination with... Read More

Rejection ? Have the Right Perspective and Don?t Quit

If you're getting rejections from your submissions, please don't quit... Read More

Writing Is Not Life-threatening

Some writers complain that writing is arduous work requiring long... Read More

An Inside Look at Proofreading

This is the ideal topic for us all to think... Read More

Becoming A Successful Author: The Price!

So you want to be a successful author? You want... Read More

10 Things that Keep You from Writing Your Book? and What You Can do About It

9 out of 10 professionals and small business owners have... Read More