This Blog by Cher’ley Grogg
To continue on with Doris’ Whys. Why Should I Read This Blog? That is a very good question. One each of us should ask as we write our next blog.
So, you ask yourself, “Why should I read this blog? I think a quote from an American novelist, poet, short story writer, art critic, and literary critic says it best. “I want stories to startle and engage me within the first few sentences, and in their middle to widen or deepen or sharpen my knowledge of human activity, and to end by giving me a sensation of completed statement.” -John Updike-. He wrote a series starting with “Run Rabbit Run”, and among other works “Witches of Eastwick”
A blog should be similar to a story; it needs to inform, entertain or deepen. These simple tips should help.
- Don’t use big words
- Be an artist
- Power in the written work
- Don‘t use big words and long sentences to show the readers how smart you are.They will soon tire of opening the dictionary continually. The reader (tongue in cheek) may say, “I’m reading a story (blog, novel, article, or essay) and the dictionary at the same time.”
- Writers are artists. The painter uses a brush, the photographer uses a camera, the woodcarver uses a knife, and the writer uses the keyboard to create something from nothing, to breathe life into their work.
- Writers have a lot of power in their fingertips.The written word is very powerful it can entertain, inspire, anger and educate. The written word changes lives.
From Daily Writing Tips A misused big word has the opposite effect of making you sound smart! A big word used correctly, but unnecessarily, has the effect of making you sound pedantic. If you have to go get a dictionary to see what “pedantic” means, I have made my point!
Writers possess an acute sense of awareness and a vivid, colorful imagination. Use these qualities often and use them well. Always think of your audience when writing. Reach out to them– touch them in some way–evoke a reaction.
Let me know: Why Should I Read This Blog?
***Have fun and strengthen your descriptions with this writing exercise from About.com Creative Writing. Choose from one of three scenarios: Describe a landscape as seen by an old woman whose horrible old husband has just died, describe a lake as seen by a young man who has just murdered someone, or describe a landscape as seen by a bird. Leave your scenario in the comments.***
Cher’ley’s Books are listed below and on sale at Amazon and local bookstores.
Stamp Out Murder”.
“The Secret in Grandma’s Trunk” This is an especially good book for your Tween Children and Grandchildren
The Journey Back-One Joy at a Time and the B&W Edition of The Journey Back
Boys Will Be Boys The Joys and Terrors of Raising Boys-An Anthology
Cowboys, Creatures, and Calico
And please join me on my Facebook Fanpage, that’s managed by one of my most faithful fans: Cindy Ferrell
Here’s a link to Cher’ley’s WEBSITE
Thanks for the website, looks like a fun one and I hadn’t heard about it. I will be checking it out more. All good tips Cher’ley in your blog also. Love that quote from John Updike. That really sums it up for a writer. Thanks for the good info.
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Neva, thanks for reading. I got on the http://www.dailywritingtips.com/ site and lost a couple of hours reviewing and learning. That’s the beauty of researching stuff for a blog, you learn so much, and some of it really is fun. I wish I had more time, they daily wish for active people like you and me. Cher’ley
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Appropriate quote from John Updike. Myself, it takes too much brainpower to come up with big words, so I keep things simple. Also, as a journalist, always wrote short, hopefully snappy sentences for the stories. Snappy applies to headlines as well.
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Thank you Cher’ley. Loved the writing prompt you left and it has my mind swirling, nort necessarily a good thing with all those women doctors running around up there. Oh well.
Your points are well taken and useful. Now to put them into practice. **Smile** Doris
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Thanks Mike. Yes Snappy gets attention. I try to add Impact words to my titles. I know, I prefer smaller words, and funny words. I studied some different words this morning. Cher’ley
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Doris, Sometimes it is hard to put to use what we learn. As I was saying to Mike, I was studying words this morning for fun. None of the ones ai looked at were words that I would normally use, but still nice to know them. Thanks for reading. Cher’ley
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Wonderful post to definitely help me with greater and better blogging down the road. I too thought the Why in Doris’ blog sparked interest. The word why itself always creates the wanting to the know the answer, or so it does for me. But, for now, I must goggle what pedantic means!
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Darrah, you made me laugh. I’m glad I’m giving you something useful. Cher’ley
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Thank you for some interesting insight.
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Abbie, thanks for reading. I appreciate you. Cher’ley
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Ah, Cher’ley. it’s a failing of mine being fond of all words: big and small – except maybe cuss words. 😉
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Nancy, I’m sure, as a teacher you know a lot of words that are not normally used much. I’m with you I’m not fond of cuss words, it’s even hard for me to read them, it jerks me right out of a book or story. Cher’ley
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I try to write simply and never deliberately choose “big” words, but my teaching and technical background tends to come through, apparently. One critique of an early version of Forewarning (by a best selling author) was that I should “dumb down” my language. I have a hard time with that idea and an even harder time recognizing what should be “dumbed.”
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My problem is that I’m a long-time reader and teacher of classical literature and, frankly, have a pretty sizable vocabulary. So I use words that seem “normal” to me but not to my friends. That’s what beta readers are for, I guess.
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Hey Cherley,
I like the Updike quote. It’s always best to keep the reader engaged, not confused. How does this do for a description?
When the sun rose on the arid desert, Marybeth thought it never looked so beautiful. She thought the landscape had mocked her for years, sharing the same harshness of her husband Ralph. But no. The dessert was more brutal than Ralph could ever be as his dehydrated body proved. The dessert was an oasis in disguise, a liberator for her to live her final years alone.
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I strive for simplicity as well. Elmore Leonard is a role model of mine. His rules are my rules. My number one rule of his is “leave out the stuff that people skip.”
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Great post Cherley. Love the helpful writing tips and also the reading side of a good blog. Thanks for sharing.
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Wonderful post, Cher’ley — thank you for the encouragement and tips!
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A few years back I was the member of a writing group. One member of the group always speckled each page with large words. His story line was interesting, but those unnecessary large words detracted from the work. This keeps me mindful of not using large words. I want my readers to enjoy a story, not have to research it to understand what is going on.
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