“What made you decide
to move to Lake Forest?” Kenzie asked.
“I’ve always loved it
here,” Jared said. “It’s a beautiful area, and there’s a special atmosphere
here. People are so friendly. I guess part of the reason I came is because I
needed to go someplace new and kind of start over, you know?”
Kenzie
did know. That was exactly what she was doing now. She’d gotten over Larry, but
she needed to go someplace new and reinvent herself and her life.
“Now let me ask you,”
Jared said. “What made you decide to
come back?”
“A
lot of reasons. I need a fresh start too. I’m tired of the hectic pace in
Chicago.” Impulsively she added, “Also, I had to get away from my job at
Midwest. A guy was causing some real problems for me—” She stopped. Their eyes
met and lingered. Jared’s compassion was evident and the expression on his face
kind. She felt so comfortable talking with him—as if they were kindred spirits.
Something in her heart softened into a spreading pool, and she smiled at him.
Tearing open his
packet of Oreo cookies., Jared took one and dunked it in his hot chocolate.
Kenzie frowned.
“Figures. You’re a dunker.”
“And I bet you’re a
twister.”
Snatching up a cookie,
Kenzie twisted it open and took a bite of the creamy middle. “Ummm.”
Jared shuddered.
“That’s wrong in so many ways.”
Picking up her mug and
warming her fingers, Kenzie sipped her hot chocolate. “This is wonderful!”
“It’s a secret
recipe—been in my family for generations.”
“Really?”
“No,
but it sounds good, doesn’t it?”
Guest Post by Marlene
Bateman, Author of For Sale by Owner
How to Improve Your Writing
Style
There are many elements of good writing but perhaps one of
the least understood is style. What is style? Style is not what you write but how
you write. Voltaire said, “Every style that is not boring is a good one.” But how do you improve something as nebulous
as style? Over time, I’ve come up with some simple things that can enhance anyone’s
writing style.
1.
The
smaller the number of words you use to contain a thought or an image, the more impact it will have. Let me give you an example: “Lee was a mean woman.”
It’s always better to be more specific; “Lee was a shrew.” Another example; “He
passed away early in the morning, and people all over America cried.” A much
better way to say that is; “He died at dawn and the nation wept.” Do not put
extra words in a sentence for the same reason you don’t tape two windshield
wipers to the windshield of your car: they wouldn’t serve any purpose, and they
would get in the way.
2.
Be wary
of adverbs. Adverbs usually only crop up when you use a weak verb and need
to boost it. You can use them, but be SURE they are needed. Most aren’t.
3.
Use
strong verbs that are active, vivid, specific and familiar. One example of this is; Buster ate his dog
treats quickly. It’s much better to say; Buster gobbled his dog treats. Don’t use weak general verbs like walk, cry,
fall, and touch if the situation calls for plod, weep, collapse, and caress.
4.
Make
tension fuel your plot. Without tension, there is no plot.
Remember, whenever the protagonist’s intention is denied, the effect is
tension, which readers LOVE.
5. Create tension
through opposition. The role of the antagonist is to thwart
the intention of the protagonist. Don’t make things easy (and boring for your
readers) for your protagonist!
6.
Make tension
grow as opposition increases. Tension
is a result of a chain of cause and effect, which builds and produces conflict
and tension. This is necessary to keep the story going. Every time something happens, the stakes grow
larger and the action snowballs.
7.
Make
change the point of your story. We expect events to
affect the main character in such a way as to force a change in his/her
personality. Your main character should
be a different person at the end of the book than he was at the beginning.
8.
When something
happens, make sure it’s important.
Plot is your compass and gives you a general idea of the direction
you’re headed. If you write something that is specifically related to the
advancement of the plot, keep it. If not, chuck it.
9.
Make the
causal look casual. Everything in
your writing has a reason, a cause that leads to an effect, which in turn
becomes the next cause. For example; If a shotgun is necessary, show it well
before it is needed. Make the appearance of the shotgun casual—show it in a way
that the reader almost doesn’t notice. Then later, when a gun is called for,
readers will remember seeing one earlier.
10.
Make sure
your lead character performs the central action of the climax. Keep the
main character on center stage with the action. And remember that your main
character should act, not be acted upon.
11.
Show,
don’t tell. Showing means creating a
picture for the reader. You can say a
person seemed impatient, but it’s better to show
that by saying, “She looked at her watch constantly,” or have her ask, “Are you
almost done?”
12.
Avoid
clichés. They’re tiresome.
13.
Appeal to
the senses. Bring your writing alive
with the sounds, the smells, the flavors, and the peculiar tactile sensations
that come from textures and temperature and motion. Remind the reader that the world sparkles, roars,
and sometimes stinks. The senses are touchstones for the reader. Don’t say it was noisy at the baseball
game. Mention the crack of a bat, the
whizzing of a fast ball, the roar of the crowd, and the heckling from the
bleachers.
14.
Put
emphatic words at the end. Emphasis
tends to flow to the end of a sentence, so if there is one word or phrase you
want to say a little louder, put it at the end.
This is especially important when you are trying to be humorous.
15.
Keep it
simple. Write
in a simple, direct, unpretentious way—with every sentence an arrow aimed at
exactly what it means to say. Remember
you are trying to do one thing; tell a story.
