Over the next few weeks, I'll be doing a series on my most common edits. There are a number of things consistently misused by people when they write and I think they are worth a look.  Are you making these mistakes when you write? The first and most common edit is "that."  Here's a good example: "I think that a good college education is important."                                         Here's a better way:                                               "I think a good college education is important."     Simply eliminating the word "that" removes clutter from this sentence, helping it flow better. Uncluttered writing is easier to read, has an effortless flow and keeps readers engaged. Readers grow weary...

In my e-book, Writing for Publication , I list my top five editing tips. If you have not read the book and you want to earn money writing, read the book today. It's available on Amazon, here , and on Fiverr, here . Editing is vital to writing success, but I do understand that not everyone can afford to hire an editor; some have to edit their own work. I never recommend this, but I know finances require it at times. Here are my top five editing tips: Get rid of "that" whenever you can Use both "very" and "really" in a very limited way. Really. Be careful of repetition. Don't repeat yourself repeatedly. Keep your tense consistent.  Don't start a sentence or paragraph in past tense,  then time travel to the present tense by the end. Do not write the same way you talk. These tips will help you a great deal. Memorize them and learn to mentally use them as you write or as you review your writing. I tend to e...

I recently started a discussion about plagiarism on Fiverr's online forum. This discussion was very educational to me. The back story is simply that I've received a number of recent requests via Fiverr to rewrite existing information to make it look like another person's original work. I have declined each request because it looks like plagiarism to me. I even had to modify my gig descriptions to state that I do not work with plagiarized information, nor do I rewrite or, as some call it, "spin" articles. I started the discussion because I was shocked at the number of people requesting this and also shocked at their lack of shame at taking someone else's work and wanting to make it their own (or, rather, have me make it their own). Not one of them sent me work they said was their own; they all said it was work they'd taken off the internet and some even sent me links to the work instead of copying and pasting it into a document. Merriam-Webster de...

The inevitable failure we face as writers should not be what defines us as writers. We write, we fail, we write some more. I never really consider failure something to slow me down. By failure, I'm talking about failure to see publication. We can be highly successful writers if all we do is write; if that's our only motivation. But, getting published is another story and we all face the failure of not getting published, of being rejected by a publisher. I was recently asked to write an article on a specific topic. We signed a contract and I wrote the article. In the meantime, the publisher changed staff and the editor I'd been working with was no longer there. Even though I had a contract, they rejected my article. I'm still going to get paid for writing it, but they are not going to publish the article. I believe in this article; I am looking for another outlet in which to publish it. I've already sent it to another editor. This leads me to the 4th part of ...

Happy New Year! It's always exciting to begin a new year. With the anticipation of all that 2016 can hold for you, make this the year you finally write that novel, memoir, short story, poem or e-book. This is your year to get published and I wrote a book designed to help you do just that. Writing for Publication is now available in paperback, in addition to the e-book. Writing for Publication is a simple, easy-to-read, comprehensive handbook on how to write for publication. In it, you'll learn why you shouldn't write the same way you talk, how to keep your audience in mind while writing, why grammar is so important and much, much more. My writing style is to the point with no frills. Just the facts. Just the plan. Just the way you like it. My students get published. As a personal writing coach, I've helped an 87-year-old great grandmother get published for the first time. I coached a 14-year-old girl who won the school writing contest she entered. I coach...

I blog. I blog about essential oils . I blog about creativity and photography . I blog about theology and what the Bible says about life and current events.                                                                             I blog about homemaking, getting and staying organized , and show how I organize things. I blog about cooking  (although not very often).  This morning, my husband called from work, as he usually does, and as we were talking I said, in a rather apologetic way, that I'd started yet another blog, my 6th ( My Oily Pursuits ). Instead of saying something like "Another?" he said, "Of course! You're a writer!" Total encouragement. Do you blog? Do you have more than one blog?  I think every writer needs to have a blog an...

I read a few blogs on a regular basis. There are some things that immediately turn me away from some blogs, however, and I rarely read their content and there are a few reasons why. 1. I don't read content that is dotted with ALL CAPS. When text is in all caps, it is akin to shouting. It does not come across as simply emphasis; it comes across as shouting. I don't need to be shouted at and I do not listen to people who shout at me unless they are saving my life from imminent danger. If you have content that needs emphasis, try putting it in bold letters or italicize the words. 2. I don't read blogs that play music. I am often listening to my own music, or working along side my kids who are studying in our home school, so music suddenly blasting from a blog or website is highly disruptive and unwelcome. I exit immediately and don't read the content. 3. I don't read content that is filled with errors. A typo here and there is one thing; we all make mistakes, b...

As a writer, I am struck by Taylor Swift . Not only does she write all her own lyrics and music, she oversees the production of her albums and videos down to the last detail. In a recent interview, she said that since the songs are hers, she can present them however she chooses. Taylor was the victim of severe bullying in school while growing up. As an artist, she was told she couldn't sing or write. Because she did not define herself by those around her, she didn't listen to her naysayers. She pushed through, wrote songs about those who bullied her, and truly changed the music industry forever. Just this week she topped herself on the charts with singles from her her newest album, 1989. Kudos to Taylor ! I admire her for her tenacity to believe in herself and push through to her own success. She was even told to wait till she was 18, but she pushed through, claiming she was ready. Indeed. I so wish I had learned to think that way as a young woman! She's not the first ...

Maybe, just maybe, you need to fail more as a writer. I read this blog post today, 9 Famous Authors Rejected by Publishers , and realized that all the great ones fail, and they usually fail more than once. Read for yourself and find out the astonishing number of times C.S. Lewis was rejected before he was published. I dare you to keep failing again and again. Fail your way to sure success. You're in good company ~Tricia

There are many ways to improve as a writer. I've taught many ways myself. You can read to write better. You can write to write better. Did you know you can also edit to write better? Yep, it's true. I recently joined Fiverr as an editor and as I have gotten more and more gigs, I realized that what I'm learning by editing other people's work is actually helping my writing. That's a bonus I did not expect or plan on, but I am pleasantly surprised that it's making such a difference. Have you considered editing as a tool to improve your own writing? I recently blogged about how I like editing because I get to fix what's wrong. Today, I found another reason to like editing: it improves my own writing skill! I highly recommend editing as a tool to improve your writing. Happy Writing! ~Tricia

Jeff Goins, one of my favorite writing bloggers, calls it the 5-Draft Method . I call it revision, but it's all the same thing. If you're going to write a book, you are going to write it more than once before it's written. Even then, when you think you're finished, you will probably second guess yourself about it, wondering if this or that could have used more revision. You will ask yourself if you should have had it edited at least one more time. This side of the writing process tends to surprise people. Be not surprised. Whatever you have written will need to be revised again and again. Revise to the end. Then, before you second guess yourself out of publishing altogether, just publish it and move on to your next project. There is much writing to do. ~Tricia

Webster's New World College Dictionary , the one we use in our home school, defines daily as " 1 done, happening, published, etc., every day or every weekday." I thought it was so interesting that part of the #1 definition for daily included the word "published." The timing of this news was so cool because I read a great article today by Jeff Goins which gives reasons why a writer should develop a daily writing habit. Jeff gives good advice. Many of us have to write daily to "feel like ourselves." I'm glad I'm not alone! Thanks for the great advice, Jeff! ~Tricia

I had a deadline on a writing project this week. I often work under self-imposed deadlines, but this one was imposed by the editor of an international magazine and it felt very different from my usual self-imposed deadlines. The difference is, mine are always negotiable and highly flexible. Because I'm a free-lance writer, I have the luxury of setting my own priorities. My self-imposed deadlines are always subject to my family's needs. With such a large family as I have, this happens often, and that really works for me. I love the flexibility and freedom free-lancing allows me to have. I have worked under outside deadlines before, don't get me wrong, but they really are few and far between. I like being in control of my own schedule. But, this week was different. The editor in charge of this project said on Monday he wanted the finished product by Friday....of this same week. He was on a deadline to be sure. At first, it felt good. Then it felt intimidating. Then...

When I started my Writing for Publication classes a few years ago, I had no idea how far some of my students would be able to take what they'd learned and achieve such success. Amanda Hocking sat in my class and told me how she'd quit college to write full time because college took too much time away from her writing. Sitting with a large stack of rejection letters, Amanda learned about e-publishing in my class and that was all she needed to know. She's now a million-dollar-author with a movie deal in the works! The simple, straightforward information in this short e-book have been life-changing and confidence-building for many other authors as well. I got word just this week that another one of my students has sent his book off to Paramount Pictures. I also got word that another former student just signed a book deal with a publisher. You can be a successful writer, too. Start by learning what my other students learned; start by downloading your free copy of Write...

I never thought of myself as a writer. I wrote as a child, but that didn't translate into writing for anyone other than myself. I did the mandatory writing in school and always got good grades on what I wrote, but that didn't translate into becoming a writer. I wrote, however, a lot. I did far more than just the mandatory writing my teachers required.  I wrote lists.  I wrote observations.  I wrote expectations.  I wrote stories. I wrote. But, I didn't think of myself as a writer because all my writing was for myself. One comment from one college professor changed my writing. Upon returning a graded writing assignment to me, he commented, "Reading your writing is just like talking to you. You should write." He actually wrote those words at the top of that paper! I was astounded that my writing could impact someone else. That idea had not occurred to me. I got an "A" on that paper, and that'x exactly when I started writing for the e...

These are wise words: You have to write it. I was recently reading this article by Ellen Rohr about starting a business and her first words of advice are, "You have to write it." She was referring to people who attempt to start a business but have all their plans in their head. She says that writing it down makes it real. I have been giving this advice to my writing students for years! When you write it down, it changes it. Writing it down makes it official. Picture yourself being chosen for a committee. You love what the committee is about and you pour your time and energy coming up with a plan for the committee. At your first committee meeting, you pass your plans out to the others...the plans you have written down. Because it's highly unlikely anyone else wrote down a plan, it's equally likely that your plan will be used. Why? Because it was written down. Official looking. Official sounding. Written down. Writing it down helps you be objective because you ...

Did you know that even established authors are e-publishing? They blog. They publish e-books. They vlog. They are smart to do so. I wanted to share a few observations about e-publishing and how it can impact your writing. * E-Publishing puts the decision to read what you write into the hands of the public.  No longer do writers have to depend on a publisher to get their writing out there. The public gets to decide. Famed author Amanda Hocking is a good example of this. She sat in my writing class and showed us her countless rejection letters. No one would publish her writings. So, she took to e-publishing and more than 2 million people said yes to her writings by downloading her e-books! THEN the publishing houses started paying attention to Amanda Hocking and now she has both book and movie deals. The public decided. * E-Publishing lets an author earn credibility while giving their name more exposure. Ree Drummand, The Pioneer Woman , started her blog to share a dr...

I write. I am a writer. I write all the time, daily actually. Most of what I write does not get published, but I write anyway. Sometimes I write and find it therapeutic, as is the case with my book, Victory Over Violence . Sometimes I write because something so deeply touched me that I have to put it down on paper, as with my book, Tears in a Bottle . Other times, I write because I have information that I think others will find helpful, like in my book, How to Not Potty Train Your Kids . I write for many reasons. When stuff happens in my life, I write about it. When stuff happens around me, I write about it. When I feel passionate about something, I write about it. When I feel silly, I write. I've written songs, poems, books, short stories, Bible studies, a memoir, silliness, doctrine and kids' stories. I don't publish all my writings, but I write them just the same. I mostly write non-fiction, but am working on a few fiction projects and finding it interesting to...

I read a few blogs regularly and those blogs often introduce me to new blogs. Today, a Facebook post led me to a fashion blog and it looked interesting and informative enough to click on. Fashion is important, to a point - the point where I don't go around looking like an idiot or dressing too young, etc. That can be challenging, though, since clothes in the junior department fit me best. It's not always convenient to be short. The fashion blog held a lot of useful information, but this young blogger desperately needs an editor. We can certainly look past a few typos, but this gal had no clue how to use the English language. She needs an editor. We all need an editor. I can't tell you how many times I've written a blog post, reread it several times, posted it, then came back and found typos or other errors! It happens to everyone. I'm not just irritated at poor, unedited writing. I'm also frustrated for the writer because, in the long run, it will affect ...

Writing is a process as much as it is a creative action. Those of us who write for publication know that this process, while we are drawn to it without reason, is not always easy. Writing involves a process. Part two of my series of classes on Writing for Publication focuses on this process and breaks it down into manageable steps. Today, I'd like to share some content from that class, which will be available in an e-book later on this spring or early summer. My first e-book from this set of classes is already available and you can find it here . John Steinbeck said, "I have written a great many stories and I still don't know how to go about it except to write it and take my chances." John Steinbeck knew that the writing process is not magical. You basically just have to do it; just write. This is not a "how-to," it's more of an attempt to help you know the process so that none of this process will catch you off guard and you will know what to e...