Month: October 2018
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The Guide to Writing Coaching Books – Part 3 of 3
October 18, 2018
‘However’ is NOT the most commonly used word used in the English language
Lots of authors – particularly writers in nonfiction – overuse ‘however’. There are two forms of abuse of the poor ‘however’.
1. When authors are trying to qualify a point …
Establishing and operating a business from home is not a prospect that should frighten you. However, the set-up can be a minefield.
Find another way to say what you want to say without relying on the ‘however.’ That does not mean removing the ‘however’ or substituting ‘although’. Think of ways to rephrase. E.g.
Whilst setting up and operating a business can be a minefield, it’s not a prospect that should frighten you.
2. To legitimise transition, even when there’s no causal evolution. E.g.
You are reading this blog. However, your dog has just metamorphosed into a butterfly.
There’s no logical connection between the two statements. But the use of ‘however’ makes the evolution feel logical. It’s not. It’s lazy.
Finally, the use of ‘however’ is striking. Sometimes, it’s unavoidable that you need to use it. However, when they keep popping up, they become an eyesore and disrupt the narrative.
Don’t undermine yourself
If you’re communicating a message, then believe in that message. Don’t be wishy-washy. E.g.
One of the best practices I’ve found is every night, I make a list up of what I have to do the next day. Of course, this mightn’t be for you.
Then why are you telling me? Why are you wasting my time with a suggestion that you’re not even enforcing? If you have a set of practices that help you, then assert those practices. This is what your book’s about.
There’s absolutely no point – in fact, it’s insulting – to offer a message, and then in the next sentence suggest it mightn’t be what the reader’s looking for. If it mightn’t be for the reader, then it probably has no place in your book. Do this often enough, and people will wonder what’s the point of reading your book if your ideas amount to ‘take it or leave it’.
This doesn’t mean you have to shout at the reader, YOU MUST DO THIS! You don’t have to browbeat them. But neither do you have to undermine yourself.
Your book is meant to be a guide, not a list of offhand suggestions. If you don’t have confidence to insist on what you’re proclaiming as advice, then why will the reader have confidence in you?
Watch your exclamation marks!
Sure, you might think every line you’re writing is emphatic! And that’s fine to be passionate! But there comes a point when the use – well, the overuse – of the exclamation mark is distracting! Worse, it’s one of these things we do unwittingly! Look back through your work, and see if you’re overusing the exclamation mark! You might just be surprised!
Your first draft is NOT gold
Writing isn’t just about writing. It’s also about rewriting. Your first draft is likely to be rough – the outpourings of somebody with lots of energy, lots to say, but often lacking focus. This is the way writing works: it’s an exploration of ideas.
Sometimes, that exploration becomes a wander as we try to find our way. It’s like trying to find your way all across town to somewhere new – there’ll be wrong turns, there’ll be detours, and whilst you might inevitably arrive at your destination, it’s not the course to take all the time. You find a better and direct route to get you to the same place.
Go through your writing with the pointers from this three-part blog in mind. See what can be revised, revised, revised. Then, revise it!
Finally … be YOURSELF
Tell your story exactly as you would tell me, if we were sitting across a table from one another at lunch. Don’t use big words (if you don’t normally) because you think it’ll impress the reader. Don’t wax lyrical, and try to impress everybody with your knowledge. Don’t fire off jokes if that’s not usually your thing.
There is something in writing called VOICE. Every writer has one. It’s the way the book talks to the reader. If you’re putting on airs to write your book, then you’re not being true to your VOICE, and the disingenuousness will show in the writing. It won’t connect with the reader. It won’t be you.
So be YOURSELF.
You are unique.
You are special.
You have your own message to deliver.
The Guide to Writing Coaching Books – Part 2 of 3
October 4, 2018
Avoid repetition
Repetition might work for midnight infomercials, where the presenter is saying to you, ‘But, wait, there’s more!’ But TV is a visual medium where repetition works as an assault to gain attention. In reading you already have your audience’s attention. The reader would not have picked up your book unless they were interested in what you have to say.
Don’t make the same point over and over and over, thinking that the more times you say something, the stronger you’re making that point. You’re not. You’re boring your reader. Writing is about economy. Say things once. Move on. Trust your reader got it. How would you like it if I stood by your side and reread this paragraph to you ad nauseam? You wouldn’t. You’d go nuts. There’s no reason to do the same thing in print.
The only time to use repetition is if it’s for stylistic purposes.
Don’t self-quote
This has grown as a trend throughout this market – authors quoting themselves, the way they’d cite quotes from other names of note in their field.
I understand the logic behind it. It’s a form of self-elevation, so the author stands parallel to their peers, but there’s a gross redundancy about it.
The whole book is the author talking to the reader. So why the need for a quote?
Avoid repetition
Repetition might work for midnight infomercials, where the presenter is saying to you, ‘But, wait, there’s more!’ But TV is a visual medium where repetition works as an assault to gain attention. In reading you already have your audience’s attention. The reader would not have picked up your book unless they were interested in what you have to say.
Don’t make the same point over and over and over, thinking that the more times you say something, the stronger you’re making that point. You’re not. You’re boring your reader. Writing is about economy. Say things once. Move on. Trust your reader got it. How would you like it if I stood by your side and reread this paragraph to you ad nauseam? You wouldn’t. You’d go nuts. There’s no reason to do the same thing in print.
The only time to use repetition is if it’s for stylistic purposes, like this.
Be thorough but succinct
Everybody can have a tendency to babble, particularly verbally. Have you been at a party when you’ve needed to explain something, only to go on and on, and then realise later how you could’ve been much more expedient? You often think of how to be more concise once you’ve thought things through, or had a chance to take another stab at it.
Take this example:
- Setting up a new business can be daunting. It’s a prospect filled with many risks. There are many things to consider – pitfalls that both the inexperienced and experienced can fall into, which is one of the reasons operating a business can be so frightening. There are numerous tasks to consider, and it’s best to have a system in place – a framework of procedures and protocols that establish your parameters and cant act as guides.
This is a very wordy way of saying:
- Setting up a new business can be filled with many risks, both for the experienced and inexperienced. It’s best to get a system in place to act as a guide to help avoid pitfalls.
Which is better to read? The first example is clunky and dense, using 74 words. The second uses just 34 words to say exactly the same thing.
Tell me who everybody is
Don’t start prattling on about workmates or family or friends without introducing them – like everybody should know who they are, e.g.
- ‘Gary was surprised by the response we got to this incentive.’
Who is Gary? Is he a friend? A brother? A boss? The dog? This occurs frequently – authors mentioning somebody they might know well, but whom the reader is going to be unfamiliar with. If you’re going to introduce somebody, the first time you introduce them clarify who they are in relation to you.
- ‘Gary, our Regional Manager, was surprised by the response we got to this incentive.’
That’s how simple clarity is.