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Write On! review
At a time where self-help books are becoming increasingly popular, it is more and more difficult to find the handy among the howlers, writes Jo Tillin
The majority of people write something everyday, whether it's a memo, letter or shopping list. For aspiring professional writers like myself, sometimes you need reassurance that you are using grammar correctly, help with editing or just simply the confidence that your writing is actually worth reading. Author Martin Gurdon seeks to do just that in his latest book, Write On!
Gurdon uses his personal experience as a freelance journalist along with his sense of humour in order to prove that you do not have to have an English degree to be a successful writer. I found one of his most inspiring comments to be that it is OK to fail with a piece and be rejected, as "learning from mistakes is useful and productive".
The sections on how to 'cut the crap' and on grammar are truly invaluable, making me realise that exclamation marks really should not be used to excess - if at all - and that in fact the best way to find out how your work reads, is to read it aloud. It is, as Gurdon suggests, a useful exercise to edit other people's work in an attempt to improve your own writing. Ensuring that everyone, from Joe Public through to experts, can understand your writing is vital.
Gurdon's view is that you should always give the editor what they asked for, even if that means it's not something you would enjoy reading - or indeed, writing. Although from my point of view, surely if it was something you were not interested in, you wouldn't want to write about it in the first place?
Write On! is a useful tool in helping anyone who wants to turn their hand to writing journalism, but does not give specific assistance to those who are interested in writing novels, screenplays or non-fiction books, for example. This, however, is only a minor flaw in what is otherwise an interesting and humorous beginner's guide to writing.
<a href="How-To-Self-Edit.asp">[i]Click here</a> to read an extract from Write On![/i]
