writing tips

• "My mother drew a distinction between achievement and success. She said that achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best that is in you. Success is being praised by others. That is nice but not as important or satisfying. Always aim for achievement and forget about success."    

             Helen Hayes  

• "I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has to get down to work." 

            Pearl Buck 

• The pause that annoys: When a comma makes life needlessly hard

  boston.com

    Jan Freeman

• "gonna" -- This is not a word! It should very rarely be used in print. The argument "We don’t change quotes" is a misapplication of a basic principle. The key is that it’s not a matter of meaning, but enunciation. Do we record all instances of nonstandard enunciation? "I dunno."  

            Maurreen Skowran, The Beaumont Enterprise, Texas

• “…you must write every day. There are two reasons for this rule: getting the work done and connecting with your unconscious mind. In order to be a writer, you have to set up a daily routine. Put aside an amount of time (not less than an hour and a half) to sit with your computer or notebook.” 

          Walter Mosley, This Year You Write Your Novel

• Word Spacing-one space or two? Like most publishers, Chicago advises leaving a single character space, not two spaces, between sentences and after colons used within a sentence, and this recommendation applies to both the manuscript and the published work.

        The Chicago Manual of Style Sixteenth Edition