EMPOWERING YOUR WORDS
Target Your Audience with Your Wordpower©
Amateur or professional, the key to quality wordsmithing is
blending dynamic creativity with exhaustive editing of the ideal vocabulary for your project…
For decades, I have strived to shape effective written materials for clients and myself. At the end of many assignments, a client often asks if there is a definitive method for generating quality writing. Unfortunately, while some aspects of the pieces I write can serve as near templates for others, I have to report there’s no magic potion for guaranteeing effective wordsmithing… for anyone! But once you have completed a project that delights you, take a final look to determine why it reflects the definition of successful the term successful wordsmithing…and review it from time to time!
LAUNCHING YOUR PROJECT
Feeling nervous to launch your writing project? Ask yourself one simple question: Am I so focused on the final product that I’m inhibiting my ability to write?Your honest answer might be a reluctant yes. If so, merely facing a pen or keyboard can be traumatic. In response, consider performing a visualization exercise. Without committing yourself to serious meditative practices, you should be able to picture your target audience reacting positivelyto a large screen presentation of your message. Armed with this optimistic image, you should feel better prepared to set your verbal vehicle on the path to success.
THE VALUE OF AN OUTLINE
How will you reach your goal? Regardless of the type of text you are composing, I’ve found that outlining is an invaluable tool. I believe there are three essential steps to shaping a focused outline:
~ Write a mission statement summarizing your project’s purpose
~ List key points in a progressive sequence that validates your summary
~ Craft a closing statement summarizing how you’ve met the goals of your mission
You now have a recipe for determining the content and sequencing of the elements of your composition. The exact position of the various components will vary, depending on the product you’re fabricating. The key points on your list may yield paragraphs in an essay, article or speech. They may also become individual pages in a website. If you are seeking financial backing for a new business, they could become categories within your business plan. And fiction? Well, your list may be the plotline that yields the chapters of a prize winning novel.
RESEARACHING THE DETAILS
Perhaps your project is not historical. You might assume there’s no need to research anything. But I’ve found that even a task that is not historical can benefit from a little research. Take a look at your outline. Are you planning to utilize much of that vocabulary in your text? Have you repeated any of the words? Is any of it subject to multiple meanings and uses?Take a few moments and look up a few of the terms. Has that activity alone spurred you to expand the outline in more than one direction? Consider looking up both new and old materials addressing your key points. Have you overlooked an important aspect of your project? Do you may need to expand your outline!
DOVETAILING CREATIVITY AND TECHNICALITY
Despite my assertion that such organization will aid every writing endeavor, do not suppose that good writers never experience confusion, indecision, or misdirection. The writing process is a dovetailing of creative and technical activity. As you plunge into the construction process of your project, you will need to alternate between capturing the essence of what you want to say and coldly editing what you have written. The beauty of this double pronged approach is that you can let your thoughts flow freely, knowing that the structure of your work will evolve as you edit your way toward a harmonious conclusion. I certainly found this approach to wordsmithing invaluable in writing the first Natalie Seachrist Visionary Hawaiian Cozy Mystery, Prospect For Murder. This approach facilitates your remaining productive, even when experiencing writer’s block.
STAGNATION
If you feel your creativity as a writer has stagnated, turn to another aspect of the project. Is there supporting material that requires your attention? Perhaps you need to shape a bibliography or glossary, or a preface, afterword, or acknowledgement section. If you’re responsible for printing, broadcasting, or uploading the final product, you may also need to work on color, form, texture, and artwork to present your thoughts with dynamism to your readers or viewers. And, of course, you can always revisit your personal bio or mission statement…or perhaps you should start on a media release for the current project
