How to Make Your Writing More Interesting

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     Being an avid reader, I have had the pleasure of enjoying many books over the years. Just as anyone else, I suppose, I have found many books to be exceptionally well written, some that could be considered good but not great, and a handful that were just downright horrible.  I often asked myself: what is it that makes a great writer?  Why is it that some authors put you to sleep after only one page, while others captivate you to the point where it seems you could never put the book down?  After taking this English composition course, I think I have finally figured out some of the great secrets that have contributed to the great success of many authors over the years.  I think that many writers just write; perhaps they should instead first prewrite, then write, then write again.

    The first step in writing a good paragraph, essay, or book is to prewrite.  Don’t just begin writing.  That would be like getting in your car and just driving; hoping you will get to your destination somehow.  Just as you use a map when driving, you should also make yourself a “map” to guide your writing.  Get your thoughts and ideas all together so that they can be organized and mapped out. There are many ways to develop your thoughts, such as free writing, brainstorming, and writing an outline.  Free writing is simply taking pen in hand and writing whatever comes to mind.  It doesn’t matter if it makes sense or not.  Just continue writing for a set period of time, ten or fifteen minutes, without stopping.  One thought will generate other ideas that you never would have thought of on your own. Once you are finished you will be amazed at the ideas that had been hiding in your mind just dying to get out. Brainstorming is similar to free writing in that you jot down as many things as you can think of, but in this case all that you write should be confined to one topic. Once you begin brainstorming, you might be surprised how much you really know about a subject. That paper that seemed completely impossible to write now seems like child’s play.  Another aspect of prewriting that is often overlooked is writing an outline.  While it is good to have ideas to refer to when writing, it is even better to have these ideas organized in a logical manner.  Completing and following your outline will not only make your writing easier, it will also make it more interesting.  

     The next step in improving your writing is to give it flow by using variety.  Nothing can be drabber than reading the same adjective to describe a multiplicity of words on the same page.  With the English language you have thousands of words at your disposal; use that to your advantage.  Imagine preparing a meal and using only one spice to season every dish.  Your dinner guests will leave you enough leftovers to last for weeks.  In addition to using a variety of words, it is also important to vary your sentences. Using sentences of different lengths will make the reading less tedious; a stroll in the park is much more enjoyable than a march in a military formation.  Another method that will make your writing more enjoyable is the use of similes and metaphors.  Reading is much more enchanting when the imagination is brought into play.  

     The final step in making your writing more interesting is to write it again.  Never be satisfied with the first little scribbles on your paper.  Reread it and see how it can be improved: add to it, take away from it, tear it down and rebuild it.  Make it yours.  Proofread it and correct any mistakes you find.  Even an interesting book can become outright annoying when it is full of grammar and spelling mistakes.  

    Although it is highly unlikely that I will ever be a best-selling author, I at least know that after taking this course, any future papers I write will be much better and more interesting than those I wrote in the past.  That is, if I practice what I have learned.  So in the future, whether it is you or I who writes the words, we should always remember: prewrite, write, and write again.

© 2012 Stephen Moore.  All rights reserved.

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