GREAT BOOKS cont'd

So, as I was saying when I so rudely interrupted myself with life and work, writing great books is a skill that can be learned. There are many ways to do so. For instance, read many good books in your genre of interest. I suggest that you avoid the "bestseller" list if the author is repeatedly on the list. Not that bestselling authors are necessarily not the greatest of writers, but they do seem to develop a "formula" that sells to the masses which causes each book to be more of the same. Go to the library and browse through books of interest to you. Read selections from many books. Find books that grab your interest. Examine the writing style. Really good authors don't write in simple narrative using simple sentence structure. There is definitely something special about good writing, and the more you read the more you will recognize the difference between mediocre and great. As Oprah Winfrey has said in the past, the first sentence of a book has to grab her or she puts the book down. Good writers can set the location, the time period, the mood and the character in one sentence without writing something as simple as: It was a snowy day in 1792 when Prince Zorga made his way through the dark forest on horseback.

There are writers' groups in most cities that host writing skills workshops. Do some research in your area to find some of those groups. There is also usually a Writer in Residence who mentors other authors. Most basically, though, before you do that, take a first year university English class to brush up on the basics of good grammar.

So, I challenge you to be the best that you can be. Don't rush the writing process. Create something great.

Denise