1. I am writing this sentence just so that you can see words that really don’t need to be included in your projects.
2. I write this sentence to illustrate words to leave out of you writing.
One has you rambling and out of breath. The other is short, sweet and to the point. They both say the same thing.
“And the point to this two sentence exercise, is?” It’s the intro to what made me aware of flabby sentences.
2. I write this sentence to illustrate words to leave out of you writing.
One has you rambling and out of breath. The other is short, sweet and to the point. They both say the same thing.
“And the point to this two sentence exercise, is?” It’s the intro to what made me aware of flabby sentences.
 | A few years ago, I became involved with an online writing group. Each week a prompt is provided by the facilitator. Each week we are required to write our response in 99 Words. No more. No less. Initially, my stories would end up around 150 words, plus. That meant paring down unneeded words and chopping sentences to meet the given rules. The structure of the piece required a start, middle and finish. Not at all different from any novel, poem or short story. |
A week was a long time to create and submit, or so I thought. Faced with removing one-third of the story to meet the deadline and criteria, seven days is like one! The finish line loomed in my face, often resulting in submissions squeaking in under the wire.
It was obvious I needed a system of sorts to be on time. The rules were clear. The submissions requirements stated a back link to a blog or website, 99 words and completion within seven days.
What keeps me focused and within the allotted time frame? I start with pairing a picture from my files with the prompt. This helps with the direction of my writing. Keeping the brain in line with the chosen thought strategy lets me meet the set goal.
There are now times when I actually struggle to reach the 99 words. Panic is not an option. Here’s where I might throw in one or two of the trimmed words to get the job done.
Eva Langston wrote an article for Beyond Your Blog explaining, “words can make your writing flabby”. I hadn’t considered what I wrote to be untoned, droopy or sagging; however, when I looked at her list, reviewed some of my earlier pieces, she was bang on!
Do you write flabby sentences?
It was obvious I needed a system of sorts to be on time. The rules were clear. The submissions requirements stated a back link to a blog or website, 99 words and completion within seven days.
What keeps me focused and within the allotted time frame? I start with pairing a picture from my files with the prompt. This helps with the direction of my writing. Keeping the brain in line with the chosen thought strategy lets me meet the set goal.
There are now times when I actually struggle to reach the 99 words. Panic is not an option. Here’s where I might throw in one or two of the trimmed words to get the job done.
Eva Langston wrote an article for Beyond Your Blog explaining, “words can make your writing flabby”. I hadn’t considered what I wrote to be untoned, droopy or sagging; however, when I looked at her list, reviewed some of my earlier pieces, she was bang on!
Do you write flabby sentences?
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