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Is It Worth Reading

I am basically a person who doesn’t like to read. I find most articles that come my way are a rehash of the same old stuff. The compelling dialogs are the ones that get my attention with an interesting headline and a hint of something new to ponder on. What really is problematic is the fact that my hopes are high for a short period of time before I realize the story is a rehash of some old topic with a stale outcome.

How many times can you get people’s attention with cookie-cutter topics that have been driven into the ground with repetitive statements that have no new twist at all. Let’s take an old story, rearrange some words and plop it out on the internet for the general public. Don’t take the time to be creative but reload generic content that satisfies the needs of the writer to publish something on schedule.

I wonder if today’s writers are really creating material they would want to read themselves.Would their headlines create a sense of urgency to at least force them to take a peek at the upfront paragraphs of the subject matter being set forth. Why should anyone read their jargon before bouncing off the page and moving on?

Telling Stories Creates Individual Content

I do like to read stories about people’s individual adventures or trial-by-error learning curves. They bring out a realistic scenario that lets you identify with the author. Instead of some high-minded expert creating structured discourse on a particular topic, the writer connects with the reader one on one.

My father’s main line of communication with me was the “Lecture”. Do this or don’t do that. Take my advice or I will be displeased with your independent mannerisms. If you don’t follow my all-knowing advice, you will be branded as one who is unable to take the necessary steps to learn or survive. And there will be conflict!

Unfortunately for me, I did the same thing with my kids. I didn’t take the time to get inside their heads to find out what was going on. Lectures, discipline, punishment, and resentment set in. They would always wait for the encounters to end so that they could get on with life.

A lot of writers are like that. They lecture the reader. The article doesn’t draw the audience into their world and create a sense of camaraderie. In other words, they fail to place themselves where you are at right now and tell of some hard knocks they went through and how the passage of time gave them their insights. Those experiences are not effectively shared with you in the instructions they provide that you are reading through.

If I tell a story about one of my experiences, I know that it is not copied from someone else’s offering. It is what I went through as I thought about, and then got involved with, some particular facet of life that came my way. And the great thing about that approach is, I don’t have to feign expertise on any particular subject when I write like that.

What Do You Write About?

What is it that interests me, I ask myself. Did enough things happen in my life that helps me think about topics to share with others? Would I be able to write in such away that I could put my own spin on a story to make it come alive in the mind of the reader as well as unique and interesting?

One of my earliest articles stated that “You Are A Writer When You Say You Are”. You have to just put your feet in the water and get it done. The outright fear of what others will think of your work has to be set aside.

If your story rehashes a topic that everyone else is writing about, you will get lost in the shuffle. It’s analogous to the fate of the smallest fish in the sea. They were born to be food for a larger fish who were, in turn, born to be the same. Your work will be steeped in mediocrity unless you create something new. It will get lost in a sea of repetitive meanderings and probably get stuck at the bottom of the deck.

How many times can you rehash ways to lose visceral fat or rediscover the Keto diet? If someone else’s cooking recipe is the best ever, what spin or story can you tell to make yours different, better, or at least more interesting? Do you have a tale to tell about saving money, buying a house, fishing for mountain trout or growing a rare tropical plant?

Telling a story helps engage the reader. Even boring matter can come alive with some particular mishap involved.

I Don’t Try To Be Perfect

Have you ever noticed on home improvement programs, no one makes a mistake. Everything goes together in lockstep precision to produce the desired outcome with no trial and error. Or, how about a cooking show where the ingredients are all easily available and the oven springs forth a golden entrée that tastes delightful, hands down. It’s a perfect world on TV!

I don’t try to be perfect. I just try to tell a story the best way I know how. My ideas come either from past experiences or subjects I want to know more about and expand on. If I can relate to the tale of another person, I use it as a reference, with the accompanying acknowledgement, to help me expand on what I have to say.

Starting out, the initial typewritten dialog is usually nowhere near what I desire for the finished product, but sometimes it is. In any event, I start typing in draft mode and hope for ideas as I tap on the keys.

My primary objective is to make it interesting enough for the reader so that he doesn’t bounce me off his screen. Is the article good enough to make me want to read it again to glean some further insights from the words set forth. Do I laugh, cry, grimace, or sink deep into thought about my presentation. Is the article something that I would read if someone else wrote it?

What I don’t like is misspelled words or grammatical errors. I don’t want multiple consecutive sentences starting with the same word. The use of different terms that convey a similar thought helps keep the paragraphs from displaying monotonous repetitive overtones.

Using WordPress Tools and Installed Plugins

It’s hard enough to keep topics interesting without adding to the quandary with poorly constructed phrases that assault proper “linguistics”. The art of writing is built around a series of well-defined structural precedents. I don’t favor the idea of butchering them and sending the reader scurrying for something better to read.

Linguistics: The study of human speech including the units, nature, structure, and modification of language.

Since I have written over 60 articles and published them on my website, I consider myself an accomplished writer. I try to tell an interesting story and help my readers glean some knowledge from what I have to say. The many positive comments I have received tell me that at least a certain amount of people find my information presentable, entertaining, and informative.

I also try to help people who are asking for advice with feedback to their questions. All of this is new territory for me. I have come along way and will continue to grow and improve my presentations. If I can help you and others in the process, it will all be worthwhile!

I am requesting that my readers click on the links provided and download a sample read of each book and give a review on Amazon. You will have free access to the first four chapters of each book. My hope is that you will like the story lines enough to obtain either an eBook version or a paperback copy that you can put on your bookshelf as a masterpiece when you are done. FATE STALKS A HERO I: RESURGENCE, FATE STALKS A HERO II:THE FIJI FULCRUM, and THE SAGA OF HERACLES PENOIT. I will be giving excerpts on these works in upcoming blogs to familiarize you the reader with exciting details about the contents of each one. Thank you!

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