Guest Author: TL Jones

Today we have T.L. Jones visiting, talking about the craft of writing. She's working on an interesting series, the Jaded Series, revolving around Jade Hamilton Douglas. Without more ado, here is T.L. Jones.

The Craft of Writing, By T.L. Jones

First I want to thank Amy for allowing me the opportunity to blog. We have chosen to blog about ‘The Craft of Writing’.

Writing can mean many different things to the writer themselves. Some authors write out of passion, some for stress relief and others for reasons to many to mention. Most writers’ stick to a genre they are familiar with or have knowledge of.

Writing can be challenging and enjoyable. The different styles of writing can be confusing and new authors have to find their own style. Some authors will make an outline before they begin their novels or short stories and others, like me, don’t work with an outlined story.

I find that my talent simply put, flows. I love the challenge of sitting down to my laptop and begin a story line off the top of my head. This would be uncomfortable for those that choose to work from an outline.

Imagine being able to write a story and have characters you’ve made come alive on the page. I believe one of the highest compliments a writer can get is when the reader tells them that reading the book was like watching a movie. That means they have given enough detail to give the reader a complete description to actually see in their minds eye what the writer is trying to say.

Many writers’ complete formal training to learn the rules of proper writing. I don’t believe you must have formal training, however, keep in mind the importance of proper grammar. Of course, sometimes, proper grammar is not used in such instances as, conversations between characters. (When you want the dialect to sound like a conversation.) Not many of us talk properly when we converse with each other, such is the case when you have two characters talking you want it to sound like a typical conversation between two people.

Editing is one of the most important aspects of writing. Many writers employ editors to edit theirs works. You wouldn’t want to pick up a book to read only to find error after error. That takes away from the joy of curling up with a good book. The storyline can be an exceptional storyline, however, if not edited well, you probably would not enjoy the book.

Writers come from all walks of life and most work another job. Writing is a hard industry to break into since today it seems everyone has a book. Self-publishing and vanity presses make it easy to get a book in print these days, however, quality can be a problem. If you are going to take the time to write a book keep in mind the competition for finding a publisher is very tough.

There are several blogs on writing techniques and the do’s, as well as, the don’ts for anyone looking for help. Just make sure you take the time to see your book completed with quality. Do not rush the process and skip important steps just to see your work in print.

T.L. Jones

http://www.tljonesauthor.com/

and on Facebook as T L Jones Author

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Thanks, T.L., and I'm glad you mentioned taking time with your book. Independent publishing venues have made it ridicuously easy to rush a book into print before it's really ready. It's difficult to resist that when you're really excited about a story. But we all owe it to our readers to take the time and write the best book possible.