Hey there. And welcome to “Nothing but the Words.” I’m your author coach, Candice L Davis.

In this episode, I’ll give you some specific steps you can take to actually make your writing better. 

Last week, I was talking to a coaching client who lives in Australia, and she shared with me a chapter she’d written for an anthology years ago. She mentioned that I should keep in mind that her writing has grown a lot in since that book was published, so I shouldn’t expect it to be her best work. I loved hearing her say that because it’s just confirmation of the fact that writing is a skill you can develop. 

She has a growth mindset about her writing ability. She believes she can improve as a writer, and she has. Now that she’s writing her first book, she’s getting that much more writing practice. She’s getting feedback from me as her author coach, and she’s applying that feedback to keep improving. I’m excited about her book. She’s only a few chapters in, but she’s doing the work, and I know her book is going to be phenomenal.

Have you ever wondered if your writing was good enough for you to become an author? Have you ever had a crisis of confidence when it comes to writing a whole book? Do you ever look back at something you’ve written and wish you’d done better? The good news is: you absolutely can write better. 

So-so writers can become good writers. Good writers can become great. And great writers, should they choose to, can become phenomenal.

Writing is not a talent you have to be born with. For some people, writing well comes naturally.  Yes, of course. For others, it’s something they really have to work at. But writing well is a muscle every good writer has to work to continue to develop over time.

Writing is both an art and a craft, which is great news. That means anybody can get better at writing.

So how do you get better at writing?

As I’ve mentioned in previous episodes, it’s usually easier to outline, write what you want to say, and then make the writing the best it can be in the revision process. Perfectionism and the writing process don’t go together. Get the content out. Then, make it as good as you possibly can.

There are lots of ways to make your writing better when you revise it. Here are 5 ways to improve your writing.

If you’re serious about writing well, take notes on this episode or listen to it a 2nd or 3rd time so you can really start applying these tips.

#1. Run spell check. 

I know. Spell check isn’t perfect. There are lots of typos it will miss and sometimes it tells you to change something you shouldn’t. So yes, you have to make a decision about each change, but you’d be shocked at how many people never bother to run spell check and then send out writing with basic errors spell check would’ve caught. 

And I’ve tested Grammarly and found it to be slightly better than Spell Check on some things but not by much. I used the paid version for a while, but many of the suggestions weren’t spot-on, and if you don’t know the rules of grammar, it can just cause more confusion. Its best feature was pointing out plagiarism. That was helpful in the rare instance when a client forgot to cite a source. My recommendation is to stick with Spell Check and actually use it. But don’t use it blindly, look at each suggestion and decide if you want to accept it or not.

#2. Avoid unnecessary word repetition. 

If you’ve used the same word multiple times in a short paragraph, you might need to consider a synonym. Sometimes, restructuring the sentence in a new way solves the problem. Other times, you just need to find a new word. The point is not to bore the reader with repetition. Breathe life into your writing with a new word.

If you need to turn to your thesaurus to find a new word, which I often do, then choose wisely. Make sure the new word still fits with your voice and the tone of your work. For example, if you’re writing a book about gardening, and you have a casual tone throughout the book, don’t swap in the Latin name for tomato plants just to mix up your word choice.

Keep in mind also that some words listed as synonyms will have different connotations. They may have the similar dictionary meanings, but they bring to mind different images. For example, youthful and childish are listed as synonyms, but most adults who would appreciate being called youthful would be offended by the term childish. Don’t let the thesaurus dictate your word for you. You choose.

#3. Be specific, not general.

Generalities lack impact. So if you’re writing a case study, give us the numbers. Don’t say you doubled your business. Tell us where you started and where you finished. Are you talking revenue or profit? Be specific.

If you’re sharing an event from your childhood, don’t say “when I was a little kid.” Tell us how old you were. 

Because a 3-year-old and an 9-year-old could both be considered little kids, but they’re quite different from each other. A 4-year-old girl with thick plaits hanging over her shoulders and dusty Mary Janes on her feet is specific.

Liquor is less specific than brown liquor, which is less specific than six-year-old, small-batch Kentucky bourbon.

Specific details create an image in the reader’s mind. It puts us in the world you’re creating with your book. It makes the words on the page concrete and real.

#4. Eliminate unnecessary words. (Using “that” had had) We all have words that we overuse when we write, almost like written tics. Yours may be unique to you, and the only way to discover what they are is to either read over your work and keep an eye out for overused words or let someone else give you feedback on your writing and ask that person to point out any words you seem to rely on.

Some commonly overused words in writing, include: just, really, very, 

If you see the word “that” you should always question whether or not it’s needed, and if not, you should cut it. For example, in the sentence, She told him that she loved him. “That” is unnecessary. You can simply write She told him she loved him.

#5. Use active verbs, instead of passive verbs.

“Mistakes were made.” is a lot different from “I made mistakes.” In the first sentence, mistakes were made, no one is taking action. No one is owning anything. It’s a famous line used by politicians because they can dodge responsibility by using a passive voice. But when you say “I made mistakes,” or “He made mistakes,” both in active voice, you’re

If you see a version of the verb to be (is, was, were) you’re probably using passive voice. Of course, you’ll find it necessary or just appropriate to use passive voice some of the time.

And if you really want to improve your writing, work with an author coach. A good author coach will help you see not just how to write better but how to specifically improve your writing. I help my clients make the most of their strengths and shore up the weaknesses in their writing. That’s what I’m here to do. 

To find out more about author coaching, visit CandiceLDavis.com/call and sign up for a free consultation call. 

In an upcoming, I’ll give you more strategies to write better, but if you do only these things, you’ll already be ahead of the vast majority of people. Your book will be better than most books.

Thanks for listening to this episode of “Nothing but the Words,” the podcast that gives you everything you need to write a phenomenal book. If you benefited from this episode, I’d love it if you’d leave me a great review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.

I’m your Author Coach, Candice L Davis, and I’ll see you next time.