Finding Clarity in our Words

When we write, we communicate our ideas and stories. We paint worlds of colour and shapes, texture and taste, concept and sound. We populate our worlds with characters who gain a life of their own and people with whom we want to fall in love. When we first put pen to paper we often create chaos, so how do we find clarity in the mishmash of ideas, how do we find focus?

There are questions we can ask ourselves before we even begin:

What exactly do I want to achieve? Sometimes when a scene refuses to work, it’s because we may have lost our direction, or we’re unclear about the scene’s purpose. Asking this question will help us find clarity. It will also help us with the decision to save or toss scenes.

Who is my audience? With whom do I wish to communicate? Often we tell ourselves, “I write for me”, but, if we want our words heard and our stories read, then our audience is greater than ourselves. We need to know who it is we wish to connection with so we can adjust our writing.

And then there are questions we can ask ourselves when we edit:

Have I said what I meant to say? So often we think we are saying one thing, only to discover we’ve said something else. Often we will need to go back and remind ourselves about the purpose.

Is what I’ve said relevant? Often we can waffle on and lose ourselves in the joy of description and discovery. We need to remind ourselves our readers won’t always share the same joy especially if they sense us waver from the path of our stories.

When your words threaten to become mud, what do you do?