Wednesday 20 June 2012

An Alphabet of Better Writing # A

A is for Author....

My dictionary (an old pocket Oxford belonging to my Dad, with his name written in the front) defines author as the originator of an idea or event. The word sits between authenticate (part of the writers job being to authenticate or give validity to their readers' experience of the world) and authoritarian / authoritative / authority. While I wouldn't advocate being authoritarian in your work (a light touch with writing is often the best way to go) authoritative is defined as being reliable *tick* and authority means personal influence arising especially from knowledge.

You can't go far wrong in your creative work if you write authentically, with knowledge drawn from personal experience; these seem to me to be excellent foundation stones for a novel or a short story, and I'm starting my Alphabet of  Better Writing with Author, because it all begins with you....

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