Is Your Writing Style Hurting You?

There are basically three different writing styles: those who write and never revise. Those who write and revise, revise, revise, revise, revise... And those who write, revise, and occasionally revisit the work. The first two can kill you as a professional author.

I usually don't work with the second type. These are the people who think they are the best writers in the world, and wonder why no major publishing company has yet picked them up. They snort at you when you talk about revision as if only dumb writers do that. They may also fall into the small group of writers who are afraid that if they revise their own work they may mess it up--as if it were some sacred uttering instead of a novel or non-fiction work. Regardless of the reason, these people put out drivel and get some to read said drivel. Even I, who refuse to seriously edit this blog (because I do not get paid to write it), go back and read the stuff I put out to make sure it isn't too poorly written once immediately after writing it and on occasion thereafter. The problem is that the people who never revise always seem to write drivel. Think about it this way: If you don't want to read your own writing critically, than why should anyone else read it? If you can't or refuse to read your own writing critically, then hire someone to do it.

The other side of the coin are those people who revise and revise and revise and revise and revise and revise ad infinitum. I do work with these people, and they never realize that the more revisions they do on their work, the more errors they tend to introduce into it. Three revisions by the same person are the most anyone should do. If a year or so later, you want to go back in and revisit something, fine. You could even re-read your entire work for a better perspective, and you will probably find at least a few typos. The problem is that if you finish something and keep revising it over and over without a long break, you start to second guess yourself. You begin to forget what you moved to another chapter and reintroduce it. You introduce new ideas when the focus of that book has nothing to do with those ideas. It is the artist in you who is seeking perfection. I sometimes struggle with this and have to take a step back--set a deadline to be done.

The best practice is to write something and revise it once or twice. Then send it to a second pair of eyes. Allow them to go through it a couple of times, as well. Then, find a third pair of eyes, and even a fourth pair of eyes. At that point you have to trust it is the best it can be. You have to publish it and move on. Part of being a writer means that you must be able to discern when to finish. That point cannot be too early or too late.

Hitler's Big Lie and the COVID-19 Pandemic-- My Latest Writing Endeavor.

 I have written a new book, filled with citations to help clear up the mystery surrounding all the COVID-19 misinformation. Here is the description:

 The misinformation surrounding COVID-19 has possibly been the largest since the propaganda created in Nazi Germany. With even the CDC first telling everyone not to wear masks and now telling everyone to wear them, it can be extremely difficult to discover just what is right and what is wrong. Who do you trust? This book, filled with more than 300 cited references, was written to help you find the truth. It is a must-read if you are confused or if you want to find out if you have been able to sort through all the lies successfully. 30% of all the profits from the sale of this book will be divided equally and donated to a local YMCA and a summer camp that have been hit hard financially because of the COVID-19 business closures.

You can find the book on Amazon at the following links:

Full color version paperback: https://www.amazon.com/Hitlers-Big-Lie-COVID-19-Pandemic/dp/B08FP5V3JN/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&qid=1597677713&refinements=p_27%3AJennifer+J.+Reinoehl&s=books&sr=1-1&text=Jennifer+J.+Reinoehl

Color E-book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08G56JQVB

Black and white version paperback & black and white large print paperback--links to be posted within the next week or so. 

I am also going to be running some Goodreads Giveaways and will post those links as soon as they are ready.