Google, Wikipedia, and the Art of Writing

I usually research before I write.  Why?  Well, let’s just say I’m smart enough to know when I’m not smart enough to write about something with just the ideas floating around in my head.  Someday I may be an expert on something – but today is not that day.  Tomorrow’s not looking so good, either.

When I started my writing for fun and not very much profit 28 years ago, I was advised that every writer should have the following books on their bookshelves.  I dutifully bought them.

1.  A good dictionary.  I have Merriam-Webster, copyright 1974.

2.  Roget’s Thesaurus.  My copy is copyright 1980.

3.  Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, by John Bartlett, original copyright date 1882.  My copy is copyright 1980.

Fast forward 28 years and you’ll find these books collecting dust on a bookshelf in my husband’s office – I don’t even use them enough to justify moving them to my office.

Today, there are several online dictionaries – with the benefit of containing words that no one had even thought to have heard of in the 1980s.  Online dictionaries contain new words such as internet, webcast, cell phone and laptop, not to mention supermom and superglue.   And they contain old words with new meanings such as mouse, virus, blackberry and tablet.

Today, most word processing software has a built-in thesaurus.  So if I’m writing along and can’t think of the word I want, I just put in a similar word that I know I don’t want, and click on “Synonyms.”  Presto!  The software gives me a choice of half a dozen words that I could use in its place. 

And while I still refer to Bartlett’s from time to time – particularly if I’m looking for something Shakespearean – I  have to go to another source to find more recent quotes. 

My favorite other source, of course, is the World Wide Web.  Search engines can do marvelous things.  Some of these, such as Goodsearch, even contribute to charity for each search.  Seriously.  You sign up, choose your charity, and Goodsearch donates a penny a search.  Doesn't sound like much, but it all adds up.

With the ease of use and wealth of information comes a price, however.  As a user of the internet, I have to consider that not all sources are created equally, and that misinformation is as easy to find as true information.   Caveat emptor.  

Writing About Writing

When I was a stay at home mom 27 years ago (wow – has it been that long?) I attempted to write and sell magazine articles.  I say “attempted” because I got far more rejection slips than I got sales, but I did sell a few articles and had a few more published without compensation.  In fact, my most prized acceptance was Network Magazine, a local publication focusing on women’s issues.  I still have the note from the editor telling me, “You write well.” That was all the compensation I needed.

Back then I bought, studied, and took to heart Shirley Biaggi’s book, How to Write and Sell Magazine Articles.  Just for fun, I re-read it.

The book was published in 1981.  Much has changed in the art of writing since then.  The Internet wasn't mainstream; we did research by going to the library and rummaging through the card catalogs.  Laptops weren't invented yet; we took notes on 3 X 5 cards with careful headings so they could be easily indexed.  Digital photography wasn't invented; we took photos with our 35mm cameras and had them developed.  Word processing was in its infancy; and while many writers had word processing programs (anybody remember WordStar?), many magazines explicitly stated in their writers guidelines that they would not accept manuscripts printed on a dot-matrix printer.

So we broke out the typewriters, typed our manuscripts in double-space with one-inch margins, and sent them, with photographs and the required self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) to the magazines we wanted to consider our articles.  Of course, we wanted to focus on primary markets, which paid more than $400 per article. 

Much has stayed the same in the art of writing since then.  Then, as now, content is key.  Writing style and organization are important, but if the article isn't interesting, all the polish in the world won’t make people want to read it.  

Reinventing Life

My friend and former co-worker, Brad S. Bunker, lost his job in a layoff about seven months before I retired.  Since then he has completed, edited and self-published not one, not two, but five novels.  Five!   So this is what he’s been doing in his man-cave.

I recently read his book, Shoes, and thoroughly enjoyed it.  It’s a story about kids, family history, and a century-old treasure hunt.  I picked this one first because Brad had shared the story line with me years ago, while we were still working together.  It was really fun to read the book and see how the story ended.

I spoke with Brad about his books and about writing.  He told me he doesn’t research, doesn’t outline – he just gets an idea in his head and starts writing.  Brad says, “I believe everyone has a story just waiting to be told.”

Brad has inspired me.  I always planned on writing after I retired from corporate America.   Not just blogging, but really writing.  I had an idea for a novel.  I gave my heroine a name.  I spent several weeks researching the history and culture of the country where she will grow up.  Basically, I spent my first seven months of retirement planning to write.  Before I chatted with Brad, I had yet to put the proverbial pen to the proverbial paper.  Brad cut to the chase.  No excuses, just great stories. 

You can buy Brad’s books on Amazon.com, or through his web site, bradsbunker.com.

The New Routine

Now that we’ve finished winterizing and storing the trailer, cleaned up the overgrown jungle otherwise known as our back yard, and completed road trips to Phoenix, AZ and Cody, WY, I think we might be settling into a routine.

Not necessarily surprising, it’s similar to the routine we fell into at Hoop Lake.  We wake up and have coffee and read the paper.  I run.  We go to work.

Wait – I’m retired.  What’s this about going to work?  Since coming home from the lake, I have mowed lawns, fertilized lawns, sprayed for weeds, sprayed for bugs, picked up trash, hauled trash to the dump, replaced switches, painted decks, and taken door knobs in to be re-keyed.  Whew!  I have to confess that I had completely taken for granted all the work that it takes – and that Paul has done all these years – to manage our rental properties. 

I had hoped to be more prolific in my writing once things settled down at home.  Here’s another confession – I was somewhat annoyed that the schedule we’ve adopted has me doing manual labor during the morning hours, which have always been my peak time for energy and creativity.  But I step back and realize that I should directly contribute to the business that is funding my retirement.

I also should write.  It’s what I’ve been planning to do in retirement since I was in my early 20s. 

So it’s back to the Hoop Lake schedule, and I’m writing in the afternoons.  Trying to do so without caffeine – most days I succeed.  Also trying to do so without the distractions of the Internet.  Wish me luck on that one!