Tag Team Writing
We’d clash. We’d argue. Neither of us would be satisfied, and the end result would be disastrous, a muddied representation of watered down prose.
I based this prejudice on the experiences I’ve had at a standards drafting conference. Standards need to be written clearly and concisely. Right?
Wrong!
These tomes are lengthy, comprehensive, and full of language that doesn’t soothe the soul of any beast, let alone a regular Joe or Jill. Peppered with acronyms and obtuse phraseology, they are tough to read at best. I’ve sat through a number of meetings for my “day job” where committees of fifty men and women tried to edit via projected spreadsheets and documents. It can be torture!
Frequently, six or seven well-intentioned members will grandstand. Sometimes for HOURS. And all for the want of “le mot juste.” Usually, however, it’s never for the “right” word, it’s more for “me too-ism.” I become tempted to lay my head down on the desk and let it all wash over me in a flurry of agony. But I don’t. I pay attention and try to contribute, like a good doobie. Finally, when the eight hours have passed, I return to my hotel room and delight in writing another chapter in the LeGarde Mystery Series, thrilled to be alone to compose to my heart’s content, without other wannabe writers messing around with my prose.
So, when a friend of mine asked for help with her query letter, I thought, “Sure!” But I didn’t expect it would be done “live.” I thought we’d edit and attach recommendations via email, like we normally do. This time, however, she suggested that we actually get together to do this, on one computer, face-to-face. My instincts roared up into a tsunami. No way! I thought. I had massive doubts and began to type up something on my own.
She arrived shortly thereafter, with her own query written in advance. Aha! I thought. She has the same reservations about this dubious process.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with a query letter, it’s basically a one-page pitch that writers send to potential publishers or agents. It needs to have a short paragraph that regales your book in such an eloquent, witty style that the publisher has no choice but to immediately snap you up with a hefty advance! It’s impossible to do, especially if you are writing about your own book. I know. I’ve tried. For days. For weeks. Although my current publisher is competent and has been decent to me, I’m currently trying to hook a big time player who’s in the mass media stream. Finally, a fellow writer helped me with my own query and I wound up with a gorgeous paragraph, neatly crafted, that I didn’t write. Oh well.
My friend arrived. We sat down at my computer and began. After a few false starts, we began to meld our paragraphs, taking the phrases we favored from each other’s drafts. It started to work! What resulted was a “brainstorming-for-two” session. In the past, my experiences with brainstorming have been confined to engineering team activities involving problem solving or research and design. What normally happened in this environment was that “no thoughts were judged.” Ideas were floated up, bandied about, and recorded. One idea built on another. And another. Sometimes, if the team was lucky, some supremely unusual and fantastic combination of ideas resulted in innovation.
And so, my friend and I brainstormed. I typed up silly phrases that danced around the topics. She tossed out words and phrases. We built on the words, wending our way toward those jump-off-the-page, dynamic sentences. Together, we isolated the choicest phrases. It sang! It was lyrical! It was the best darned one paragraph synopsis I’d ever read!
My misgivings were all for naught. My instincts were flawed. It can work! Tag team writing can be successful. At least in this venue.
So, once again, the Lord keeps me humble. Oh yeah… and so do all those rejection letters!
Aaron Paul Lazar resides in Upstate New York with his wife, three daughters, two grandsons, mother-in-law, dog, and four cats. After writing in the early morning hours, he works as an electrophotographic engineer at NexPress Solutions Inc, in Rochester, New York. Additional passions include vegetable, fruit, and flower gardening; preparing large family feasts; photographing his family, gardens, and the breathtakingly beautiful Genesee Valley; cross-country skiing across the rolling hills; playing a distinctly amateur level of piano, and spending “time” with the French Impressionists whenever possible. Although he adored raising his three delightful daughters, Mr. Lazar finds grandfathering his “two little buddies” to be one of the finest experiences of his life.
Double Forté (www.legardemysteries.com) is the first book in the LeGarde Mystery Series, released in January of 2005. Upstaged, the second book in the series, was released in October, 2005. Numerous books have been written and are ready to go. Mr. Lazar just finished writing Counterpoint, his ninth. His column, Seedlings, can be found on Bob Burdick’s The Back Room, A Cozy Retreat for Writers and Readers (www.bobburdick.com/thebackroom) and The Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine. (www.fmam.biz/whatsnew.shtml) Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles
Recent articles in this category:
- Writing The Best Ad Copy Possible For Newspapers
Learning how to write ads for Newspapers is a very important skill a small business owner should mas - Top Suggestions To Become A Far Better Proofreader
Proofreading is a process which involves rectifying several spelling and other grammatical mistakes - Greatest Training Strategies
When you have ever been to a health care provider, the first thing they do is convince you to do low - What Everybody Ought To Know About Publishing
Imagine picking up your daily newspaper and fiding blank pages. Or turning on the 6 p.m. news to be - Get Your Creative Juices Going
Writing an article doesn't just mean putting down thoughts into words then typing and writing it. A - Article Review Test- Facing And Passing The Article Review Process Easily
Article review test is an important step that any new writer has to take in order to write for an ar - Adopting Good Writing Tactics For High Search Engine Rankings
Search engine optimization of the site is responsible for improving the accessibility of the site on - How Big Should Your Headline Be?
I've recently seen this demonstrated in a split test I put together on the entry page of my web site - Crafts Articles - How to bag maintenance
cheap chanel purses can not help but have a subtle cortical surface wounds, hand temperature and m - Classified Advertising: Follow The Aida Formula For Success
Writing classified ads really is easier than you think. All you have to do is follow a simple formul
Most viewed articles in this category:
- Sales Letter Writing
When writing a sales letter, it is important to have a good attitude in order to sell your product o - Why Copywriting Doesn't Work
Once upon a time I had an ad critiqued by one of the world's few copywriting geniuses.Not a freelanc - Secret to Writing Killer Copy
The point of contact is any place where your potential client has the opportunity to see your market - Increase the Power of Your Sales Letter in 2007
Writing a good sales letter can be frustrating. Looking around at some examples you find that most - 3 Keys To Effective Sales Letters
Today I want to talk a little bit about sales letters. You've probably read tons of sales letters d - Newsletters: 4 Mistakes People Make
68% of customers stop doing business because of perceived indifference through lack of communication - How To Write Killer Sales Letters That Will Help Flood Your Inbox With Cash
A powerful, well-constructed sales letter is undoubtedly one of the most lethal tools in an internet - How To Write Advice Marketers Must Have
How to write sales copy advice is easy to find in the marketing world. All marketers know they must - Seven Webcopy Essentials To Boost Sales In 2007: How To Engage Online Visitors
Relevant webcopy is the key to engaging your website's visitors and converting more sales in 2007.Fo - Discover the Winning Ad Headline That Skyrockets Traffic, Sales, Profits & Subscription Rates
You may have heard that a good headline is what you need at the top of your sales page to get your v