3 Writing Mistakes That Make You Look Like an Amateur

Do you have a blog? Write for sheer enjoyment or hope to be a published author? Maybe you are a published author looking to improve. Whatever your modality of writing pleasure, a lot of us make the same three writing mistakes. These pitfalls drive professional editors and publishers crazy, and if you fix these common mistakes, you can push yourself from being a good writer to a polished one.

Once you have finished your first draft of any writing, you need to go back and look at it. Many people who are not professional writers author very successful blogs, articles and books. A general understanding of language is a great starting point. However, there are 3 common errors untrained writers make (and train ones, too, for that matter). Here are my top three writing peeves that are telltale signs you are an amateur:

Writing Pet Peeve #1 – Telling Not Showing

People like a good story. A recount or an essay, not so much. How do these differ? In a story you show using action and dialogue verses interpretation. Here is a concrete example:

I nervously walked into the convenience story and asked the guy behind the counter if he had any gum I could buy. He said he didn’t have any.

That is a sentence that TELLS you what happened. It is a simple recount of events, drawing conclusions. It does not SHOW you what happened, allowing the reader to come to their own conclusions. What if it was written a different way?

My hands sweat and my heart quickened as I pulled the convenience store door open.

“Do you have any gum?” I whispered to the man behind the counter.

“No,” he answered.

See the difference? I didn’t tell anyone I was nervous. The reader assumed such from the sweaty hands, quickened heartbeat, and the whispered question. This respects your reader, allowing them to make their own intelligent assumptions! Then, of course, it was a perfect chance use direct dialogue.

I can’t stress this enough: Please show, don’t tell!

Writing Pet Peeve #2 – Overuse of Adverbs.

We use too many adverbs. Adverbs are words that describe verbs or the action of a sentence. Often times they end in “ly,” but they don’t always. Why is the overuse of adverbs frowned upon? Short answer, using adverbs can mean you haven’t found the best verb and therefore are not writing in the most efficient, clearest manner.

Here are some examples:

He spoke quietly.

Quietly is the adverb, which describes the verb spoke.

A better choice would be:

He whispered.

Next example:

He closed the door loudly.

Better choice:

He slammed the door.

Another example:

She traveled quickly.

Better choice:

She sped.

See where I am going with this? I suggest all serious writers invest in a program like Hemmingway Editor. You can actually type or paste your text into the editor, and the program will tell you if you are above what is considered an acceptable percentage of adverbs. It is software, so it doesn’t have that ever-crucial element of human eyes, but it is a great gage to point out glaring overuses that maybe you would otherwise be unaware of.

Here is a list of weak words that are overused a lot. When you use these, ask yourself if they integral to the meaning of the sentence:

There are times when these words are necessary, however, watch out for excessive use.

Pet Peeve #3 – Use of the passive voice and overuse of is/was

It is really tough to explain passive voice. I will try to distill it. Usually a sentence has a subject and a verb and something or someone who receives the action. For example:

I threw the ball.

I is the subject, threw is the action and ball is the object of the action. A passive voice reverses the subject and object and would say:

The ball was thrown by me.

This is less efficient, wordy and can feel awkward. Caveat, however—occasionally the passive construction is necessary, especially if you want to put more emphasis on the object.

Check every sentence that uses was or is to see if it can be constructed with a more interesting verb. Here is an example:

She was tired, and she lay down.

A better construction would be without the use of was would be:

Tired, she lay down.

Another example:

She was running.

Better:

She ran.

You may not think attention to these details are necessary, but they make for much better writing and, consequently, better reading!

Editing your work, keeping these three writing pet peeves in mind, will make your content more interesting, improve the flow of your piece and take your writing to the next level.