3T Writing Tidbit

Here's something I've struggled with since re-entering the workforce and having to create How-To documents. What's the different between writing to inform and writing to entertain?

In a nutshell, one is dry and boring. The other is lively and fun! 

Well, maybe that's a little too nutshelly. Here's another look.

Writing to inform is information straight through. As one famous method puts it:

• Here's what I'm going to tell you.
• I tell you.
• Here's what I've just told you.

Writing to entertain, though, is different. At its most basic, it's information with a twist. If we put it in the same format, it would be

• Here's what I'm going to tell you.
• Except I can't tell you because ninjas have just entered the room. I fight back and win.
  
• But not before they've broken my whiteboard and turned my notes into a flurry of paper snow.

Much more entertaining, yes? The good news is, we can bring some of that into our dry, boring How-Tos. 

I used to think changing toner was a horrid, thankless job. (Picture of worker with a face full of toner and surprised look.) But now I know I have to follow these simple steps. (Outline steps.)

Maybe not appropriate for every audience, but think about ways you can get just a little creative with your business prose.

Published since 2009, over the years I've accumulated various items of writing wisdom. The Third Tuesday Writing Tidbit showcases these items in no particular order. Click here to see all 3T Tidbits.

2T Repeat Performance - why I write what I write

I've done a number of blog tours over the years, posting on different sites. Now I'm bringing them to you!

Originally published August 29, 2012 for Pretty Opinionated

I’m halfway through an amazing virtual book tour for my new release Biting Oz, with the awesome Promotional Book Tours. I’d like to pause for a moment to tell people why I write what I write.

I write romance because I love the attraction leading to a deep relationship. It fascinates and energizes me. I write explicit sex because as a reader I’ve felt too often euphemisms like “core” are thrown in without a lot of thought. Hey, my core is my heart or my soul, not my lady parts. I write action because I enjoy it. I write vampires because I adore strong males and vampires are the ultimate alphas. I write humor because I see the world through glasses set slightly askew.

My goal is to take the reader away for a while. I still hear that old bath oil commercial “Calgon, take me away!” when I say that :) I consider my books to be less an escape and more a safe place. Sure, I work very hard to make the stories fun. But more. There are people who have been badly hurt by life. For them, even the brush of a negative emotion can be like a severe blow. So in the Biting Love stories I craft each emotionally-charged moment like a puff of air. Most people will say, nice breeze, but to me, there’s a difference between light and deliciously delicate.

What else? Well, there’s always a theme but I’m never hammering a message. There are some heart-stopping moments and some squirm-in-your-chair ones too. But by the finish of the book you should wind up feeling good about things, and find something to cheer about at the end.