Goal: Write

The goal of an author is to write. It could be fiction, non-fiction, essays or poems. Writers have to keep their particular goal(s) in focus. It requires time, and tuning out the nay-sayers, haters.

Find the time to write. Go after your goal. How? Pull-away from activities, people, that don't fit your vision. Or, people who don't bring positive actions, energy.

People who bring negative actions, energy, can't help you. The negativity interferes with you, and positive goal achieving.

Keep moving toward the goal of writing, or any goal in life, business.

Now, there's nothing wrong in seeing/hearing what others have to say. Haters and nay-sayers fail to bring advice that helps toward a goal. The negativity buries positive goal reaching. It stops you from being the best you, and seeing your goal realized.

It takes a lone person, often, to reach a goal(s).

Apply determination to a writing goal, or any goal you plan to reach in life, business.

Frequently Used Punctuation

Punctuation is common, because we use, write, it most days. There are a few times when no one cares how you punctuate. Most occasions in life, business, writing, will require correct punctuation.

Let's discuss frequently used punctuation.

Adjectives

Adjectives change the meaning of pronouns (used in place of a noun) and nouns (person, place, thing or idea).

The noun man is changed by sitting an adjective next to it.

The big man fell.

A loud man slurred his speech.

The bloated man was found.

One foolish man eases into every crowd.

An added word better describes the man.

Adverbs

Adverbs will give a different meaning to verbs (action words), other adverbs and adjectives.

Most words ending in ly is an adverb. Use adverbs as a last choice when writing fiction or non-fiction. Replace an adverb with a verb in order to expose strong images.

Tom left suddenly.

Provide readers with clear images like: Tom bolted, Tom dashed, Tom scurried or Tom scooted.

Question Mark

Question marks are placed after direct questions.

Who are you?

What do you want?

Do you work?

Exclamation Points

Exclamation points shows emotion, surprise.

Hurry!

The house is beautiful!

The party is in two hours!

Comma

A comma is an indication to slow down, new words are on the way.

Tom, Mrs. Cook and Mr. Cook had a cane to fist-fight."Tom, where is Mr. Cook?"

A comma will set a series apart.

The colors to pick are pink, blue, plum and red.

A comma is used before dialogue.

Tom turned around to say, "Throw Mr. Cook out!"

When a person is named after a pronoun or being spoken to, commas are used.

"Tom, where is Mr. Cook?"

"Listen here Mrs. Cook, don't know, don't care.

Period

Stop a sentence that makes a statement, or asks an indirect question with a period.

Mr. Cook refused to curb his trash, and asked Tom to leave him alone about it.

Periods are used to abbreviate.

Mrs. Cook

Ave.

Phila.

Etc.

Sat.

Approx.

In closing, frequently used punctuation rules swirls your writing into interesting and exciting reading.

New Year: Write

A new year means, as with any goal/resolution, write. You must decide and see that the time is now. Don't let the nay-sayers stop you from reaching your goal. There will always be someone who disagrees with you, your goal. Write.

It's humbling to live in a country where you can part company with someone/people who brings drama, confusion, just not a good fit.

You can write about your situation, to help someone else. Writing is therapeutic. Writing can be your out-let.

Write. Look at your words after writing about a situation or problem. Help yourself understand what happened, how it happened, through writing. Let writing be your therapy.

A new year, write. Write about your past year, ways to move forward from a not-so-good year. Make notes on how you'll make improvements this year.

Write an essay, novel, poem. Embark on a writing project that you've never done before. Why? New year. It'll be a challenge to try new projects. It's motivation out of the old routine.

My book, Grave Street House, started out as notes, for example. The plot centers around how the main character handles being sexually harassed at work, and she gets to the bottom of why people are destroyed by the house on her street.

You don't know what path writing will take until you start.

Simply, write.