I was walking home from my office one January evening. It was a Monday.
The weather was very cold, and there were some low clouds around the tops
of the buildings. Once I'd left the main road, there weren't many people in
the dark, narrow streets of Budapest's Thirteenth District. Everything was
very quiet. It felt as if the city was waiting for something.
As I walked I thought about what had happened at work. I had argued with
one of the Hungarians I worked with. It was the first serious problem since
I'd arrived. I was trying to think what to do about it, and I was also hoping
that my wife, Andrea, had made one of her nice hot soups for dinner.
After about five minutes it started to snow heavily, so that the streets were
soon completely white. As I was walking along a very dark part of one street
there was the noise of a door shutting loudly inside a building. Then I heard
the sound of someone running.
Suddenly, the street door opened and a man came out of it and ran straight
into me. I fell over into the snow, shouting something like, 'Hey, watch
where you're going!' - my words were loud in the empty street. The man
turned to look at me for a moment. 'Sorry,' he said very quietly, in
Hungarian, before walking quickly away.
What I saw at that moment, in that dark winter street was very strange, and
I felt very afraid. Because what I saw was me. My face looking down at me.
My mouth saying sorry.

Adapted from:

How I Met Myself,David A. Hil,Cambridge Readers,Published January 2002.

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Characters
Characters are the first element to look for when reading a story or novel. Characters are most often people but can be animals or even fictionalized beings like those seen in cartoons or movies. The main character plays the biggest role and is often the first character to be introduced. Most often the story is seen through the eyes of the main character. Secondary characters play a smaller supporting role and are introduced throughout the story.

Setting
The setting is the second element you should look for when reading a story or novel. The setting is the location where the story takes place. A story may take place in a home, countryside, town, school, or wherever the author chooses to have the action occur. The setting is usually revealed very early in a story.

Time
The time when the story takes place is the third element you should look for when reading a story or novel. A story may take place very recently or many years ago. Usually the time when the story takes place is introduced very early in the story.

Problem
The problem is the fourth element you should look for in a story or novel. The problem most often grows out of a conflict between the main character and another character in the story. But the problem can also involve a circumstance such as a hurricane, a war, or one of the many obstacles that produce a conflict in life.

Events
Events are the fifth element you should look for when reading a story or novel. An event is an attempt at solving the problem in the story. In a story there are usually a number of attempts to solve the problem and these events make up most of the story.

Solution
A solution is the sixth and final element in a story or novel. The solution is how the problem is resolved or brought to an end. Most often the solution is revealed near the end of the story. Sometimes the solution is not revealed until the very last page or even the final paragraph of the story.

Recognizing these story elements will help you better understand and enjoy a story, remember the story facts, and appreciate different writing styles used by authors.

1. Writing is a Habit, Not an Obligation

Writing may be innate for some people, but anyone can actually write well through lots of practice. During your free time, unsheathe your pen and pick up your journal or notebook. Go to a conducive venue then let your pen fly. Remember, you are writing because of the fact that you love to write, not out of pressure.

• Personal Accounts - Write about some of the recent events that happened to you, since they are pretty easy to document. Apply some wordplay and the proper use of conjunctions, which improve the writing flow. When you have mastered that art of beautifying your personal accounts, you can move on to writing entries that resemble short stories.
• Short Stories - Short story-type entries are enhanced versions of regular personal accounts. The scenes are lengthened and more descriptive. In addition, the use of appropriate adjectives is required to enhance a particular scenario or detail. You can also include dialogues to add some realism to your entry. For references, you can check out the novels made by reputable writers.
• Essays/Articles - Essays and articles require a more serious and less playful form of writing. Instead of focusing on your personal accounts, you will shift your emphasis to your thoughts, ideas and especially, your opinions. The flow of essays is impeccable, so you have to organize your thoughts well and insert conjunctions from time to time.

Once you get accustomed to writing all three types, you can finally move to blogging. Knowing how to do the three writing styles will give you more options for presenting information, which is a plus in the world of blogging. The blog puts your work out in the open, so make sure that you edit your entries right after posting them.

2. Read Read Read!

Reading novels and articles are not only interesting, they will also help you diversify your writing style. All authors have distinct writing styles, even if write the same genre. The reason for this is, every person has a unique thought process, which translates to a unique set of words used to express ideas, opinions and stories.

• Novels - Personal blogs contain a good mixture of personal accounts and short story-like entries. As a blogger, you can add elements to your writing style by reading novels done by exceptional authors. Fantasy novels will help you better your descriptions while thrillers will improve your on building of conflicts and suspense. Well-written romance novels, on the other hand, display some necessary subtlety when writing about cliche-filled concepts like love and relationships. (Get ideas from the Top Ten Fantasy Novels Of All Time)
• Newspapers/Magazines - Newspapers and magazines often display the right way of writing articles. They may look simple at first, but if you read closely, you will notice that the pieces mix a little entertainment (wordplay, organization, factoids) to the serious information presented. You should apply a similar style when writing serious blogs like reviews, interviews and topic-specific blogs.
• Columnists - Any bold statement should always be backed up with supporting information, which should be applied by opinion-driven blogs. The best way to learn the proper discourse of opinions is through reading newspaper and magazine columns. You will be amazed at how these amazing writers attack “sensitive” topics and present them in a neutrally positive or negative way.

Reading exposes you to a plethora of wit and wordplay. You must combine it with your writing hobby, if you want to constantly improve as a blogger or writer. To make reading an effective tool, you can read first before writing. You can then apply some of the styles that you picked up when you start writing your entry.

3. Avoid Cliches

Cliches make blog posts corny and predictable. You should only use them to complete ideas and if there is a clear lack of words for the idea. Instead of using cliches, you can either come up with original statements or add wordplay to an overused statement. These statements are often used to end a paragraph or the entire entry.

4. Start and End with a Bang

Just like a full-course meal, you should provide an appetizing introduction and a luscious ending. Readers are often hooked by a striking initial paragraph. As for the endings, they are just as eye-catching the intros, so you will leave a good impression in each of your entries. Use pertinent questions, some wordplay and a dash of controversy to influence readers to bookmark your blog.

5. Writing Feedback

Improvement is fostered when you get feedback regarding your entries. Ask a writer or an editor to read your entries occasionally and to give you comments about your work. Don’t get disheartened by the negative comments. In fact, you should treasure them, since you will improve once you resolve the issues pointed out by your editor.

6. The More Conversational, the Better

Since blogs are made to collect readership, readers will want some interaction between them and the blogger. Posting comments is often encouraged, so the audience can air their “two cents” on the matter, but sometimes, that isn’t enough. If you make your entries conversational, readers will get the impression that you are reaching out to them. You will then gain their trust, which equates to more comments and page views.

7. Consistency then Variety

As a blog writer, you should first be consistent with the way you present information. That way, your readers will get accustomed to your writing style, which influences reader interaction. Your first several entries should bear a similar format. After writing about five entries, you can shift the way you present info or change writing styles in the next entry, giving your viewers much needed variety. You can then return to your original format to maintain the consistency. Repeat the process when necessary.

8. Conjunctions

Conjunctions may play a small role in elementary and high school grammar classes, but they are some of the most important elements when writing entries. These idea connectors and expounders improve the flow of statements and make reading more interesting. If you do a little wordplay with them, the entry becomes fun to read. Refrain from overusing them, though, or else your entry will look forced. Here are a few examples of conjunctions:

• which
• words ending with -ing
• either or
• neither nor
• not only - but also
• although
• before

Sample Sentence 1: The concert, which will be held at the amphitheater, will be packed this coming weekend.
Sample Sentence 2: The answer suddenly came, making things easier for little Johnny Blue.

9. Write Comments on Some of Your Posts

Seeing a blog post with zero comments does not look inviting for some people. They will have an impression that your entry was poorly done. What you can do is hype up your entry by posting your own comments. Mind you, the comments should be well-written and must have “twang” for them to influence readers to post their thoughts on your entry. So what’s blog writing got to do with writing comments? Anticipating the comments or writing them yourself can help you determine what to edit. It can also help you improve your ending paragraph, making it more comment-friendly.

10. Eliminate Writing Distractions

The secret with speed writing is, distractions are often shunned or minimized. When writing a blog entry, you must pick a location where you can totally concentrate. You should also refrain from tinkering with virtual distractions such as social networking sites (myspace, facebook, etc), online games, and other eye-catching applications. Remember, your writing flow should always be preserved, since it often produces good blog posts. Just make the distractions your reward after writing a blog entry. (Tips on how to get rid of creative block)

11. Keywords and Key Ideas

Noting keywords and key ideas for your topic serves as your road map for writing a good blog post. Type them in “Notepad” or “Wordpad,” before making your entry. Read the key ideas carefully and arrange them in chronological order, if necessary. When everything’s set, write your entry. Look at your set of key ideas from time to time, so you’ll never lose track of your ideas and the topic.

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