Like what we wear, the way we write and talk changes. Certain things go in and out of fashion. But lately, we’ve noticed a bad fashion choice – the use of the word “so.” Here’s a 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm: The word “so” […]
Active voice makes for vibrant prose. Here’s a 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm. When we write, “The lumberjack chopped down the tree” or “Serena Williams crushed the shot over the net,” you can picture the action. But sometimes, we paint word pictures in the […]
Be your own editor. You can save yourself trouble and ingratiate yourself with your editor by taking some precautions before submitting your story. Here’s a 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm: –After you’ve finished your story, walk away for a couple of hours; then come back […]
The English language has millions of words – a veritable buffet. But like a buffet, sometimes we overindulge. Here’s a 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm: Strong verbs and nouns are keys to great prose. Adjectives and adverbs are not always your friends. If you’re […]
At an SATW professional development session some years ago, University of Missouri professor Don Ranly gave us this gem: Something compared to nothing doesn’t mean anything. Here’s a 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm: Dr. Ranley was talking about using numbers effectively to paint the […]
The old joke among journalists is that we chose our profession because we can’t do numbers. Here’s a 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm: You don’t have to be a mathematician to use numbers in stories, and that’s good because they lend gravitas. The number of […]
Good writing begins with good reporting. Here’s an SATW 60-Second Travel Writer Tip from LA Times Travel Editor Catharine Hamm: A well-known travel writer used to insist, “I’m NOT a reporter. I’m a writer.” Yet her stories brimmed with facts, figures, and imagery collected by carefully questioning sources and recording […]