300-Word Writing Challenge
I committed myself to writing 10 columns for the "Canal Times" this summer. In my email I said I'd make them 300 words long.
Then I realized how short 300 words is. What was I thinking?
I nearly wrote wrote back to say, oops, I meant 500. But I didn't want to sound loosey-goosey.
I know my writing has gotten flabby, dashing off these morning entries without a thought. I know my "Babes In Boyland" essays are too long-winded for a quick read. Maybe I need the discipline to write something short — something that can be read in one visual gulp.
Google: "300 words."
Result: Reporter Brady Dennis wrote a series called "300 Words" for the St. Petersburg Times. His short-short storytelling won him an Ernie Pyle Award for human interest writing. They highlight "ordinary" people with a story to tell.
Lessons:
3.5.07