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Robert Cutillo

Taking Notes

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Edited by Robert Cutillo, Friday, 18 May 2018, 20:05

It's always advised you take notes in your own words, but for some reason I've always resisted doing this. I tend to copy everything out ad verbatim, which I know is hindering my learning. So from now on, I'm making a big effort to take notes in my own words. I'm also going to make the notes shorter.

I'm always undecided on whether or not I should plan my stories. I've tried both and yet still can't settle. I wonder why this is? Actually, I think it's because I'm unsure on whether I'm a good writer or not. I suspect I'm OK but not great. There's a lot of room for improvement. I think the best way to speed this up is to write more. Lately, I haven't been writing as much. I think it's because the last few short stories I wrote have been garbage. They're too simple, and the writing style is awful. I write my fiction with too many loose sentences, my ability to describe needs improving, and don't get me started on the dialogue.

I began reading Stephen Pinker's The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person's Guide to Writing. It has some interesting stuff in it, but he goes on and on about certain things. I think I'll put it down and read something else.

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