Writing Tip: 10 Mistakes that Turn Readers Off in Any Format

Holt publishing house has a list of 10 mistakes that amateur writers make. These mistakes can apply in any kind of writing, not just to fiction writing.

I often use “to be” words too often, and I think everyone gets into the trap of repeating the same word over and over, especially if you think it’s a cool word. I know I get annoyed when I see the same descriptive word over and over (Twilight anyone?).

I’m going to add another mistake to this list as well. Make sure when you create something, that you’re not illustrating something that would look awkward in a movie. I once wrote a scene one time where a character was supposed to drink a large container of liquid in the middle of a battle. As my husband pointed out, did the battle pause while the character guzzled the liquid? It just didn’t work. Think about those things too.