Editor’s Choice — Top 10: Two Minutes to Improve Your Writing Forever

Don’t miss our top 10 stories today

Writers are busy. They want to know more in a brief time.

Some simple and easy to implement suggestions will improve your writing quality forever:

Avoid using the word “that”

Hit Ctrl+F. Search for “that.” Check if you have lots of occurrences of the word. If you remove “that” from your writing — when it does not affect the meaning of what you are saying — it will make your sentences more cogent.

Most of the time, you are using it wrong.

For example: “You think that you need this word, but you don’t.” becomes “You think you need this word, but you don’t.”

Remove the words like “I think, I believe, I feel”

If these words are not adding to the meaning of your sentence, remove them. Since you’re the writer, your views are your thoughts or beliefs, or feelings.

For example: “I think everybody should eat healthy food.” becomes “Everybody should eat healthy food.”

Eliminate words that end in “-ing” or “-ly”

Often the “-ing” or “-ly” endings are not necessary and add no value. Your style will feel better if you eliminate their usage.

For example: “When you are removing unnecessary words, your style becomes exceedingly pleasant.” becomes “When you remove unnecessary words, your style becomes pleasant.”

Use short sentences and three or four-line paragraphs.

You can always shorten the sentences. A two or three-word sentence is okay. Make every word count.

Aim for three or four-line paragraphs — but avoid using sections more than five lines long. Reading these paragraphs on mobile becomes a challenge.

Use ample white space to help your reader understand your writing.

Squeeze your hook.

Your first few sentences are your hook. When you finish your story, revisit the opening lines. Entice your reader with questions and killer sentences to read to the end.

For example: “Writers are busy. They want to know more in a brief time.” may become “Writers want to read concise texts.”

Here is a list of our top 10 writers who know how to follow the basic principles of editing:

10. This Is How Startup Thinking Will Accelerate Your Writing

U-Ming Lee is a business and finance writer. His choice of words and arrangement of sentences is excellent. He is trying to present a new perspective on your writing work. Do check his other work.

I‘ve lost count of the times people throw the advice to “treat your writing like a business” around. It’s a Medium cliche.

I get that the advice is meant to get new content writers to become more disciplined with their process. However, I think it’s misguided.

“Treat your writing like a business” is the sort of advice that leads to more questions than answers. Chances are, a new content writer already intends to treat their writing as a business, they just don’t know how!

9. What It’s Really Like Growing Up in an All Girls Convent

Jessie London is an MA in English and a BA in Literature. She is a tech entrepreneur for 15 years. Now she is also a full-time writer focusing on mental health, feminism, crime, and business.

Her writing style is simple, direct, and engaging. She is new to Medium and needs your love. Don’t miss this one.

The school mission was to create a place of Catholic values, attitudes, practice and knowledge such that all girls will have the opportunity for their faith to be nurtured. Thus they will be able to widen and deepen themselves as ladies in preparation for this life and for the life to come.

​Excellent results were a given in this small, rural convent, with teaching delivered mainly by the nuns who lived there.

By the time I started school, the cane was no longer legal in the UK, but one still hung on the wall in each classroom.

8. Decisions

Jason Bowling writes about technology and history. He is a tinkerer, network guy, and photographer. He is an outstanding writer. If you like good science fiction — like me — go ahead and give it a read. Do check his other work.

“Probability of match, 67.34%.”

The engineer sighed, and shuffled across the room in his tiny apartment to pour another cup of strong, black coffee. He was exhausted. The apartment was overly warm, and a fan in one of the dozens of desktop computers buzzed loudly. He hadn’t been able to track the damn thing down. The place had seen better days — the paint on one wall bubbled near the ceiling from an old leak, and it smelled faintly of mold. He didn’t care.

7. Kentucky Deserves So Much Better Than Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul

Dr. Dion is an excellent writer and I have selected her work more times than any other writer. Unbothered. Unapologetic. Unashamed.

Do check her other work. Follow her, read her, and wait for her next piece.

The great state of Kentucky is represented in the US Senate by two Republicans, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul. Respectfully, and with a nod to kindness and civility, these are two of the worst people in the world.

McConnell has a reported net worth of $30 million (though the bulk of this stems from an inheritance his wealthy mother-in-law left to his wealthy wife, Donald Trump’s Secretary of Transportation, Elaine Chao). Paul, an ophthalmologist since 1993, is reportedly worth approximately $2.5 million. The per capita income for Kentuckians is $28,178; the median household income is $50,589. So, both senators fare much better than the average Kentuckian. And yet, in the face of the worst public health and economic crises of our lifetimes, these two elected representatives of the people have done everything in their power to withhold needed financial assistance from their own constituents, and the country as a whole.

6. How to Avoid Motion Sickness When the World Won’t Stop Spinning

Crystal Jackson is a former therapist. She is the author of the Heart of Madison series and My Words are Whiskey.

She is an exceptional writer. Her style is elegant, charming, and very engaging. There is little chance that you’ll click away once you start reading.

I want to live. Not to exist, struggling from one day to the next. Sometimes, I start with gratitude, thinking of everyone and everything I love. My children first, always. My love. Stories I have to tell that I haven’t yet told. The incredible beauty of the world around me.

But every day comes with a new reminder that life as I knew it is not as I know it now. I want the pain to stop. But the world just keeps spinning.

5. The Day I Faced My Mortality

Sarah Seweryniak believes one piece of content can change a reader’s life. She writes about marketing, self-improvement, and parenting.

You’ll love her work. Her style is informative, direct, and very engaging. Don’t forget to check her other work.

We have three deaths in our lifetime. However, my three versions of our deaths differ slightly from American neuroscientist David M. Eagleman’s version.

David believes the first is when we leave our bodies and the second is when we’re buried. I believe our first is the moment we have a brush with death. It’s the enlightening moment when we realize we won’t live forever. It’s our wake-up call. I believe the second death is the moment we die and leave this earth.

4. One Ingredient Will Improve Your Cooking

Jennifer Mittler-Lee is an occasional pharmacist and curious writer. She loves to blend science with history. She is a fan of medical mysteries.

Her style is easy to read and more than engaging. You’ll love the way she writes. Do check her other work.

Grocery stores are convenient; sometimes the frantic pace of life calls for picking up a tub of frosting and a boxed cake mix.

These cheap, pre-made products litter the store shelves to the point where most of us don’t think twice about using them.

But what do we sacrifice by saving a few minutes?

3. How to Make a New Year’s Resolution That Works

Dr. Jeff Livingston is an excellent writer. This story is a 1-minute read and a masterpiece of short-form writing. If you are not following him already, here is your chance. After you read this story, do check his other work.

His stories have been published in Elemental, Medium Coronavirus Blog, The Startup, P.S. I Love You, and more.

Do you know why most of us fail in our New Year’s Resolutions? We focus on the things we should change and ignore the areas we are genuinely passionate about improving.

All of us have areas in our lives we want to improve. Until we decide where we want to commit our energy, nothing will change.

2. How a Beautiful African Princess Became Queen Victoria’s Goddaughter

Allison Gaines is a black womanist. She has a Masters in Psychology and she is a teacher. She is a brilliant writer. Her writing style is informative, entertaining, and very engaging. Do check her other work.

Sarah Forbes Bonetta led an adventurous life. Born as an African princess to the Yoruba people in 1843, her parents named her Omoba Aina. Her noble title saved her from the harsh conditions of enslavement. Nevertheless, King Gezo led his troops to capture her as a political prisoner of war; she was three years old at the time. Her parents became victims of the conflict, and she seemed destined to become a human sacrifice. During this time, Commander Forbes of the Royal Navy witnessed a ceremony called the “watering of the graves.

1. Jeff Bezos Ruined My Grocery store

At number one, it is Jessica Lynn. She is an entrepreneur and an excellent writer. She cares about helping others learn to live a better and healthier life.

She has thousands of followers already. You’ll love her style of writing. Don’t forget to follow her. Also, check her other great work.

I was standing in the first Whole Foods Market in Downtown Austin when I learned Jeff Bezos was buying my grocery store. It wasn’t unusual or remarkable that I was standing in a Whole Foods when I heard the news. I stopped there once in the morning for an espresso and usually later on in the day to pick up something for dinner or an item my family had just run out of. In the middle of the day, I often meet my partner for a quick lunch from the hot food bar.

Articles, reports in the news, Mackey himself (the founder of Whole Foods), claimed the acquisition of Whole Foods Market by the richest man in the world, wouldn’t change the culture and shopping experience Whole Foods is known for.

Final Thoughts

If your story was selected as one of the Top 10, please share another one of your stories in the comments with a brief introduction and a short review that can convince a reader to read your piece. (Please write the review in the third person and start it with your name.)

I must have missed something today. I cannot read every story on Illumination and Illumination-Curated. Dr. Mehmet Yildiz, the Chief Editor and Founder of Illumination and Illumination-Curated read, highlighted, and applauded every story when he started his publications. He still reads almost all of the good ones. I try — and fail daily — to read all of the masterpieces.

Dr. Mehmet Yildiz has kindly allowed our top 10 series a full shelf on the front page of Illumination-Curated and Illumination:

So, help me to find and rank the best work of the writers of Illumination and Illumination-Curated.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

To improve your chances of success as a writer, read these curation guidelines.

You can read my curated stories here.