Here are some of the questions we have been asked by our clients or potential clients in the past, together with our answers to them. We hope you find them useful, and that they help you to make an informed decision.

However, it may be that you have a question we have not answered. If so, then please contact us (mailto:info@top-pro-cvs.com) to discuss it. Just give us your first name and an active email address to respond to. Finally please note that the terms Resume and CV (or Curriculum Vitae) are interchangeable for the purposes of this article. Resume is the norm in the US, Australia and elsewhere, while CV is the widely accepted document in UK.

Questions:

1. Why have my resume written by somebody else? I know what I have done and where I’ve worked, so why go to a third party?

2. Surely I can just list my achievements, qualifications and experience. Isn’t that enough?

3. I have registered with an agency. They have offered to write my CV free of charge. Why should I pay for one?

4. I have seen a CD-ROM based programme for producing resumes. Why not use this?

5. My friend has just got a job with a CV he wrote himself. I can probably do the same, can’t I?

6. Why use Top Professional Resumes Limited?

And the answers to those questions:

1. Why have my resume written by somebody else? I know what I have done and where I’ve worked, so why go to a third party?

This is probably the most frequently-asked question we get. There are a number of reasons to have your CV or Resume written by a professional.

Firstly, the majority of people cannot be objective enough to do it properly. What you regard as your greatest strength or achievement may not be relevant to the target employer or job you are applying for, and you will almost certainly not appreciate the degree of weighting to apply to those strengths and achievements if they are relevant. Unless you keep abreast of changing trends in presentation and format, the layout and emphasis on the various aspects of the information you give will be “hit and miss” at best.

Secondly, with specific regard to format. Selectors and HR Professionals carrying out the recruitment process expect the CV’s or Resumes they receive to be in a “standard” format. This allows them to quickly sift and prioritise those individuals they want to interview and discard the rest. This format needs to be known and fully understood so that within this fairly narrow benchmark the Client can be best presented so as to stand out from the crowd. Having said that, a good resume writer will be able to write the Resume in such a way that the relevant strengths and skills are maximised, while any weaknesses are minimised or eliminated, and encapsulate all of this within a format that is calculated to maximise the chance of selection for interview.

Which brings us to the third point, which is that none of us can be good at everything.

Whatever our strengths or skill-set, that’s why the majority of people use a solicitor to draw up contracts, a builder to carry out structural work to their homes or offices, an accountant to minimise their tax liability and a mechanic to fix the car. They employ professionals.

Because we can all operate a word processor many of us think we can therefore write a Resume or CV for ourselves. While it is undoubtedly true that we can list achievements, qualifications, previous employers and so on, and maybe have a flair for artistic layout (which is incidentally the WORST thing you can apply to a CV), only a Professional has the ability to collate this information and present it in such a way as to get you through the door with a head start on any competition.

It would be folly to entrust something as critical as getting you your next job or career change to anyone other than a Professional.

2. Surely I can just list my achievements, qualifications and experience. Isn’t that enough?

This is really linked to, and partially explained by, the answer to Question 1. But to elaborate a little, this is like saying that it is sufficient to present the specifications of a new car to a prospective purchaser and expect that alone to sell the product.

Compare a Hyundai motor car with a Mercedes. Both have engines, a gearbox, 4 wheels and internal upholstery for the driver and passengers. Both will get you from where you are (geographically speaking) to where you want to go, and in the same time if you obey the speed limits. However there is a massively different perceived value between them, which accounts for the huge price differential. That price differential and difference in perceived value is derived primarily from the way the vehicles are marketed and sold, rather than any real physical disparity. It is almost certainly true to say, I think you will agree, that most people, if all other things such as price, were equal, would prefer and buy a Mercedes. This buying decision is made based on the benefits of the product (reliability, comfort, kudos) rather than on the features or specification (4-cylinder engine, synchromesh gearbox, 16 inch wheels etc).

It is just so with a professionally-written CV or Resume. All other things being equal, do you think your future employer would prefer a Mercedes or a Hyundai? The only way he will perceive any difference between two candidates he hasn’t met before, particularly if their qualifications and experience are similar, is by comparing the look and feel of their Resumes. Unfortunately this initial appraisal is over in approximately 8 seconds, so he or she needs to be sold the relevant factors in that brief interval. In Sales language, the selector needs to be presented with the benefits of employing you rather than just the features of your previous experience and qualifications.

Your Resume is your Sales and Marketing Document; your Product Brochure. Just as all cars are not created equal, neither are two individuals. However, unless the benefits to the organisation of employing you rather than the next person in the pile, are presented quickly and credibly to the “buyer”, then he won’t even consider the features.

3. I have registered with an agency. They have offered to write my CV free of charge. Why should I pay for one?

Agencies exist to provide a steady stream of traffic to interviewers. It makes no difference to them whether the company placing the vacancy with them hires you or the next person they send. The agency doesn’t care – they get paid anyway. With regard to the Resume or CV they produce for you, the quality will reflect this “scatter-gun” approach. Usually you will fill in a form or have a brief interview, and that information will be inputted by a data-entry clerk into a software package or word-processor. A document purporting to be a Resume will then pop out of the printer. Then the process is repeated for the next candidate, and the next, and so on.

Agencies might “handle” hundreds of new candidates in a week, all of whom need to be processed and have a CV “written”. Compare the resumes produced by any agency and they will all look almost identical. How will that help you, as an individual, get through the door? It’s more likely to be chance and good fortune than design. With your Resume, like most other things in life, you get what you pay for. As the saying goes:

“The bitter aftertaste of poor quality lingers on the palate long after the sweet taste of low cost (or no cost) has gone forever”

Are you prepared to leave such an important issue as getting your next job to a mass-produced, unfocussed and indiscriminate word-processed specification sheet?

Or would you prefer a targeted, tightly-focussed, purposeful, dynamic and relevant Personal Sales Brochure?

4. I have seen a CD-ROM based programme for producing resumes. Why not use this?

Today there are more software tools for automating and labour-saving processes (labor-saving if you’re from the other side of the “Pond”) in the marketplace than there are computers – and that’s a lot! They are almost all of value to somebody, and Resume-Writing software is no exception. If you have the expertise and objectivity to write your own CV (but see the answer to all 3 earlier questions also), then such software can make the job easier. They will give you a choice of formats or layouts (do you know whether to use a Chronological or Functional format, and in what circumstances), and will inject pre-formatted and pre-written blocks of text describing generic jobs or tasks etc etc.

At a price.

However, what none of these packages can do is take your personal qualities, experience and circumstances into account. They will not – cannot – be objective with regard to the preferences and aspirations of the Client or the target employer. They will not have industry-specific terminology built into spell checkers, and cannot give advice on which skill-set to highlight, which weakness to minimise or eliminate (and these can be particularly problematic or subjective, dependent on the position applied for ), nor can they help you get around periods of unemployment or similar “blanks”.

For these you need human intervention – the services of a Professional.

5. My friend has just got a job with a CV he wrote himself. I can probably do the same, can’t I?

See the answers to all of the above !

Either he was lucky, or he had the expertise. Give us his contact details – he can come and work for TPR!

Ed – one of our writers came to us in exactly this way, which is why we included the question. You never can tell . . . . . . ;-}

SHAMELESS MARKETING PLUG!

6. Why use Top Professional Resumes Limited?

There are many other resume or CV writing services around today, which gives you, the customer, a great deal of choice.

We would always recommend a potential client has a look at them before making the obvious selection

However, we feel we give a service that is second to none, and our clients endorse this. At the end of the day you basically have to decide on just two things:

A. Who do I feel will do the best job and get me an interview quickly?

B. Which organisation, having evaluated all the options available, represents the best value for money? As with all things, the cheapest is seldom the best!

Of course we are a little biased, so won’t answer the rhetorical questions above. However, we have been doing this for a while, have many satisfied customers, are members of the Professional Resume Writing and Research Association (PRWRA), and have a genuine desire to help you get that all-important next job. If we can be of any assistance with any aspect of your quest, then please do not hesitate to contact us.

We would obviously prefer you to become a valued client. However, should you for any reason decide not to use our services, please take a few minutes to complete our feedback form so that we might improve our services to others. Who knows, you may come back! The website (http://www.top-pro-cvs.com) also gives a lot of extra detail if you have not yet been there yet.

Good luck with your job-search. I hope this article has been useful to you.

Copyright Top Professional Resumes Limited 2005

Resume is the document that makes the employer aware of your career goal, skill set and experience. Any job seeker whether a fresher or an experienced person has to write the resume. Resume writing tips are beneficial as one gets the idea about how to document the talent or relevant work history in a compact format.

• Writing an appealing resume needs understanding of various pros and cons. First and foremost important thing while writing the resume is to understand the job profile and write the resume according to that. Some companies ask to enter your details in the customized format. So no need to write the resume separately in that case
• There are three types of resume formats such as, chronological, functional and combination. You decide what and how you want to highlight your skills and experience and write the resume accordingly
• ‘Work experience’ is most important section of your resume and always remember that the employer is keen to know about how you have handled the tough situations. So highlight the profile of your previous jobs thoughtfully
• If a person is having extensive experience, say more than 15 years, then no need to write the experience section in detail as it will be too lengthy. The employer will definitely not spend time reading pages and pages of your resume. So you can divide the experience section as ‘Relevant work history’ and write one paragraph about the previous work history or allied work history
• Always proof check your resume before sending it to the concerned person. Write a resume cover letter that will clearly indicate the purpose of applying for particular job
• Write the detailed personal information in the later section of your resume. You can mention your name, contact details and e-mail address at the beginning.
• As far as hobbies are concerned, no thumb rule exists. You can mention your hobbies if they are relevant to the job profile you are looking for. If your hobbies demand dedication, strategic approach, creativity and consistency, the employer may look at it when he/she analyzes your interpersonal and inherent skills
• The resume writing guides help you in writing a resume in a professional manner. The resume writing service providers are also there which provide the best services.

With a focused study about resume writing you will also for sure master resume writing

Writing a book, even a small one, takes time. The first two questions are how much time do you have? And how are you going to allocate it? This is the point where you may feel more than a little overwhelmed by the task ahead. Take a few deep breaths — inhale, exhale … inhale, exhale. No kidding. Do it. Inhale, exhale. OK, now sit down, and make a list of everything you have to write, starting with the title and ending with the author’s bio on the back cover.

Your Writing Plan

For the front and back covers, you will need your title and subtitle, a brief descriptive paragraph about the book, your bio, and a couple of powerful endorsements, which you won’t have until the book is written. Skip the copyright page for now. The publisher, whoever that might be, will supply it later. You will write the preface… introduction… acknowledgments .. index… bibliography… and appendices after you finish the heart of the book. The table of contents are already done (if you wrote a book proposal). The chapters, of course, are going to take the most time and concentration.

Next, write down these dates:

– Today’s date

– Deadline for each chapter

– Deadline for each section of “front matter” (preface, introduction acknowledgments)

– Deadline for each section of “back matter” (index, bibliography, appendices)

– Deadline for first draft

– Deadline for revisions & second draft

– Deadline for final draft

– Deadline for edited copy

– Deadline for revisions & third draft

– Deadline for copy edited copy

– Deadline for revisions & final draft

– Drop-dead deadline for copy-edited, proofread, ready-to-go-to-the-publisher-or-printer manuscript

Setting deadlines

The deadlines may be those you set for yourself or those set for you by a publisher. In either case, they are sacrosanct. The time between today’s date and when you plan to have your first draft complete is all the time you have. Everything on the list, from front cover to index, if you choose to write them, must fit in that time frame. You already know that the chapters are the heart of the book, but the preface and introduction are every bit as important. Remember, the former is personal, and the latter is informative. Be sure to give them the proper tone.

Working backwards

Starting from the deadline for the first draft, work backwards to determine exactly how much time you have, what has to be done, and how long each segment will take. Set mini-deadlines for yourself for each segment, and block them out on a large calendar. Be realistic. If it can’t be done in the time allotted, something has to be changed, and it may be your deadline. If you are self-publishing, you can move your own deadlines; if you are working with a conventional publisher, deadlines can be negotiated. When they are impossible, you have a right to say so … before you sign the contract.

Facing facts

Setting deadlines isn’t easy, but it is essential if you’re serious about writing a book. You must know how long the process will take and whether what you have to do can be done in the time you have. If it can’t be done, face reality. Trying to do the impossible is a recipe for frustration and failure. If, on the other hand, you can do it with good planning and self-discipline, you will feel a sense of relief. The facts are clear; you have faced them head on; and you know you are up to the challenge. The rest is up to you.

Sometimes, a single paragraph can be used to discuss multiple ideas. Despite the presence of several concepts, however, we’d normally want to keep readers’ attention on one of them, relegating all the others as background. How do you do that? By using appropriate emphasis and subordination within your text.

There are several ways to give ideas emphasis and subordination to your ideas, some of which you’ll be probably feel more comfortable using over others. We suggest working towards incorporating them all into your writing, though. It will help vary your construction, enabling your writing to sound more dynamic and fresh. We’re not sure about the specific English writing software you’re using, but some of them do integrate similar concepts in their suggestions.

Sentence length. Want to give an emphasis? Put it in a short sentence where it receives all the attention from the reader. On the opposite end, you can subordinate the same idea by placing it within a compound or complex structure. The shorter and more straightforward a sentence is, the more forceful the idea it communicates usually gets across.

Active and passive voice. Active voice puts emphasis on the actor – the one carrying out the action in the sentence. Passive voice, on the other hand, places more attention on action being performed. Use both according to what each sentence you write aims to accomplish.

Position. Ideas found in your introduction and your conclusion usually receive the most emphasis, making those two parts of a document the most crucial for conveying desired information. If you’re fine with a concept staying in the background, keep it out of those two places and put it in the body.

Adjectives. Putting a modifier, such as “incredibly vital,” before an idea is one way to emphasize it. Calling it a “minor point,” on the other hand, works out very well to keep it out of the limelight.

Repetition. The most important ideas are usually repeated several times in a text, while subordinated ones tend to make singular appearances.

There are so many ways for writers to make good money by writing Some people love to write, even as a hobby. You can turn your writing skills into income. Here are a brief list for your reference.

GENERAL WRITING:

1. Copywriting for television commercials

2. Copywriting for radio commercials

3. Copywriting for newspaper and magazine ads

4. Professional letter writing

5. Creating plots for other writers

6. Writing correspondence courses

7. Travelling writer

8. Newspaper feature writing

9. Writing for weekly tabloids

10. Writing humour

11. Writing greeting cards

12. Writing witty sayings for bumper stickers

13. Writing fillers for newspapers and magazines

14. Ghost writing

15. Script writing for movies

16. Scrip writing for television

17. Writing plays

18. Resume service

19. Writing non-fiction

FREELANCE WRITING FOR:

20. Daily newspapers

21. Professional journals

22. Consumer magazines

23. Confessional magazines

24. Poetry magazines

25. Fiction magazines

26. Farming-dairy-poultry- livestock journals

27. Technical journals

28. Manufacturers’ trade journals

29. Retail trade journals

30. Sports magazines

31. Teenagers’ magazines

32. Children’s magazines

33. Gag magazines

WRITING A NEWSPAPER COLUMN ON:

34. Crafts

35. Art

36. Celebrities

37. Street interviews

38. Travelling

39. 25, 50, 100 years ago today

40. Local street names

41. Gossip column

42. Personal problems

43. Gardening

44. Cooking

45. New products

46. Child care

47. For teenagers

48. Children’s question-and -answer

49. With humour and jokes

50. Sport

51. Pets

52. Shopping

53. Cars

54. Hunting and fishing

55. Do-it-yourself

PUBLISHING:

56. A newsletter

57. Sportsmen’s bulletin

58. Bulletin for the handicapped

59. Apartment bulletin

60. Club bulletin

61. A tourist guide

62. Restaurant guide

63. A home-business guide

64. Part-time and free-lance help directory

65. Teachers’ yearbook

66. Small newspaper

67. Magazine

MISCELLANEOUS

68. Proof reading

69. Free-lance editing

70. Become an author’s agent

71. Teaching English

Good luck for your writing and wish you get some ideas for which areas you want to write to from the list.

Writing is a textual representation of language, that is with the use of signs and symbols. It is one way of expressing one’s point of view, emotions and feelings. One who is good at it generally grabs everybody’s attention. Even though regarded as a senile activity, article writing still works well on marketing and advertising. Diverse marketers, both neophyte and amateur, have different styles and tastes in writing articles. Writing articles for them is one source to advocate and vend their products or businesses. On the Internet, the substance of an article is very essential. Especially if you are writing articles for businesses, it’s necessary that you write facts that could invite your readers and arouse their interests about your products. You should sound very convincing then. Plus another factor will be your productivity. You must be able to write numerous articles in a month to compete with other article marketers.

The following are some tips on effective article writing:

1. Distinctly state the point of your article in the first paragraph.

It is important to directly open what’s the real intention of your article in the first paragraph. The readers might want to know initially what’s your point or the purpose of the article, or why you wrote the article and for whom. Or you may state questions like “how”, to get the reader’s interest and then expound later the content of the article.

2. Systematize the ideas of your material.

Beforehand, you should plan or think about the things you are going to include in your article. It is necessary that you are knowledgeable about the topic you are going to discuss. As much as possible, research more. The facts you will gain will help you obtain more ideas and inputs and this will avoid you on getting empty-brained as you go over writing your article. It is better to write down these points to make sure you include them as you start with the writing process.

3. Pacify your readers.

Keep in mind that when you write something, expect that not all readers can understand the terms you use in your article. As much a possible, use words that are conversational, ordinary, and easy to understand. Refrain from using highly technical words or if you are trying to introduce new terms, define them as well.

4. Illustrate your ideas or your intent in short but concise paragraphs.

In stating or explaining your points, it is better to write it in short sentences. Go directly to the point and avoid using lavish words. Exclude words that are not completely relevant to the sentence. The readers will just find your material boring and no sense at all. Ideally, three to four sentences for a paragraph will work. Be explicit.

5. Give all the necessary information.

Present all the important facts about your business or products. In that way, people will rely on your expertise on the field. You can gain more profit if you do so.

6. Provide examples and cite personal instances to strengthen your points.

It is more convincing to cite personal experiences to support your ideas. State problems and how you were able to resolve it using the products you are promoting. Or you can give hypothetical examples or cite situations that are applicable to your proposed business or products.

7. Stress the advantages of your product or service.

The benefits one can avail from a product or service is the topmost consideration of all potential customers. The features just follow. So if you are marketing your products or service on line, try to emphasize more on the advantages. It is more catchy than explaining more about the features.

8. Give resource information to your readers.

Cite the URLs where your readers can gain more facts about your topic. These will be either your own websites or other sites. Obtaining backlinks are also helpful if you are thinking about losing customers.

9. Share your article for opinions.

Do not be afraid of criticisms on your work. It is nicer to show your work to your peers or colleagues for checking and opinions. It is better that your friends find the mistakes rather than your clients. As a writer, one of your sources towards having a meaningful, well-written article is from other people’s point of view. Learn to accept ideas from other people most especially those persons who have earned respect from other writers. They have the experience and wit to share.

10. Express the most important information near the beginning of the material.

It is vital in writing an article to put the necessary inputs at the beginning. Editors usually cut things near the end so better keep your best ideas beforehand. Then at the very end, you will just summarize what you have presented in the article. You are going to finish here what you have started.

Always remember that article writing is a process, it is neither a frenzied activity nor a short burst. You ought to plan, research, write a rough draft of the article, edit, and finally write the final draft. It is a passion. It is all about writing what is in you or what your inner soul tells you. People who will read your material will know and sense your sincerity to reach out to them. When you relay things or facts to people, they will be aware if what you are doing is a bogus. So, when you write, listen to your heart and soul. It is all about perfecting your craft. Practice makes perfect as they say. It’s rarely possible to have a perfect article the first time you write. Your writing skills will eventually improve as you go on practicing. Make sure that as you go on writing, you are also developing yourself towards becoming one of the best article writers.

Generally speaking, the passive voice of the verb (the subject has the action done to it) is weaker than the active voice (the subject does the action) in involving the reader in your story. That is crucial because as a memoir writer you are not sharing ideas but recreating life experiences to share.

“Mary baked a cake” is active. Mary, the subject of the verb baked, is doing the action of baking. On the other hand, “A cake was baked by Mary” is passive. Here Mary is not the subject. The cake, which is being baked by Mary, is the subject. The action is being done to it.

The passive voice has less impact than the active voice. The reader will experience it as an evasive attempt on your part to not “own” the action of the verb.

Dependence on the passive voice may reveal the writer’s own passivity. The writer is perhaps having difficulty coming to “ownership” of the topic.

“The requirement to wear long sleeves was rejected by the women” evinces less ownership than “The women rejected the requirement to wear long sleeves.” In the passive, the writer does not own refusing to wear long sleeves. One feels the writer seeks distance (even if unconsciously) from the action.

If you use many passive constructions, ask yourself why you do so. Would using the active voice help you come to ownership of your stories–and perhaps of your life?

Remember that as memoir writer you want to get your reader involved with the story. Nothing does this better than the active voice.

Good luck writing your memoir.

A person or a company may require understanding the difference between SEO writing and ghost writing while looking for a freelancer to outsource various types of writing projects. The SEO writing and the ghost writing are two form of writing quite different from each other. An SEO writer writes content for the SEO use specifically, whereas the ghost writer can be writing about anything, it can include writing content for the site as well. Both types of writers may not get the credit for their work. It may be credited to someone else as they usually write for other companies or people for a decided amount. They may have to follow some specific requirements or instructions of the project providers.

The SEO writing is not exactly a writing skill; it is more of a social skill. The SEO writing has a focus on the product marketing or selling. So if you are an SEO writer, it means that you are not exactly a writer, you are more of a sales person. Unlike other sales persons, you do not use a pitch; you are using your words to sell a product or to intrigue the demand of your product in the minds of people.

A ghost writer is the person who writes contents which are informative by its nature. Usually his writings are not dealing much with the selling of a product. Although he can write about the benefits of a product, but his content is not focused on the selling of any product.

Both of the writing types are unique and have its own importance in the relevant fields. If a person is good at SEO writing, he may not be able to perform at the same level as a ghost writer. The same works vice versa. A ghost writer will have to face lots of problems if he wants to write an effective SEO content. Each of the writers can perform exceptionally in the relevant field but cannot perform with the same efficiency for other, as each of the field requires specific specialties. An SEO writer knows well how he can create an article which can be of a great help to optimize the site with a search engine.

The SEO writing requires lots of time to perfect the contents. An SEO writer may have to spend longer hours on just one single article. He may have to edit the articles over and over again. He may have to change the headlines, text of some specific part or he may have to amend the subheadings. He has to make it sure that it is good enough to optimize the site conveniently with a search engine. It has to be attention grabbing. He is required to write such a content that has to interest a reader and should be able to generate a lead or offer a sale to the company.

An SEO writer has to write a convincing content, whereas, it isn’t the same for a ghost writer. A ghost writer also has to write interesting content, but he is not required to write a convincing content that has to offer a sale or a lead. An SEO writer can earn a lot higher amounts than what a ghost writer does.

In its earliest days of being written, Mycenaean Greek was written using a syllabary. However, for nearly 2700 years, Greek has been written using an alphabet. As with other writing systems, over time, different writing styles developed. Similar to how modern English has many variations from cursive to script writing and uppercase to lowercase letters, Ancient Greek had different written variations as well.

Three important variations were the early Greek alphabet (uppercase), the Uncial script and the Greek minuscule script (lowercase).

Early Greek Alphabet – Writing with “Caps Lock” On

This is the easiest of the alphabets to learn. The most common place to use letters was to carve them into monuments. To facilitate the carving process, the letters tended to have few curves. They were also uniformly sized similar to what we call “uppercase” letters today. In fact, many of them are used as capital letters in the Latinic writing system that English is written in.

Here is an example of the early Greek monumental writing:

Α, Β, Γ, Δ, Ε, Ζ, Η, Θ, Ι, Κ, Λ, Μ, Ν, Ξ, Ο, Π, Ρ, Σ, Τ, Υ, Φ, Χ, Ψ, Ω

The early alphabet was written without any spaces or punctuation. The burden of differentiating between words and sentences would fall on the reader. A great example of this type of writing can be found on the Rosetta Stone.

Later Uncial Script – Uppercase with Some Style

The Uncial script appeared in the early part of the first millennium A.D. It was very similar to the monumental script. The letters were all uppercase and there were no spaces between words when it was written.

This script was often used for writing on parchment and vellum. This is a key script to study for those interested in Greek as a large volume of Greek works come from this period including early Christian writings.

Greek Minuscule Script – Good Things Come in Small Packages

Somewhere in the past two thousand years, Greek letters shrank. A writing style known as minuscule (similar to lowercase letters) developed. Some works were written entirely in minuscule. Others were a mix of the earlier uppercase (majuscule) and minuscule scripts. Where the two writing styles appeared together, the minuscule was always more prevalent. Just as with English, proper nouns and the first word of a paragraph would be capitalized. However, in ancient Greek, the first word of each sentence was not capitalized (unless it was a proper noun or the beginning of a paragraph as mentioned above).

Here is the alphabet in minuscule script:

α, β, γ, δ, ε, ζ, η, θ, ι, κ, λ, μ, ν, ξ, ο, π, ρ, σ, τ, υ, φ, χ, ψ, ω

Just as the monumental script has survived as the uppercase letters of Modern Greek, the minuscule script exists as the lowercase letters of Modern Greek. A student of Modern Greek would learn both the majuscule and minuscule scripts in order to be able to read and write the language.

It doesn’t matter if you write fiction or non-fiction: sooner or later an editor is going to ask you to cut the words in your manuscript or article. It could be for space constraints (as in a newspaper or magazine) or simply because the prose is bloated.

Often, particularly in fiction, it’s not about the numbers: suggested edits are more about improving the narrative language than about reducing word count.

So, how can you reduce the length without changing the meaning (or the artistry) of your words?

Consider cutting the following from your manuscript:

1. Words which don’t add anything meaningful.

“That,” “just,” and “very” can almost always be cut from your work. You can argue that a woman is “very pretty”, but I will tell you she’s beautiful. See the difference?

Mark Twain suggests that writers, “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write “very”; your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.”

Some common words to consider deleting are: about, actually, almost, almost, like, appears, approximately, basically, close to, even, eventually, exactly, finally, generally, just, just then, kind of, nearly, practically, really, seems, simply, somehow, somewhat, sort of, suddenly, totally, truly, utterly, very, were

(Also: do you notice how imprecise these words are?)

2. Redundant expressions.

Redundant expressions are groups of words (usually a pair) in which at least one word may be omitted and the meaning remain the same.

Some examples include: forever and ever (just say: forever), commute back and forth (just say: commute), exact duplicate (just say: duplicate), or fellow classmates (just say: classmates).

3. Pleonasms.

Pleonasms are a subset of redundancy, specifically referring to using too many words to communicate the point.

Examples include: put a glass down or sit down (omit down), he entered into the room (omit into), ink pen (omit ink), or extra accessories (omit extra).

4. Clichés.

Clichés are worn-out expressions, once bright and shiny, which from overuse (particularly in conversation) have lost their luster. Most people use them in discussion because their meaning is easily understood. It’s efficient to make a point by using expressions known by many.

However, some editors feel that dependence on clichés signals a “lazy” writer. Avoiding them could mean the difference in getting published.

Some common clichés are: for all intents and purposes, fit to be tied, above and beyond the call of duty, off the cuff, ugly as sin, on top of the world.

5. Over explanation.

Unless you’re writing a news story, or a technical document where explanation is required, omit it. For fiction, this means leaving out unnecessary backstory.

6. Phrases which don’t get to the point.

Don’t use: “started to”, “prepared to”, “began to” or any similar construction. “I ran” is more to the point, and more succinct, than “I started to run.”

7. Passive voice.

Passive voice is denoted by any form of the verb “to be” (was, were, is, that) coupled with a past participle, implying that a subject has something done to it rather than performing the action itself.

Passive: The ball was thrown by the girl.

Active: The girl threw the ball.

8. Adverbs (especially those ending with “ly”) and adjectives.

Adverbs ending in ‘ly’ are usually unnecessary. Adjectives are often over-used. It’s not uncommon to find two or three adjectives where one (or none) is better.

9. Purple Prose and Over-Done Angst

Remove or chop passages which are overly descriptive, including narrative that describe a character’s thoughts and/or feelings in too much detail, i.e., too much inner dialogue.

10. Narrative which tells the reader what he or she already knows.

Following even a few of these examples will tighten your prose considerable. But remember, no matter how many words your cut, your editor will likely find more!