06 Jan Good writing is good listening

Read it one more time. Before.

Out loud.

I know you don’t want to. Maybe you think you don’t have to. But do it anyway.

Out loud.

Listen to your words. How they sound coming out into the air. How they feel in your mouth. What they taste like.

How they fill up your ears leaving room where it matters most.

Change it where it needs it.

Make it better. Smoother. Cleaner. Clearer.

Listen to the quiet places especially.

They make the loudest noise.

Then read it one more time. Before.

Maybe to someone else. Someone whose opinion matters to you.

Don’t get angry about how they respond.

They are different than you. That’s why you’re sharing it with them in the first place.

It has rules. What we do.

Hear when they need to be ignored.

It has magic, sometimes, too.

And most people never, ever, see where the rabbit comes from.

Fix the punctuation. Put the i’s and e’s where they belong. And in the right order.

But never forget there’s music in what you’ve made. There’s art in it. And craft.

It’s heard as much as it’s read. What we do.

Maybe more.

And that is what’s important.

Read it one more time. Before.

Then send it out into the world to sing its song.