I’m more than half way on my novel. I reached 35,566 words last night. This is the most difficult part of writing a novel where your brain has to work hard to keep your readers engaged. You want more interesting stuffs at this point to keep your readers want to turn the pages up to the end. At this point, I introduced a new character. More to come in the next twelve days.

The tip for today is:

18. Use Standard American English. Don’t use buzzwords or technical language unless you have good reason to or unless you’re sure your readers will understand what you mean. You can alter standard American English occasionally but only when standard language won’t serve your purposes. Avoid Shakespearean English. They are written in the English of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Britain. They are too archaic for modern readers.

The book recommendation for today is The Good Earth by Pearl Buck. I tried to read this book decades ago but stopped. I could not get into the story. This year, I reread it and found it fascinating to learn about Wang Lung’s life from rags to riches with the help of O-Lan, his unattractive wife with big feet. It was all about the land and his attachment to the land where all his wealth came from. It was beautifully written and I learned a lot about Chinese culture and its people.