10 ETHICAL TRAITS OF WRITERS

A writer once wrote: 'being a writer myself, I know the sacrifices involved in the art of writing. Sitting by the fiery furnace of words, you become a wordsmith forging dumb irons into eloquence tools,hoping someone out there will cultivate acres of diamond from flashes of ideas that oozed from your nib.'
Writing, whether for fun or as a career, seems to have God's approval as He told old people of old to write His words down comprising instruction, recommendations, corrections etc.
Here, I try to write Ten (10) recommended traits expecting in a writer:

1. WRITERS READ THAN READERS
Being a writer is not all about writing some few lines comprising of same details in different articles.
Your audience (whether hidden or oblivious) are watching you,they are scrutinising every detail you are writing about, just imagine how 'bored' and 'disappointed' they would feel reading about same thing(s) almost every time you write.
So I tell you: Read!

2. UNDERSTAND YOUR AUDIENCE
I t doesn't make sense to be writing about Science when your audience feel more home with Entertainment.
Evaluate your audience to know what they love to read about mostly, I have come to understand that the joy of every writer lies in the mass readership of his work.

3. PUTTING UP RELEVANT DETAILS
As a writer, you must understand/know how to put details that are relevant side by side.
Though you may derail to bring some details somewhere yet you don't have to overdo it (let it be as simple as possible).

4. BE CAPTIVE - SENSE OF POINTS JUDGEMENT
As a trainee broadcaster, I was taught that you either get your audience attention in a minute or you lose it,so it is in writing; know what to put first. If you are a beginner you can write as much as five introductions to your write-up and judge which is more captive.
Not for introductions and endings only,make sure you imbibe the sense throughout your synopsis (and at the beginning of every point).

5. KISS THEORY - KEEP IT STRAIGHT AND SIMPLE
People lose interest in too many details. Short your expressions as much as you can, you can do this by reading and re-reading your write-up.
When re-reading, you will see some paragraphs that you can substitute by few lines.
People get 'pissed off' by too many words, if you can read wordy details,then I tell you not many people can. They say: 'too many cooks spoil the soup.'

6. BE ORIGINAL
I remember writing a poem with the title 'Death,Be Not Proud' (in antonomasia to John Donne's) I remember getting corrected in Literature (aspect) on Nairaland. My correcter said: 'try to be original,' it is a lesson I can't forget.

7. AVOID GRAMMATICAL EGOISM
Yes, the temptation is high, the morale is there; after reading some burgy words you feel like giving it all to people but cool it man, don't bamboozle people with them (those words).
There is always a platform, a situation, a stage and or a condition to showcase them.
Try to avoid those words as much as you can in your write-up.

8. KNOW SOMETHING ABOUT EVERYTHING
(Mass) Communicators always emphasis that it is expected of them to 'know something about everything and everything about something.' In this sense, I say writers are multi-sourced knowists.
They know what they should know and what they shouldn't, no wonder people call them: 'mad,' 'crazy,' 'genius,' etc

9. BE CREATIVE
I define creativity as an act and art of doing the same thing with a difference. You don't have to obey all the grammatical laws - you can bend them. You don't have write it the way it is normally written - you can create it.
New words are not form by Jinns and gnomes, words like: Lullabized, Reasonist, Powerist, Kayefious,literaturise, tigeritude, Solderic, Solderistic, nativeic, Josephic may not exist in 'normal dictionary word' but may be formed or composed by you as a writer.
You are free to add any prefix or suffix to any words - so far it make sense and remember,don't overdo it!

10. READ! READ! Read!
A multi-displinary scholar (lecturer cum solicitor in Supreme Court) once said: 'lawyers read all their life' I tittered and said (within me) 'writers read more.'
Read like you are not going to read anything in your life. Read as if your hereafter depend on it. "Read as if you are going to live forever, live as if you are going to die tomorrow" - Matmah Gandhi.

I repeat:
* Writers read than readers
* Putting of relevant details
* Sense of points judging
* Attention getting theory
* KISS Theory - Keep It Straight and Simple
* Be Original
* Know something about everything
* Be Creative
* Read Read Read

Desk Of Insanity,
Jimson Jaat Taofik,
The MAD Writer,
(Making A Difference).
#TogetherWeCanBeMAD

(This piece was re-published on April 24, 2018 via Facebook by its writer Jimoh Taofik Adekunle (Jimsonjaat Jaat Taofik). It first came up with the Facebook account :-Jimson Jaat Taofik in 2016)