3 Things Brussels sprouts taught me about writing
It was the third round of rewriting on a piece about the autumn harvest. All about kale, collards, and Brussels sprouts. The problem was, I had it all wrong.
Instead of Brussels sprouts, I was writing brussel sprouts. No capital "B" at the beginning, no "s" on the end of Brussels.
I've cooked and eaten lots of Brussels sprouts, but clearly I'd never written about them.
Lesson #1: Proper names have proper spellings
When a red line appeared below the misspelled "brussel," I was surprised. So I checked the dictionary.
I found the correct spelling.
A bit more digging revealed the name comes from the city of Brussels, in Belgium.
Wholly cabbage.
Unless you're certain about the correct spelling of a product, a city, a town, someone's name, title, or product, look it up.
That was last year. This year, I have another editing tip courtesy of the Brussels sprout.
Lesson #2: Ask yourself, "Is that what's really going on?"
Last week I was watching a cooking show when the chef introduced a new segment by saying, "Today we're making Brussels sprouts."
Of course the chef wouldn't be "making" Brussels sprouts, as in constructing or creating them. He would be cooking them. Or, maybe he'd be roasting them.
In the context of the show, it didn't matter much. It was a live taping and viewers were watching and listening.
But his word choice caught my ear. I've been writing a lot and than means I'm rewriting and editing a lot.
I wanted to edit the script, to rewind the tape and have the chef say, "Today we're roasting Brussels sprouts."
Roasting is a more interesting and descriptive word. Making is vague and in this example, inaccurate.
Every word has a purpose.
Lesson #3: Just because you're familiar with something doesn't mean you know all you need to know.
It turns out eating Brussels sprouts didn't make me an expert. From misspellings to context and relevance, it's important to do some research.
That's how I learned those little cabbage were named after an area in Belgium ... because that's where they were cultivated in the 16th(!) century.
So dig around. What you find may not only surprise you, it could add a new dimension to your project.
It was the third round of rewriting on a piece about the autumn harvest. All about kale, collards, and Brussels sprouts. The problem was, I had it all wrong.
Instead of Brussels sprouts, I was writing brussel sprouts. No capital "B" at the beginning, no "s" on the end of Brussels.
I've cooked and eaten lots of Brussels sprouts, but clearly I'd never written about them.
Lesson #1: Proper names have proper spellings
When a red line appeared below the misspelled "brussel," I was surprised. So I checked the dictionary.
I found the correct spelling.
A bit more digging revealed the name comes from the city of Brussels, in Belgium.
Wholly cabbage.
Unless you're certain about the correct spelling of a product, a city, a town, someone's name, title, or product, look it up.
That was last year. This year, I have another editing tip courtesy of the Brussels sprout.
Lesson #2: Ask yourself, "Is that what's really going on?"
Last week I was watching a cooking show when the chef introduced a new segment by saying, "Today we're making Brussels sprouts."
Of course the chef wouldn't be "making" Brussels sprouts, as in constructing or creating them. He would be cooking them. Or, maybe he'd be roasting them.
In the context of the show, it didn't matter much. It was a live taping and viewers were watching and listening.
But his word choice caught my ear. I've been writing a lot and than means I'm rewriting and editing a lot.
I wanted to edit the script, to rewind the tape and have the chef say, "Today we're roasting Brussels sprouts."
Roasting is a more interesting and descriptive word. Making is vague and in this example, inaccurate.
Every word has a purpose.
Lesson #3: Just because you're familiar with something doesn't mean you know all you need to know.
It turns out eating Brussels sprouts didn't make me an expert. From misspellings to context and relevance, it's important to do some research.
That's how I learned those little cabbage were named after an area in Belgium ... because that's where they were cultivated in the 16th(!) century.
So dig around. What you find may not only surprise you, it could add a new dimension to your project.