The Sting of - 'ing'

I received a criticism of using too many -ing words. When I read the section again, there were a few 'ing words but the meaning was clear... to me , but apparently not to the reader/judge. So this post deals with the often troublesome -ing words. Feel free to comment...this is, after all, a learning curve.

1. Puzzling Participles - occurs when you put an idea into a phrase with -ing in it. You start a sentence with an -ing word (present participle) and forget to add yourself to the main sentence eg Walking along the beach, the water sparkled in the sun. (the water isn't walking.. you are.) Walking along the beach, I watched the water sparkle in the sun( Flesch and Lass)
2. Dangerous Prepositions- You must make sure the -ing person is in the -ing phrase. eg. Before going to work, the dog must be fed. (learned canine?) Before going to work, I must feed the dog. NB: this can happen in any prepositional phrase with or without an -ing. eg Last night I went to see Doug in a new dress. Should read... Last night I wore a new dress when I went to see Doug. (Flesch and Lass)
   
3. Rhythm - When writing using -ing the reader will begin to sing. (I think that's a good example) Not a good idea as it establishes a rhythm and once the rhythm is broken it distracts the reader from the story.
4. Some books on writing say you should rarely use and -ing word... Stephen King comes to mind. (He also has a 'thing' about adverbs.)
   
5. However (don't you just love exceptions to 'rules') - When writing in the first person, as you are the one performing the action, more -ing words will creep in.
   

Here's hoping today you're creating wonderful writing!!!!!!