Entries Tagged 'Writing' ↓

There’s a superb article on writing in the New York Times, which I spotted today because it made the front page of del.icio.us (via popurls.com). I’ve no idea why it’s surfaced now as it was published in July 2001. Elmore Leonard reveals some rules about good writing he has picked up along the way, mainly geared towards fiction. Well worth a read.

Photo by Jan the manson

Here at some quick tips about writing in general that will help you keep your copy on track.

1. Know your big idea
Is there a single idea you’re trying to get across? If there is, make a note of it, and use it as a reminder to keep your writing focused. Continue reading →

One of the most best little summaries of advertising technique that I’ve come across, especially from the copywriter’s perspective, comes in The craft of copywriting: How to write great copy that sells by Alastair Crompton. In the book, the author points out that there are two types of advertising - ads where there is something to say, and ads where there is nothing to say.

If there’s something to say, say it

If there’s something to say, say it. Say it at length. Say it again. Repeat it, because repetition is reputation.

But if there is a lot to say, you will also need to simplify it down to a single, memorable thought. The Big Idea.

If there’s nothing to say, use style

Lots of products (and services) have no real story to tell. There’s nothing exceptional about them, certainly nothing that will seem relevant to the potential customer. This, says Crompton, is where showmanship comes in.

Use style, humour, creative ideas. You’re persuading people to buy because they like the ad, and that makes them feel good about the brand.

Writing can be great fun. So is reading. But sometimes we all need a break.

How about a video? An instructional video? One that also helps you master the English language and improve your writing?

And how about if it was delivered with verve and style, as well as humour? And would it help if I said there was a gorgeous blonde involved? Continue reading →

Would you write a 500 word article for $2? Or even as low as $1? I wouldn’t.

Maybe I’m lucky because I don’t need to (touch wood). But it seems some people who want to be writers, copywriters, online content contributors may be taking jobs that pay these ridiculous rates.

There certainly seem to be people who think they can hire writers at these rates.

Who would take on these jobs? Someone who needs to get started, get some experience, build up a portfolio? But is this the way to do it? I don’t think so. Continue reading →

Whether your reader is in bed with you, engrossed in your novel, or hunched across the office desk looking over your website, you need to be considerate of their needs and desires. Here’s a few tips.

(This post is a response to the Cosmo headline challenge issue by Brian Clark at Copyblogger. That’s why it’s a bit over the top in places…. It’s all meant in good fun.)

1. Seduction at the start
Whatever you’re writing, be it a blog, novel or love letter, you need to tempt your reader in. Grab their attention and let them know there’s a good thing here, something hot, something they’re really going to get their teeth into.

2. Passion all the way
Write about things you care about. If you’re bored by the subject, it’ll come across.

3. Sensuality
Your writing needs to appeal to all the senses. Paint a picture they can see in their minds. Touch their feelings. Let them hear your words in their head, describe the scents and smells of the world you create.

4. Staying power
Great headlines and intro paragraphs are all well and good but you need to keep your reader hooked all the way to the end. No flagging.

5. Laughter
Use as much humour in your writing as you can, depending of course on the subject and the audience.

6. Excitement
You need to build excitement, and in longer forms of writing you need to pace it as well.

7. Sweet surrender
If you’re writing sales copy, you need to close the deal.

8. A well-toned middle
Cut the flab from the middle of your writing. So many novels, for example, start to stray after a powerful beginning.

9. A climax at the end
Whether you’re writing a novel or a sales letter, you need to build the excitement until it becomes unbearable and the reader is screaming for more. You need a fantastic ending. Now, if I could just think of one….

10. And a quick cuddle
Don’t forget, in all the excitement, to wrap up the loose ends. In a novel, the reader wants to know what happens to all the characters they have come to care about. And every sales letter needs a strong PS (or three). But don’t take too long about it. That just becomes an anti-climax.

For those of you who have read my post on writing in a conversational style, and the follow-ups, and the comments, many of which seem to disagree with me, I’d now like to refer you a higher authority. There’s a post on Copyblogger along the same sort of lines which you may find interesting.

Photo by Hamad Masoumi

One of the keys to writing well is to understand your reader. You need to know what they want.

If you’re writing for an online audience, remember that generally people go to websites to get things done. Usually they are looking for something - such as a piece of information, perhaps an idea. They may have a task they are performing or something they are researching. They may have come to your site looking for one part of the puzzle.

This is not always the case, of course. StumbleUpon readers, for example, are typically browsing their way through sites looking for something that interest them or grabs their attention. A lot will depend on the nature of your content.

But by-and-large people go online for a specific reason. They may want to book a holiday, buy a book, find the answer to a problem, or discover how to do something.

This influences the way people write and explains why so many of the most successful blogs have a strong ‘how to’ element to them. It’s clearly seen in the kind of headlines you find on blogs.
I’ve already looked at the subject of headlines, very briefly. It’s something I’ll be returning to again and again, because it is so important in just about every type of writing.

Being concise is an art in itself.

Keep sentences short so they can be easily understood. Write only what is needed. If there are excess words, hack, prune and tear them out. Leave room for some colourful language to add interest and style. But kill the fluff.

Then, when have it just right, when it’s perfect, go back and edit out ten per cent of the word count.

Does your writing have personality? If you answer yes, then does it have enough?

If your writing has personality it will be more engaging and interesting. It will come across as more honest and trustworthy.

Not every form of writing needs to benefit from bags of personality. In a lot of serious news journalism, for example, objectivity is more important. In academic essays and exam papers, facts count for far more than personality.

But in letters, blogs, novels, even business reports, injecting some personality into your writing will almost certainly make it more successful. Continue reading →

Anyone who writes may also need to interview people to generate material. It can be intimidating at first, but it gets easier with practice.

And it’s something you should practice, because it’s a core skill for a writer.

So, here are my top ten tips for good interviewing (I’m sure you can add more. Please do so in the comments). Continue reading →

My previous post on writing as you talk has been wildly successful in the comments department (relatively, of course), so I’d like to clarify for a moment.

Of course you don’t write exactly as you talk. That would be stupid. Continue reading →

If you can’t get round to writing, the problem could be that you’re just not in the right frame of mind. And maybe you never quite get into the right mindset for putting your words on paper. But you can change this, you can get yourself into the writing zone.

Writers get in the zone, too.

You’ve probably heard about being in the zone or ‘in flow’ from sports. When a player’s in the zone, they are almost unbeatable, like everything just comes so naturally to them.

It’s a big subject this, but essentially it boils down to freeing your unconscious mind and letting it take charge for a change. When you do, amazing things can happen.

But can that work for writing? It can and it does. Continue reading →

If you’ve read my post on the number one reason you find writing difficult, you’ll know it’s because you adopt a different, more formal tone when you sit down at a keyboard or pick up a pen. Now here’s three more reasons:

1) You haven’t thought through what you want to say

That’s bound to make things difficult. Take a spin around the room and talk it through with yourself (silently in your head is best. Doing this out loud gets you funny looks from the rest of the family / neighbours).

2) You haven’t done your research

You’ll need the facts to hand, and ideally uploaded into your mind, before you start. I find this is the most important part of a writing task. I get everything sorted in my mind, with the facts assembled, and then the words flow out once they are ready.

3) You’re trying to make it perfect.

Write a draft, a rough version, a sketch. You’ll be surprise how often it actually turns out really good anyhow, when you’re not trying too hard. And remember, there’s usually time to edit it later.

To get the writing juices flowing, you need to really know who you are writing for. But not just in an intellectual way. You need to picture them, know them.

Don’t try to write for the general public, or anyone who might be out there. Write for one person. Just one. Continue reading →