Writing tips | writing tools | writing ideas

January 2008

How to handle too much information

One way to handle too much information.

Free online writing courses

Free online university writing courses

To boldly blog: what the Ferengi can teach us about online content

Yesterday I looked at how the Ferengi Rules of Acquisition might apply to copywriting. And now, the conclusion… Today, let’s look at how they might apply to blogging:

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To boldly sell: what the Ferengi can teach us about copywriting

The Ferengi would make excellent copywriters. Because they know how to sell the benefits, and how to close a deal.

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How to be fresh and modern – lessons from the past

William Hazlitt has some interesting things to say about on writing in a familiar style

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Democracy, dictatorship and anarchy: who makes the rules of good English?

English is a mongrel language, one that has evolved over a long period of time, and continues to change. So who decides what the rules of language should be?

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A line in the sand: how to make fewer mistakes and be less ignorant

Fewer or less? This is a grammatical mistake that really gets my goat. The problem is, it’s only my dad and I that seem to care. When I was younger, my father always reprimanded me if I used ‘less’ when I really meant ‘fewer’. Every time I hear someone make this mistake, I hear my [...]

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Is your writing a waste of time?

Writing that isn’t clear is a waste of time – both the reader’s time and the writer’s.

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Repetition, repetition, repetition

Repetition is not bad style – it’s a key weapon in the copywriter’s toolbox.

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Seeing through the fog – write how you talk, part 3

Writing clearly does not mean dumbing down. Writing clearly requires more intelligence, not less. It requires more knowledge, not less.

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Tools of the trade: do you have what it takes to be a freelance?

Being a full-time freelance writer isn’t so different to being a self-employed plumber. Both need control of their tools, be it words and phrases or a wrench and socket set.
But that’s not enough. Not nearly enough.

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