for people who write

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 dad’s voice in my head, offering the correction.

Some would say he’s a stickler for old fashioned grammar because the word ‘fewer’ seems to be dying out completely. No one seems to use it any more. When I watch BBBC News 24, their highly paid and very professional journalists seem to have no idea that the word ‘fewer’ even exists.

Yet to my ears, they always sound a little bit ignorant. They lose authority, because they are making what to me is a basic and glaring grammatical mistake. Continue reading →

When writing isn’t clear, it becomes a double waste of time.

It wastes the time of your reader, who has to puzzle out what you mean.

And it wastes the time of the writer, who will either not be read (so what was the point); or he will have to write it again, to explain what he means.

Writing properly means communicating clearly. It doesn’t necessarily mean obeying the rules correctly. It means getting your point across so the reader clearly understands you.

To get your meaning across clearly, you need to choose the right words and set them in the right order. After that, style will take care of itself. As Matthew Arnold (An English Victorian poet) said:

Have something to say and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret of style.

Choosing the right words to use is not always easy, however. Often it requires a little work and a fair bit of thought.

Clear writing, like clear thinking, is hard work. But it is work that is worth doing, because without it, you waste not only your own time but also that of your reader. And that is a rudeness which is inexcusable.

Some people think repetition is a sign of bad writing.
Some people think it’s poor style.
Some people think it doesn’t work.
But some people think it’s a key weapon in the copywriter’s toolbox.
What do you think?

Photo by ponanwi (CC on Flickr)

When you blog and people link to your site your blogging software lets you know. So you can go and check out what people are saying. You might not always like what you find of course….

A while back on this site I fired off a quick little piece about writing how you talk. It got picked up by StumbleUpon and brought in thousands of visitors. It is far-and-away the most popular article that’s appeared on this site.

However, from the start it has generated a lot of misunderstanding. (It must be the way I wrote it. The fault is all mine.)

One of the latest links to the site is from someone who appears to be rethinking their education based on what I wrote. This has alarmed me, to say the list.

I was going to link to the page but have decided not to, to respect their privacy. (Yes, I know that sounds daft when they published something on the web, but it’s not really on a blog. It seems to be more of a ‘keep track of your thoughts’ kind of site).But this is what the person says:

So, I’ve decided not to pursue a minor in English. I guess somewhere along the line, I lost my interest and I feel that it really isn’t my thing. I mean, I can speak it just fine, so people tell me, but I figure once I have the minor, I’ll not have a use for it. Well, I’m decided in not pursuing, so I won’t be taking advanced composition next semester or any other English class for that matter. Anyway, here’s a nice little article I found on the web. It’s really one of those ‘what you were taught in grade school was all wrong’ kinds of pieces, but I found it interesting. (Here they link back to my original article).

Let’s get something straight here. I’m not saying that you don’t need a formal education in order to be a good writer. I’m not saying that everything you learnt in school about writing is wrong. (It’s also not the English classes that are to blame. It’s the history essays, the French essays, the science reports). Continue reading →

Photo by fuzzbabble (CC on Flickr)

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. If you want to a be a freelance writer, you’ll need a lot more than just writing skills. Making a living from writing (or blogging, or graphic design, or whatever) means you’re running a business.

Making it as a freelance means getting regular work that pays well enough that you can live on it, year after year.

If you neglect the business side of things, then you’re heading for trouble. But by looking after your business, it’s perfectly possible to make a good living as a freelance writer. I’ve done so now for over 12 years, without ever needing to take a part-time job or earn any money outside of writing. (And without making any money from online writing or blogging).

But to make it as a freelance there are some important things you’re going to need along the way. If you don’t have them all right now, don’t panic. But until you have some of this stuff in place, it isn’t time to leave the day job. After the jump, the 20 things you need most to be a freelance: Continue reading →

Photo by monterd (CC on Flickr)

One of the readers of this blog (hi Petya) contacted me recently to ask how I first became a freelance writer. She was looking for advice about getting started as a freelance herself.

Becoming a freelance writer is not easy, but it is possible. The bad news is that it doesn’t really depend on how good a writer you are (and, yes, I’m the living proof).

There’s a lot of luck involved, you need to know people who can help you, and you need business skills.

In an upcoming post (warning, it’s a long one) I’m going to look at some of the things you need to be a successful freelance writer.

But first I’m going to explain how I came to be a full-time freelance writer. This might seem a little self-indulgent, but I’m hoping it may help readers like Petya with ideas they can use in their own careers.

Do I make a decent living? Yes
I have worked as freelance writer for around 12 years. In that time, I’ve never had to take any form of employment. And all my income has come from freelance writing. Continue reading →

The use of the snarky tone of voice is very popular in blogging and online generally. Is that because readers respond well to it? I don’t think so.

People snark because its easy to do, and it has a built in self-defence mechanism. It says: “Don’t bother disagreeing, ‘cos I don’t care.”

It’s the punk rock of writing, and for that reason alone I’m willing to forgive it. To an extent. Because I’m old enough to remember the heyday of punk, and I thought it was great.

Just as punk is better than bland pop, snark is better than boring writing or lame blog posts any day.

But the problem is that most snarkers don’t sound like Johnny Rotten. They sound more like a postpunk, grown-old tribute band, apeing the sound of their heroes, but creating nothing original. Not being themselves. Pretending, believing the daydream. Copying someone else’s attitude.

What’s so punk about that?

No, snarky blogging is too easy. Too predictable, and usually not funny. Just like sarcasm.

And ultimately it will repel readers, because it becomes tiresome. The joke goes stale. And the attitude wears thin.

It’s much better in the long run to find your own tone of voice, not copy a received snarkiness.

Of course, if you don’t agree, you can always go snark me to bits in the comments (although I have the power of deletion…)

Do you know the most important word in any piece of copywriting?

You probably use this word all the time anyway, perhaps without even realising it. In which case, you can make your writing all the more effective by using it more, and using it with purpose.

Do you know what the word is yet?

You do?

Good, because it really is a magical kind of word for a copywriter, one that you really can’t use too often. The really wonderful thing about the word ‘you’ is the way it makes you change the way you write. And it changes what you write about.

Instead of writing “I” this, “we” that, with the focus on yourself, your company, your product or service, it forces you to start writing about the reader, about the customer and what they might be interested in.

It makes you write about the benefits of a product or service (”this is what it can do for you,”) rather then the features. (”Our company does this. Our product does that.”)

As a blogger, it makes you focus on what your readership can take from a piece, the value you can give them. It makes you think about how your readers can act on the information you are giving them.

So next time you’re struggling with how to write something, try using the word ‘you’ as often as possible. It really does sprinkle a little magic on everything you write.

Whether you’re writing a blog or a best-seller, you need to know where to make a start. Should it be at the beginning? Not necessarily. There are good arguments for starting in the middle, or even at the end.

The beginning

Lewis Carroll outlines this method quite neatly in Alice in Wonderland. The Red Queen advises Alice to:

“Start at the beginning, go through to the end and then stop.”

The beginning is indeed the obvious place to start for any form of writing. This method has the advantage there will probably be less editing and reworking needed later on (though this is by no means certain). For copywriting adverts, sales letters and blogs posts, there is definitely something to be said for getting the headline and the first paragraph absolutely right first and then letting the rest flow from there.

But I rarely start writing anything at the beginning. Continue reading →

Photo by Laszlo (CC on Flickr)

I’m taking a few days off for Christmas and I’ll be back posting regularly in the New Year, when I have lots planned for the site.

One reader has asked for information on how I became a freelance writer. This has sparked several ideas for posts on the whole subject of how to kick-start a career as a freelance. One of these is already 2,000 words long and counting - and I have quite a way to go on it. So that’s what will be keeping me busy over the holiday season.

I’m also going to be returning to the subject of hypnotic writing (I know I keep promising to get back to this).

There will be more on copywriting generally, especially in connection with advertising and direct response. And I intend to start some regular features on how to write effective blog posts.

There’ll be more, lots more, on how to write headlines.

And I’ll also be posting about some of the best writing sites around on the web. I don’t have a blogroll on this site at the moment because I’m planning to have a page of links. These will include short (one sentence) reviews, to give an idea of what to expect at a particular site.

If you know of any writing sites that should be included, please let me know in the comments.

And if you have any requests for subjects to cover here on Write Mindset, please let me know, once again in the comments.

Have a great holiday and see you in the New Year.

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.

Editing is a core skill for a writer. It isn’t hard to learn but it does require a little time and patience (qualities that are so frequently in short supply….)

Even when deadlines are pressing, you should get into the practice of giving your copy a good edit before releasing it into the wild. Here are some basic editing tips:

Does it read well?
Regardless of what it has to say, does it make a good read? Does it flow?

Step back
Try to read it as though someone else wrote it. Forget that it’s your copy. Try to be objective Continue reading →

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.

Go through your writing and replace commas with full stops (periods) wherever you can. This will make your sentences shorter. It will make your copy punchier and clearer. It will add movement to your writing.

As with all such style tips, of course, you shouldn’t overdo this. You need to vary the length and pace of sentences to give your writing variety. Too much staccato can be a bit wearing.