Be a Better Writer

It's a shame when you write for a living and can't seem to find time to keep up your own blogs. YOU WRITE FOR A LIVING! Why can't you manage to keep your blogs updated?

The short answer is that it's much easier to write for clients who give you specific parameters and deadlines to meet. There's no guesswork in that, and unless you like being broke, there's no external motivation or inspiration needed :-)

That's why your own work can fall off. We're all so exhausted from working on things that make money NOW that we often find ourselves putting off that next blog post...until kingdom come.

But I have finally realized what my best writer's block remedy is. It's simple, easy, and always beneficial. It is so simple, in fact, that many of us gloss right over it when it's the most obvious of all writer's block exercises.

READY?

When you have writer's block...READ.

Reading someone else's writing is the quickest way to stimulate your own. Whether it be through a subsequent epiphany or your own ego that won't allow you to let others express themselves without getting a sudden urge to express yourself, reading the writing of others gets you inspired, and fast. Understand, however, that you have to read writing that has the potential to stimulate you. The back of the cereal box won't do in this case. You have to read something with the potential to feed something.

Got it?

So, knock the dust off of those blog subscriptions going to waste and actually visit a fellow blogger or two and really read what they have to say. Allow various authors to engage you. Leave comments. You will soon find yourself looking to chip away at your latest project, or maybe even inspired to knock out a really great piece in one sitting. Either way, reading helps motivate true writers to write.


Your thoughts?

If you leave this blog only learning one thing, let it be that people really do judge you by the way you speak and write.

Really; they do.

But if you're honest with yourself, you'll realize that it's actually fair. What else do your contacts have to judge you by? Your website might be impressive, but if you can't form a proper sentence when you post to social networking sites, or you send emails riddled with typos and grammatical errors, what are they supposed to think? You appear to be either careless or an incompetent idiot.

Okay, maybe the latter was a bit harsh, but so are most people. It's a harsh, unforgiving world out there, so you want to be sure that your correspondence reflects your intelligence and your attention to detail. This is especially important if you are a writer!

If you want people to pay you to write for them, it would behoove you to pay more careful attention to your spelling and grammar when you communicate, both formally and informally. We're all human, and we all make mistakes from time to time, but the reality is that those who make more mistakes make them more often because of poor habits. Not paying attention to detail, writing off the cuff and then just clicking "send", fooling themselves into believing that "It's just XYZ Forum; it doesn't make a difference."

Yes, it does.

Clients tell me all the time how glad they are to find a writer who actually presents themselves and their portfolio with class and polish. Most of the people contending for writing gigs these days are either substandard writers, or they simply present themselves like substandard writers.

So, if you want people to think you ARE a complete idiot and not a competent writer or business person, be sure to do the following:

* DON'T proofread every correspondence, every time; let the chips fall where they may.

* DON'T choose every word carefully; go ahead and talk out of the side of your neck. You can just double back later and tell people, "What I meant to say was..."

* DO engage in flame wars, especially when they don't actually enhance your image (like for a political commentator). You can afford to be a jerk; people like that.

* DO use slang and vernacular without being 100% sure that it is acceptable among the constituency of a particular forum. You're too cool to be appropriate.

* Spell check, spell check, spell check - FORGET IT! Spell check is for losers anyway.


Now, if you want to save your reputation and actually make money online, do the exact opposite :-)


To your continued success,

I.C. Jackson

One of the main problems I see with sales and marketing copy online is that it rarely makes me want to buy anything. More often than not, it sounds sales-y, and by the "call to action", I'm looking to the browser search bar to find something I actually care about. I, like millions of other net savvy surfers, have become grossly desensitized to online advertising, so it takes a lot more than your average, run-of-the-mill sales letter to get me to act.

Chances are that you're that way, too.

So how do you counteract this advert apathy? How do you write sales and marketing copy that converts visitors into subscribers and buyers?

You tell people what they want to hear, not what you want them to know.

Copywriters spend way too much time trying to convey the client's message instead of trying to satisfy the reader. If you simply satisfy the reader with the client's offer, everyone wins. The client is happy, they sell lots of widgets, and they hire you again and again. Then, because you're such hot stuff, you get to raise your rates and live like a movie star because you are a marketing mogul with a magic pen!

Well, maybe that was a stretch -

But the reality is that no one cares about what you have to offer unless it satisfies their needs and wants. So, I want you to remember this simple rule for writing highly effective sales and marketing copy that will increase conversion and make your clients think you are a genius:

Results-oriented copy works; write it and so will you.

As you sell yourself to potential clients and as you sell their wares with your words, the name of the game is RESULTS. Promise results that you can actually deliver, explain how those results are achieved, and remind the reader of what will happen if they don't get those results or what they can achieve if they do. Take the focus off of what you have to sell and place it on what the reader has to gain. Then, politely mention how what you are offering will get them those results for the least amount of time, effort, money, or what have you, and voila!

A sale is born :-)


I use this technique when I write for my clients, and I assure you that it will work for you, too. If you would like more writing tips and tools to develop your craft, subscribe to and/or follow this blog, so that you don't miss a beat!


To your continued success,

I.C. Jackson

The classic five-paragraph essay is the framework upon which great essay and research writing is built. For most of you, however, that doesn't mean much. The average reader of this blog is a writer far removed from junior high school, looking to increase their freelance income, not a gold star and a passing grade. The truth of the matter, though, is that the basics should only expounded upon, not abandoned. Just because you're writing for a grown-up audience, that doesn't mean you should bypass the schoolhouse training that got you to where you are today.

So, let's take another look at the five-paragraph essay and why it can help you improve your writing overall:

The classic five-paragraph essay starts with a well developed thesis statement, which is effectively the outline for the rest of the essay. This keeps both the reader and the writer on track, ensuring that the communication is effective and efficient. No one wants to hear you ramble on, building paragraphs on fluff just to increase your word count. People know bull when they read it, and if you don't make it a point to stay on track, that's exactly what you're giving them.

So, what do you do? Write all of your marketing copy in the form of a five-paragraph essay?

Of course not, silly! The reason we tend to abandon that model in the first place is because it can be rigid and boring. The idea, though, is to still organize your thoughts in such a manner where your introductory paragraph acts as a type of thesis and then develop your copy within the confines of your 'thesis' so that you deliver just what you promise in the least amount of words possible.

For a quick refresher on the proper way to write a five-paragraph essay, visit How To Write a Five-Paragraph Essay. I hear the author is a literary genius!


To your continued success,

I.C. Jackosn

While it is true that some writers possess natural talent, anyone with a mastery of their language can be shaped and molded into a great writer.

That's (almost) all there is to it.

You see, friends, the problem with most striving scribes is not that they don't have the potential to be great writers. There are lots of bad writers with great talent. (I know; I used to be one of them.) The real issue is that they have not yet attained a mastery of their language. Effective communicators are not necessarily so because of what they say, but how they say it, and the "how" is determined by their knowledge of the language.

Simply put, it takes more than talent to succeed, baby; you need skills.

Superior knowledge and experience is what makes you an expert and empowers you to manipulate both your medium and your audience. If you can't form a proper sentence or paragraph, or if you are limited to writing in only one style or another, your ability to reach people will be limited. Good writing makes a reader think, feel, or do something...or all three. You want to be able to invoke a broad range of thoughts, emotions, and actions; otherwise, you won't get very far as a writer, whether amateur or professional.

But the good news is...

If you need help, you're in the right place! This blog will provide you with lots of valuable information that you can use to hone your skills and even make yourself more marketable as a freelance writer. So, get a cup of coffee or tea, get comfortable, and jump right in!


To your continued success,

I.C. Jackson