“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.” — Red Smith

Easy Tips to Have Them at Hello

Content writing is the rocket fuel for your company’s brand and marketing. It’s used to target, engage, and capture audiences. It’s the most important ingredient for determining the growth and success of any business.

Writing tells people who we are. It’s a way to communicate our thoughts into a visual form. It sets the tone, it paints a picture, and it sparks ideas. Being able to communicate and express creatively through writing is an honorable skill.

People say good writers are good storytellers. But good writers also follow certain guidelines. Here are some of the best writing tips that I’ve freely adapted from Sol Stein, the author of Stein on Writing.

Enjoy!

1. Have ’em at Hello

The Title, 1st sentence, and 1st paragraph should hook the reader and not let them go until the end. Serve the reader, not your ego. Arouse interest, seduce them, grab at their heartstrings, and pull tight.

2. Say what others are thinking but afraid to talk about

A writer should speak the unspoken, reveal taboos, uncover the dark side, and arouse emotions through clashes of culture, class, and otherness.

3. Thirsty

A “want” is a desire unrealized. Motivate people with the use of obstacles, clashes, and uncontrollable events before you give them what they want.

4. Make it juicy

Good stories are about wanting something, facing obstacles, not getting it, trying to get it, overcoming conflict and drama, and finally getting what they want only to realize they don’t want it.

5. Suspense and Tension

Arouse the reader with curiosity for as long as possible. Tension boosts energy and creates interest. Learn to stretch it out. Write so the reader asks…How? Why? Tell me more….

6. Show me

Writing comes to life by actions and words, not narratives, and descriptions. It’s not inflection but words that tell a story. It’s not what’s said but the effect of what’s meant.

7. Be Credible

Explain the reasons for actions. Stay away from unmotivated actions and unbelievable coincidences.

8. Find the Pain

Reveal painful secrets, uncover camouflaged layers, and expose the dark side of human nature. Excite the audience and have them searching for opposing thoughts, thoughts of goodwill, justice, and righting wrongs.

9. Use 6 senses

Writers should feed the reader’s hungry imagination with sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. Use words that help the reader visualize. Develop your sixth sense to enhance your writing.

10. Love scenes

The erogenous zone is in the head. Evoke a deep emotion with the reader by helping them identify with the subject matter. Then, interrupt, stall, and postpone the climax to create tension.

11. Pick up the Pace

Keep the reader’s attention by using short sentences and frequent paragraphs. Remember….that, commas, like dots…slow things down.

12. Cut the Fat

Write with precision and clarity. Exaggerate with hyperboles but don’t say too much. Less is more. Don’t use two adjectives with one noun and cut out unnecessary words (see list below).

13. Be Original

What’s your purpose? Find your voice. What would you say if you were shouting your very last sentence from a rooftop to all your loved ones below?

14. Grow Some Balls

Be outspoken, have an opinion, and tell the truth in an interesting way. People thrive on reading about the secrets of others. They don’t want to look at your Instagram; they want to see the photo you don’t want to show.

15. Resonate

Be relatable and resonate with a wide audience by using names, by referencing quotes and religious sources, by invoking life and death situations, by a bold conclusion, by naming other sources, by the skillful use of aphorisms, epigraphs, similes, metaphors and ideally from the writing itself. Cut out anything that strains.

16. Stick with one Point of View

Whether it’s 1st person (I saw this, I did that), 2nd person (you saw this, you saw that), or 3rd person (she saw this, she did that) — be clear about who’s eyes are observing. If it’s not working, try writing from another point of view. Readers don’t notice point-of-view errors. They simply think the writing is bad. (Note: 2nd person is best for non-fiction or self-help style writing but not recommended for fiction.)

17. Don’t use flashbacks

Bring the background to the foreground by writing in straight past tense. Get rid of the words “had” or “you.” Flashbacks should be used in the same tense you’re using. Instead of saying, “I had been remembering,” say “I remembered.”

18. REVISE, REVISE, AND REVISE AGAIN

This should be the fun part. Read every sentence carefully to make sure you are saying what you mean and mean what you say. Try Grammarly to catch overlooked errors.

WORDS TO AVOID

You, had, that, then, there is,

Totally, completely, absolutely, literally

Definitely, certainly, probably, basically, virtually

Start, begin, began, begun

Rather, somewhat, somehow, perhaps

Said, replied, asked

Breath, breathe, inhale, exhale

Shrug, nod, reach

Just, always, never, should, almost, entire

Like, quite, really, very, however

Down, up

For as long as I remember, I’ve wanted to be a writer. People say the key to good writing is to be a good storyteller. Well, I’ve always wanted to be a good storyteller, too. But the truth is, getting better at anything takes practice, practice, practice.

As much as I write, I still struggle to find the time. Especially those days when the thought of writing is as appealing as jumping into ice water. It’s similar to how I feel about exercising. Although, I’ve hacked my mental pushback by ignoring excuses and getting dressed (which is the hardest part). Once I’m on my bike with the wind in my face, I forget everything else and remember how much fun it is.

I put the following list together to inspire myself to write more often and remember how rewarding it can be. I thought I would share and hope you’ll leave a response and post your favorite writing tips, too!