Thanks to the high-speed world introduced by the internet and social media, website visitors don’t read – they skim. Unlike a good novel whose purpose is to allow the reader to wander through lines of elegant prose, online content works best when short and to the point. Brevity is the tactic, but not at the …
One of the most useful skills you can cultivate is writing. In the professional world, you can be called upon to write any number of things. For example, you could be tasked with writing blog posts for your company, articles about your profession or industry, newsletters, company emails, company policies, or query letters if you …
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If someone walked up to you today and asked you to define a paragraph, what would be your answer? Many define paragraphs according to their length, citing how much space a paragraph takes up on a physical page or how many sentences it has. In reality, paragraphs are better thought of as a group of …
What are some ways you can organize your writing so that you spend more time writing? Here are some practical tips. Tip 1: capture & organize your thoughts Get your thoughts out of your head and on paper where you can instantly access them. This can be done several ways. Some writers have a dedicated …
Imagine you’ve completed your first draft to a significant piece of writing. Maybe you’ve finally written that novel. Maybe you’re writing a column for a prestigious magazine or local newspaper. Maybe you’re writing an important blog post that will (hopefully) drive more traffic to your business. Whatever the cause, you have your first draft sitting …
How do you strengthen your writing so that it is compelling and memorable? The secret is verbs. Verbs are the workhorses of the English language by providing critical sentence structure. Usually, verbs describe actions and come in three tenses – past, present, and future. By using powerful verbs in your writing, you will create content …
Writing contests can be exciting to enter and frustrating to participate in. The premise is simple: you enter a piece that you’ve polished to perfection and hope for the best. For the serious writer, however, writing contests are an opportunity to sharpen writing skills and gain publicity or professional credibility. If these things interest you, …
Imagine a bright, sunny morning. You’ve brewed your favorite beverage and have just sat down to the computer ready to tackle the tasks for the day. First on your list is to check email and get caught up with any new business matters. As you quickly scan down the list of unread emails, you notice …
As a writer, you likely have a list of topics you want to talk about. If you blog, you probably write about your passions or around a central theme. If you craft stories, you may be writing to answer big life questions. Or you may simply want to use writing to connect with a fan …
The day is fresh and new, and the first big item on your to do list is blogging for my website. Or a client letter, or the next chapter in your manuscript. Regardless, you sit down, hands poised over your laptop keys… only to have your mind go blank and then wander away… Did I …
