How to Say Nothing in 500 Words (A Lesson on Writing)
The ability to write well is very useful for our personal and professional lives. It helps students, business people, politicians, writers, bloggers, marketers and everyone who has ever needed to arrange words together to convey ideas or opinions. The written word has become an essential means of social communication: mastery of it helps you to enthrall and persuade an audience that would look upon you favorably in return.
It goes without saying that learning how to create compelling content is a part of one’s success as an online publisher. Reading widely and deeply while consistently honing your writing skills helps a great deal in bettering your prose. Sometimes, it doesn’t hurt to read a few stylebooks/essays on writing by professional teachers or authors.
One of these essays on writing is Paul McHenry Roberts’s How to Say Nothing in Five Hundred Words, a brilliantly humorous introduction on writing college compositions. I discovered this essay today and read though easily in one sitting, possibly because it was so well-written and entertaining. It’s a perfect example of the writing techniques listed within.
Here’s a quick summary of the 9 main points mentioned. I’ve extracted some of the key paragraphs from the text but be sure to read the full essay because these points are elaborated in much greater detail with some excellent examples.
- Avoid the obvious content.“Say the assignment is college football. Say that you’ve decided to be against it. Begin by putting down the arguments that come to your mind. Now when you write your paper, make sure that you don’ t use any of the material on this list. If these are the points that leap to your mind, they will leap to everyone else’s too. Be against college football for some reason or reasons of your own. If they are keen and perceptive ones, that’s splendid. But even if they are trivial or foolish or indefensible, you are still ahead so long as they are not everybody else’s reasons too.”
- Take the less usual side. “One rather simple way of getting into your paper is to take the side of the argument that most of the citizens will want to avoid. They are intellectual exercises, and it is legitimate to argue now one way and now another, as debaters do in similar circumstances. Always take the that looks to you hardest, least defensible. It will almost always turn out to be easier to write interestingly on that side.”
- Slip out of abstraction. “Look at the work of any professional writer and notice how constantly he is moving from the generality, the abstract statement, to the concrete example, the facts and figures, the illustrations. For most the soundest advice is to be seeking always for the picture, to be always turning general remarks into seeable examples. Don’t say, “Sororities teach girls the social graces.” Say, “Sorority life teaches a girl how to carry on a conversation while pouring tea, without sloshing the tea into the saucer.”
- Get rid of obvious padding. “Instead of stuffing your sentences with straw, you must try steadily to get rid of the padding, to make your sentences lean and tough… You dig up more real content. Instead of taking a couple of obvious points off the surface of the topic and then circling warily around them for six paragraphs, you work in and explore, figure out the details. You illustrate.”
- Call a fool a fool. “If he was a fool, call him a fool. Hedging the thing about with “in-my-opinion’s” and “it-seems-to-me’s” and “as-I-see-it’s” and “at-least-from-my-point-of-view’s” gains you nothing. Delete these phrases whenever they creep into your paper. Decide what you want to say and say it as vigorously as possible, without apology and in plain words. Writing in the modern world, you cannot altogether avoid modern jargon. But you can do much if you will mount guard against those roundabout phrases, those echoing polysyllables that tend to slip into your writing to rob it of its crispness and force.”
- Beware of Pat Expressions. “Other things being equal, avoid phrases like “other things being equal.” Those sentences that come to you whole, or in two or three doughy lumps, are sure to be bad sentences. They are no creation of yours but pieces of common thought floating in the community soup… No writer avoids them altogether, but good writers avoid them more often than poor writers.”
- Colorful Words. “Some words are what we call “colorful.” By this we mean that they are calculated to produce a picture or induce an emotion. They are dressy instead of plain, specific instead of general, loud instead of soft. Thus, in place of “Her heart beat,” we may write, “her heart pounded, throbbed, fluttered, danced.” Instead of “He sat in his chair,” we may say, “he lounged, sprawled, coiled.”
- Colored Words.. “When we hear a word, we hear with it an echo of all the situations in which we have heard it before. The word mother, for example, has, for most people, agreeable associations. When you hear mother you probably think of home, safety, love, food, and various other pleasant things..The question of whether to use loaded words or not depends on what is being written.”
- Colorless Words. “A pet example is nice, a word we would find it hard to dispense with in casual conversation but which is no longer capable of adding much to a description. Colorless words are those of such general meaning that in a particular sentence they mean nothing…Slang adjectives like cool (”That’s real cool”) tend to explode all over the language. They are applied to everything, lose their original force, and quickly die.”
Learning how to create content using concrete, lean, colorful and vivid prose with unique perspectives will help you to get more readers, customers and supporters. But bear in mind that its not just about writing in a fancy way to entertain. It’s also a conscientious way of differentiating yourself from thousands of similar writers/thinkers in the same field.
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Thanks for sharing this list of points. It’s a great reminder for a blogger such as myself. Definitely going to use more color in the future.
I realize that you were merely illustrating an outline of a quoted article; however, what would have taken this article from a 7 to a 10 for me was if the explanation of each point had that point *embedded* into the explanation. For instance:
Colorful Words. These words enflame your emotions toward a certain subject, providing an emotional hue we may call “colorful.”
That would have been very meta! I enjoyed the examples though.
NICE words…great site..
Thanks Maki. Paul Henry Robert’s article was very good!
I learned to write well reading mystery books - mainly Perry Mason mysteries :o)
1. Use more verbs and fewer adjectives. Makes the writing crisp.
2. Decide the end first. Makes writing very easy.
3. To build up a suspense (or simply make people go “aah” or “cool”), make the beginning seem very different than the end. And let the rest of your article / post / book go into helping you connect the 2.
First of all, thank you for sharing the link to the essay. It’s so cool. (Oops! Colourless word!)
Tip #2 is the easiest of all to me, because taking the less usual side is what I’ve been doing for all of my life.
For a non-native English writer, finding colourful words to use is probably one of the hardest things to do. I know plenty of colourful words in my mother language, but in English… Well, one more reason to remember that the thesaurus is our friend.
A final note: books and essays on writing are really important, great, helpful and blah blah. However, writers must also learn to think for themselves and realise that sometimes they should break the rules if they want to write memorable, outstanding pieces.
Thank you, Maki, for the distillation of these key points to effective writing into one useful list.
The final three tips, which refer to “colorful” prose, are particularly important to me. My aim is to bring vivid touches to everything I write. It can, however, be a challenge to enhance the mundane things of life with words which paint pictures, without going over-the-top.
When achieved, your writing is remembered. It sticks in people’s minds. Your readers are moved to action- whether it be to laugh, cry, or buy your products or services. Even the most boring and technical subjects can be brought to life through writing with color.
There is no substitute to writing regularly and experimentation with words. Refining our own skills only comes when we write often and revise even more so. Only then can we develop a style which moves our audience. That’s truly compelling content.
A really good post — and it shows that I have much to learn.
Writing is probably the hardest thing I have come across — and every time I write a post I look at it and feel “this could be better”.
Finding a balance between endlessly re-writing and just cutting out the spelling errors is tricky.
Hi Maki,
Thank you for a fantastic summary, and the link to a great essay. It amazes me that it was written in the 50’s! I actually used a portable typewriter in college, although I’m not that old!
I will be sharing this post with my 18 year old son, who just completed his freshman year at college, and is majoring in Journalism. He’ll be a tutor in the college’s Writing Center next year and I’m sure these lessons will be invaluable to him as a writer, as well as in his tutoring.
As a new blogger, I will be working on most of these — #s 1, 3 and 5 for starters! Thanks so much!
Thanks for sharing such an excellent article.
Hmm .. sounds like my essays from when i was at college. I wonder if trying to make a word count has something to do with adding fluff and colorless words.
Most people think of writing, and especially “creative writing” as an art form. However they often forget it’s also a craft.
This post reminds us that writing is as much a craft as it is an art and that, if we want to be artful writers we need to firstly practice the craft.
Brilliant.
Its so inspiring every time I read your entry. Makes me want to renovate all my post in my blog.
Thanks Maki
That’s real cool, er… What an educational article it is! It coinsides well with a site I came across some time ago - Professional Writing Style (http://designsensory.com/pws/index.html). It says almost same things, yet it provides interactive lesson for you to put the knowledge into practice. I found it usefull.
“Call a fool a fool” is one mistake annoyance I see the most. Its just a way to increase the word count. Just spit it out already.
Fantastic article Maki - just one thing, sometimes leaving in a few obvious (but forgotten) points is a strong approach. Seth Godin takes this on his blog all the time and he his writing is very strong. It’s worthwhile to point out things that are obvious to you, but seemingly forgotten by society.
Interesting article. Helpful and amusing. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Thumbs up to you man
Excellent post for any up-and-coming writers and bloggers. Stay away from adjectives, as well. We always used the “You have $10 dollars to write a sentence” technique. Get rid of the unnecessary - adjectives.
Also, watch your adverbs. I always had trouble with that one until one of my professors ripped up my draft and told me to look it over or get an F. I learned the lesson fast.
Justin
http://www.blogosis.com
The ability to write compelling content is overrated.
People want to be anesthetized when reading. Their brains need a break from their information-overloaded routine. If they read at all, it’s to be put into a mindless coma.
Dull writing is modern man’s ultimate vacation. It’s also healthy–an insomniac can finally get a full 8 hours of sleep after consuming 500 lackluster words that say nothing.
Anyone who praises the archaic ability to write well is a supercilious fool.
Hmmm… I think I got at least 5 of the 9 points in there (tongue firmly planted in cheek).
I like the 9 points you extracted, Maki… but I’m not so sure about #5. I think it depends on what you’re writing and who your audience is. Readers often won’t know you’re stating your opinion (versus a fact) unless you make that clear. I’ve known many people who jump to conclusions and make assumptions and then spout those unverified assumptions as statements of fact. I think it’s a disservice to readers NOT to say, “I believe that…” or “In my opinion…” when such is the case.
Great post (as usual)!
Great article, as an author in the midst of a book, I find myself struggling with several of these daily! There is a fine line between trying to be conversational (which I find easier to read) vs proper.
I enjoyed these tips Maki. I am trying to focus on writing improvements. Writing for the web is different, but it’s nice to read about your thoughts on writing too.
I’m currently undertaking JulNoWriMo (a cousin of the famous NaNoWriMo) and it’s interesting to take a break and find such good writing posts.
Every time I read a post like this it makes me afraid to write anything… but I get over it pretty quick.
I think some article marketers should read this. I feel they are doing the exact opposite than what is mentioned here. The DO want to write nothing in 500 words. They want to be good enough to get the right keywords in it while really not saying anything at all. Then you have to click through in the link in their resource box to find out more.
I think a better approach would be to write like outlined here, but on a topic that can only be completed by clicking through. All content should be of high quality.
As a blogger, these 9 tips are very useful. Did I say anything? See, I’m scared again!
“For most the soundest advice is to be seeking always for the picture, to be always turning general remarks into seeable examples.”
Excellent point–writing comes alive when it moves from the impersonal abstract to the concrete picture.
yesterday read your article and it is very nice,thank you.
I enjoyed the spirit of your article, but have a few qualms regarding the content. First and foremost, if one must convey a specific point by displaying it in boldface, then a stylistic choice dominates over a contextual one: surely what we say is more important than how we say it. Second, while I agree with your admonition to read an occasional style-book, I would say that to abbreviate another’s work for the sake of brevity smacks of the concession of laziness (on behalf of the audience) rather than conciseness (on behalf of the author). Third, I am concerned about the theme of your piece, as it seems to imply that how much of what we say an audience can understand is more important than the inherent, personal truth of what we say (and, by example, that it is better to say something everyone can understand, e.g. “man, this weather sucks”, than it is to say what is the most true to us, e.g. “this heat robs my body of drive and leaves me heavy and dull beneath it’s crushing weight”).
This is my way of saying that you seem to confuse two distinct concepts; “communication”, when one’s ability to portray an idea to another reigns supreme, and “writing”, when the extent to which one can voice their own noble truth is the only idea worthy of aspiration.
Either way, I enjoyed your thoughts, and wish you every happiness. Hope you find plenty of reasons to smile.
Helpful and actionable post.
Writing is a “secret weapon” that most web site operators underappreciate. It’s easy to get caught up in technical and visual details but I advise clients to rethink their priorities. The words on the page are critical to engaging and converting customers.
This is a concise summary of how to put those words together better. Thanks for sharing this.
Great information, thank you!
Maki, great reminder. Everyone ought to read Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style once every so often. (Yes, that White is the same E.B. White who wrote Charlotte’s Web.)
In a sentence: Omit unnecessary words, galvanize stagnant expressions.
Great reading! Thanks so much for pointing this out.
nice article. thanks for the tips! great site by the way. i just started blogging so this’ll be useful
[howshouse.com]
@ byteful-traveller
Not entirely sure what you’re referring to but I think the original author’s text itself demonstrates the point he was making. I thought it was good enough so didn’t bothered to rewrite or paraphrase what he wrote.
@ Ankesh
Great tips. Thanks for sharing!
@ Karen
I think guidebooks can help but one shouldn’t rely on them too much. Sometimes I think they can stifle creativity or make the editorial mindset a hindrance..
@ Scott
That’s why I think writing a regular blog is a great way to improve oneself, even if the blog itself is not a money-maker. When you write often (and read often), you develop a cadence and learn how to improve the way you frame a subject.
@ Martin
I have the same problem with editing my own work. Sometimes I spend a lot of time going over what I read to cut out words or make sure I don’t use the same words too often. Only then do I get a flow or rhythm I’m satisfied with.
@ Linda
You’re welcome! I was quite impressed that it was written in the 50s but yet it sounded so vividly relevant. I do hope it helps your son improve his writing.
@ Amir Ahmad
You’re welcome!
@ Dominic
I definitely have been guilty of adding fluff by repeating the same points over and over again instead of going into detail… when writing college papers!
@ Andrew Scotchmer
Yes, writing is like a professional sport except that you’re mainly competing with yourself to develop the best copy.
@ lankapo
You’re welcome!
@ Stanium
Thanks for sharing!
@ Gerard
I agree. Being brave and courageous enough to say what one means makes the post more appealing as well because it strengthens the impact of the message.
@ Adam Singer
Pointing out the obvious in a clever way is what Seth does extremely well. On the other hand, pointing out the obvious by saying the obvious again and again doesn’t help.
@ Justin
Definitely watch out for your adverbs.
@ Bonnie
You learn fast! Haha. You got my attention with the first few lines. I was surprised when I read them and then wanted to know why you thought that way… see, it works! As for #5, i think its good to make some disclaimers about a specific topic but the problem is reusing the same phrases (’in my opinion’ etc) repeatedly doesn’t help.
It might be better to make a direct statement and then clarify to add balance later. (’Of course, this is not for everyone but…’ e.g). Then again, it totally depends on your writing style.
@ MJ Demarco
Conversational or casual writing is easier to read because you get used to the speech rhythms (which are vocalized in your head) and they are a great tool to use when you want to persuade instead of amazing an audience with imagery.
@ Edward Lomax
I think the trick is to leave a topic incomplete (if you want someone to buy/take action). The essay I’ve linked to is long but it leaves you wanting more (at least for me) because it implies that the author is very well versed on this topic and he has more to share. That itself is very attractive to me.
@ Jesse Hines
That’s one of my favorite lines from the text as well.
@ amirulcyber
You’re welcome!
@ Samuel
1. But how you say something influences what you say. An excellent speechmaker can improve the same script much more than a poor speechmaker. The packaging of content affects the reader’s perception of its meaning.
2. Not quite sure what you mean here. I don’t think it is laziness at all. I choose to abbreviate this because I want to bring out the key points for readers who might not have time to go through the entire piece. Abbreviation also encourages exploration in greater depth as interest is piqued.
3. I don’t agree with that part. This essay is purely a lesson on how to make one’s writing more readable, concrete, attractive and appealing. But authenticity is equally important and I don’t think its mutually exclusive for one to ‘communicate’ an idea by ‘writing’. Excellent, authentic writing is always communicating and communicating well is a big part of good writing.
In the end, it depends on the question: Why are you writing? And Who are you writing for?
@ Scott
Good content is what attracts and maintains readers for all websites and good writing always helps in that area.
@ Easton
The elements of style is a great book. Definitely worth reading.
@ Chadwyck
You’re welcome!
@ Everyone else
Thanks for your comments!
Its really amazing that how you described the colorful and colorless words and surely i would love to see more on this topic.
Thanks
An outstanding post. It reminded me of Elmore Leonard’s dictum: “I leave out the parts that people skip.”
There’s something to be said about taking an English class at the local junior college. You can truly brush up on your non-fiction style writing. In my essays, people often ask me ‘where’s your thesis?’ I made it through creative writing class just not English class. I can’t write an essay worth anything unless its anthropology. I’m going to return to school to learn to write pretty much. For what its’ worth, I can give advice from a semi-professional with a BA in Creative Writing, all you need to do is make sure you have a thesis, don’t beat around the bush with your thesis actually. I don’t want to but I wind up not expressing a concrete opinion because I’m not comfortable with it. Find your opinion, and go from there.
Back from 5 days at hospital I simply clicked ‘mark all as read’ on Google Reader, thankfully Seth Godin linked back to this (as I tweeted) so I’ll have to go and check it out.
I don’t think I’ll read the summary as it might spoil the peace, but thanks for pointing me in the direction. I’ve been working on my writing for quite some time. Still not at a level I’d like to be at but definitely noticing an improvement (as I have noticed with you)!
Cheers Maki
To me, the tips #1 and #2 are the heart of the matter. The rest is more about writing technique, but the first two deal with choice of content.
It doesn’t matter how eloquently you put it. If your message has been said before, you’re not going to gain traction with your readers.
That said, in this day of content overload, it’s hard to find truly original things to say. Which is OK, because the important thing is not originality, but uniqueness. No idea is completely original. But we can be unique nevertheless. No two people are alike, after all.
The key to a great original content is in how we personalize the message. The tips #1 and #2 help us get lazy and make easy choices on our content — instead, be more vigorous about what we choose to say and make sure it is truly our own voice.
ari
Really interesting read thanks! These points will definitely help me out!
Just a really great set of tips to keep in mind! Very sound advice, that every writer should be reminded of from time to time. Thanks!
You might be interested in a free, web utility that can help you accomplish item #4 (Get rid of obvious padding.)
It’s called StyleDuck … http://styleduck.com
I developed it with my son. I’m the author of 20 published books, a j0urnalist for 30 years and formerly taught writing at Cornell and UCLA.
Hope it helps you.
Or just read “On Writing Well” by William Zinsser.
Is irony intended here? What pleases a college professor will not typically satisfy the Digg crowd, nor vice versa.
Hey, this was great. Thanks for this, and the link. I need this reminder, for my own writing. The more reminders, the better.
your writing style is good.Good info.Thnks for this info.
nice article, thanks for sharing.
this is now my favourite blog. congrats and keep it up. (it’s not what you do it’s how you do it… you do it well:)
This is great information, thank you for sharing this.
Thank you very much for the help. I will be visiting your blog frequently because of articles like this one. Thanks again.
Good Post! I just like to write whatever comes to mind, especially if it makes me giggle.
In the humble opinion of this particular reader, though others may disagree I found the aforementioned article to be a veritable cornucopia of both wisdom and knowledge. This particular commenter looks forward with eagerness and glee to the glorious day in which he can begin to put into effect those many lessons which he has now learned with regard to the pursuit of clear, concise and compelling writing.
It is with many thanks to Maki for casting attention on this much-needed resource that I write this comment.
I just discovered your blog. Nice work.
Regarding number 5 (call a fool a fool), it’s sometimes necessary for a write to qualify a stong statement in order to protect against slander or libel.
Many years ago, I posted on Compuserve that a particular software program was “buggy as hell.” Lucky for me that it was an anonymous post because the owner of the small software company tried to figure out who posted the item (he never did).
I talked to an attorney at the EFF, who advised me that I could have been sued because I didn’t qualify the statement. I could have said, “In my opinion, the software seemed to be buggy.”
This would have given me some wiggle room because it labels the statement as my opinion. Saying that the software “seemed” to be buggy leaves the door open that maybe the software wasn’t buggy. A programmer wouldn’t need the wiggle words because he could document specific bugs. In this case, the words “buggy as hell” still should have been avoided because they aren’t precise or accurate.
Terrific post. I use that “stream of consciousness” thought when I write. Sometimes it is breezy , sometimes somber, but certainly never dull!
I will check back often.
Denise
http://www.dubli-network.blogspot.com
As usual, great post!
Thanks very much for the summary, and for the link to Roberts’ piece.
Great post and helpful information. I will use it.
Thanks for such wonderful article.Thanks again.
This is a great post with some really awesome tips. Number one in particular is a great tip.
Years ago someone told me there is the message and the meta message which is what you’re really try to say. Try to keep the meta message in mind when writing.
I can barely spell 5oo words nor write that many about something.
The problem with #5, is that in our litigious society, anything that is not prefaced by an “in my opinion” could open someone up for some litigation. Of course, that’s my opinion
@Rafael: I also thought of this, but it may be less of an issue when writing school papers.
Great Post! I do not think that a lot of people realize the importance of great content. It is extremely easy to have said nothing and truly accomplished nothing with your article. With that said, I will stop right there.
my freshman comp professor gave us all handouts of this article the first day of class.
And…that’s why I love reading your blog! Good writing!
Erm,this article is quite interesting to discuss.
I read from long time ago your articles and with every day passing I learn or clear things more and more. Thanks for sharing your wisdom and that you reveal your sources, but I think I never keep count how many words I write. I only keep counting what I write and how much I like what I write, and how much like to others. Because first of all it must to know if you like what you write, and become your reader, to know if others will like your article.
Oh would I that I could write half so well as I hope to!
Or something like that.
I am FAR from a master of the written word, but I am coming to an awareness that definiteness of purpose (ab initio) lends itself well to crispness of prose. If you don’t know where you are going, any road will do. But if you DO have a destination and a deadline you’ll choose your route wisely.
I think.
I am a firm believer in getting rid of the padding. Anyone who has to write IMHO is neither humble nor honest, they are just too chicken shit to give their opinion without a disclaimer. Hooray for saying fools are fools!
Great tips its very inspiring, nice to know you .. and nice blog too
Great post, which reminded me of George Orwell’s Politics and the English Language, which is a much better ‘how to write well’ primer than the title suggests. At the end, there’s even a list:
(Orwell writes) I think the following rules will cover most cases:
(i) Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
(ii) Never us a long word where a short one will do.
(iii) If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
(iv) Never use the passive where you can use the active.
(v) Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
(vi) Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.
These rules sound elementary, and so they are, but they demand a deep change of attitude in anyone who has grown used to writing in the style now fashionable. One could keep all of them and still write bad English, but one could not write the kind of stuff that I quoted in those five specimens at the beginning of this article.
Here’s the full text: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm
That was a great article. How to say nothing in 500 words is simply saying that you like to write content that convey the right message to the reader. As you said, Colorful Words is one this which means that they are calculated to produce a picture or induce an emotion. A unique title with colorful words or keywords is also important so as the reader will read it deeply.
Awesome article. It’s perfect for a newbie blogger like myself. Thanks for the post, it was informative.
Jerry
This was a great article - one that I enjoyed very much and will attempt to incorporate into each post. I have to admit that I’m guilty of a few of the “don’t do’s”!
Writing is most certainly an art, and this post is a great instructional piece. Thanks!
As someone who has to constantly churn out documentation (mostly of a technical nature) - the points you mention are extremely relevant. The toughest part for me is to think of the article/document/post from the point of view of the person reading it and whether they will find it relevant.
You clearly do not have such issues…
Thanks
A
Thanks for the reminder that writing is a contact sport. It requires full engagement.
Hah, when I saw the title of this post, I was sure it would be about article marketing instead of college essays. I’m amazed at how many people just spew stuff out there for links, never considering that human eyes might read their articles.
Anyway, a nice list of points to consider. Thank you.
After reading all the article, I am feeling, “I am a fool”.Perhaps all successful writers follow that pattern and it should be followed. I like colorful and “Call a fool a fool.” points the most.
Thank God for Stumble Upon. This is just what I needed when I needed it most and would never have stumbled upon it otherwise.
Thanks very much, I’ll be subscribing
The written word is a gift to the world, that I torture without remorse. Some great advices here no less, well done.
I am
Very interesting. Subscribed.
Ooo thanks for the tips - I will definitely attempt to phrase my blog more elegantly. I think the first and second points are the most useful (in terms of something that people normally don’t think of). Keep ‘em coming!
It’s always interesting to stop by and see what your topic of choice is. This is one that’s been on my mind a lot lately. I stick to viewing a lot of photography websites and blogs most of the time and I tend to return frequently to those that have the most colorful words…not necessarily the best photographs.
Words do matter!
This article produced fruitful learning for me today. Thank you for putting the post up for discussion.
I find the piano teacher always needs to practice and to have a lesson or two every year from another teacher - new vision and new learning. The teacher who does not have lessons and does not practice becomes stagnant and tepid. Writers need to write and practice and to have lessons and teachers - creating new sounds and directions - intriguing the mind. This was vital nourishment for me today.
Great information and your advice on #4 reduce padding is vital in blogging.
Get straight to the point, that’s the best way to go.
Great post Maki! I find it easy to see unusual angles and oblique perceptions on common subjects. If I see 900 articles about one “hot topic”, it seems like 99% of them are very similar. This is the difference between a creative thinker and someone who just follows the crowd. I see opposites in everything or unusual derivations of those “hot topics” and write something totally original. I’ve found some of my individual aricles on page 1 search results, simply because the content is unique even if it shares a similar title or keywords with others.
I think most bloggers have the answers right under their noses, but fail to see them because they are trying to find the answers from other people
Wonderful reminders! But only practice makes perfect. So, we really need to write a lot more to improve our writing skills.
I’m at the point of getting into serious blogging and article marketing. Very nice to bump into your blog, I have bookmarked it
Thanks, keep it up!
Colorizing every sentence can really help to write more and write indeed 500 words about nothning or with a really small content.
Nice blog.I like your blog and layout.I also have a business blog.Please visit.
When I read the title I thought its about making an article more wordy so that it meets the guidelines of article submission sites but exactly the opposite but this is what I wanted.
Consider this excerpt from an article:
Adsense is a great way to earn money online. In fact its a wonderful opportunity for budding entrepreneurs. Make no mistake adsense has a great potential to earn money from the internet.
more than 26 words no real value
very useful stuff.Excellent….I am going to follow this in my site
Really really really nice advice. I think I will totally use it!
Sorry, I of Russia, and speak and write poorly on English. Your post is very interesting and educational. I am leading my blog at home, but we tezhe principles of writing copy that and you. Thank you for a good article. Be sure to publish it in their blog.
Thanks for these great tips Maki..will keep them in mind everytime I write. I’m a copywriter, so it’s really refreshing to read something like this. I used to work as a feature writer and the shift to business writing has somehow affected my “colorful” style, since business writing is brief and to the point. I’m working on merging both styles =)
Excellent tips on writing.
It is sad but writing skills are often very poor with people struggling to string together two or three coherent sentences.
A great call for writing that is interesting to read.
I love this article — first discovered it reprinted in a book on writing when I started teaching composition way back in the last century (okay, the ’90s), and made quite a few students read it. The example essay still makes me laugh out loud.
So I was happy to see that it’s finding a new audience! It really deserves it. Thanks!!!
Very very useful… there is nothing like a very interesting and inspiring book you read in one sitting! Thanks…
Thanks so much for this article, hopefully my writing skills as well as my english will improve.
-Hawk
MousaGenre Promotions
Excellent post will pass this on to my associates, ( writers)
thx
Thank you for the tips. I’ve just learned a lesson.
After just writing the content for our website, reading this has made us we think what we are saying and how we are saying it. I think it’s time to get straight to the point!
Thanks.
Wall Street are the best at this. They write and talk without saying anything.
useful tip for me, I am going to follow this in my site in future
Excellent post for new, intermediate or seasoned bloggers. Content (good content) is so important in trying to establish a loyal following. I’ve seen blogs that have really great information and variety but the posts are entirely toooo long. So, word count is very important.
Great site and nice avatar!! nice article too, keep it up!
Great post. I total agree. I think many posts could be narrowed down to a few sentences. My blog is dedicated to just that thought.
Amy
Gr8 advice. I am roaming on internet to find some good advice like this. I will try out them.
I found your summary to be very helpful. Creating quality, but digestible content is a very important aspect of being a publisher in any form of media.
This is a really helpful post and will definately take on board some of the tips when writing my own blog!
Thanks!
i love to write but i had when i am given a word limit. i have a hard time trying to fit everything into 500 words or less. eventually i start concentrating too much on the word count and lose my mind.
The 5.”Call a fool a fool” is definitely right. Those “in my opinion” things really annoy me. It’s like everyone want to seem good and respecting to the mainstream opinions. Some deviation and powerfulness doesn’t hurt. Just believe in your words, it’s logical that it’s “your opinion”, you write it!
A follower of both Orwell and Strunk & White myself.
The “colorful words” suggestion puts me in mind of Science Fiction writer A.E. Van Vogt who, recalling his days as a beginning hack (in the good sense of the word!) who, when writing science fiction words would try to write using “scientific words” — more of a “just the facts ma’am” approach. But when he wrote romance fiction, he used “emotional words.”
So, “I lived in small cottage at 1313 Mockingbird Lane” became, “Tears came to my eyes as I thought of my small cottage at 1313 Mockingbird Lane.”
Thanks for sharing. It really helps with my writing.
I concur with your comments, writing lots helps develop cadence.
Practice for the sake of mental clarity can prove profound if you give it enough time
Great article and helpful (useful!) advice!
uh oh. you’ve found me out
great tips! must start using these before i put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard)
Thanks for sharing such valuable info. i really love your blog
A totally fantastic website sharing tips for fellow bloggers. Information on this site is definitely useful for anyone working on a site. Thank you Maki!
You blog is great.This article you have written has taught me a lot about article writing.
All the point are very useful and each and every word has his own meaning.
I never though that anyone can give us so much information about article writing and how to expand it!!
Thanks…And keep on coming such types of articles
Great post. I total agree. I think many posts could be narrowed down to a few sentences.
Good tips. My writing styles is usually very short and to the point. I find it very hard to elaborate on what I’m trying to say.
Great post. I love reading anything that has to do with writing. Becoming a better writer is what all of us aspire to become. Anyone who is doing any kind of article marketing should read this, it could mean the difference between success and failure.
Paul