SuccessfulWritingMadeSimple

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ATeenyIntro. These days, the number of opportunities you have to express yourself with the written word is nothing short of infinite. Every time you go online, the internet begs for your engagement. It’s simpler than ever to write your own book, build your own website, or post your own blog. You can share on social media, launch an email campaign or splash some sales copy. You could spend the whole day writing and never run out of platforms and places to propagate your thoughts and words. As a longtime writer and editor, I’ve studied the work of the masters to discover what gets words to leap off the page, grab our hearts and keep our attention. I’ve examined the ingredients of successful writing: What makes it flow smoothly, communicate clearly and hold our interest? What makes a

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SUCCESSFUL WRITING MADE SIMPLE

personal story intrigue us? What makes an online offer irresistible? What makes a good book impossible to put down? I’ve gathered some of the simplest and most important of these principles and packed them into this e-book for writers like you. I recommend that you make them your constant companion and best writing friend. They’ll help you polish up your prose, mature your style, and put you miles ahead of your competition. You’ll also boost your writing confidence in no time. If you ignore these principles, your writing will suffer in both strength and eloquence. You’ll risk sounding confusing, awkward and boring and you’ll likely lose followers, customers or employers. If you follow them, you’ll watch your prose spring to life. You’ll sound more professional and focused and you’ll get more response from your audience. Best of all, you’ll enjoy applying the power of words and mastering the art of successful writing. Enjoy!

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WhatisFirst.This first principle of successful writing is simple yet indispensible to newcomers and seasoned writers alike. It’s this: know what you want to say before you work on how you want to say it. After all, if you don’t know what you’re saying, no one else will! What are the ideas you want to convey? What thoughts support those ideas? Jot them down formally in an outline or informally by just scribbling them down, one by one, on a piece of paper. Then spend some time organizing. Group the ones that are related or similar. Omit duplicates. Try to create a flow of ideas. It doesn’t have to be perfect at this point, and you shouldn’t expect it to. The shape of thoughts and ideas will evolve and change as you begin to write. But this framework will save you from wasting tons of time and suffering numerous headaches down the line.

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While you’re at it, spend a moment defining the purpose of what you’re writing. Are you writing to get a response? To elicit feelings? To get a job? Write down your purpose and intent for your work and put that in front of you as you proceed. It’ll help keep you focused.

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UseActiveVoice.I’d bet that the single greatest key to successful writing is the use of what we call active voice. Active voice is a way of ordering the parts of your sentence to give it punch, movement and clarity. The opposite of active voice, of course, is passive voice. If you’re not familiar with these terms, don’t worry. I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve to help you recognize them. And I’ll give you the motivation and the means to transform one into the other. To understand active voice, take a moment and think about what happens in a sentence. As you probably know, a sentence often begins with a subject and then includes a verb describing the action that the subject is engaged in. Like this one:

Jennifer feeds the cat. Simple enough, right?

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Thefirstpayoff In the example, Jennifer is the subject and the action (verb) is ‘feeds’. But don’t underestimate that little verb. It has a big impact: it drives the whole sentence with movement and energy. It creates something interesting for us to imagine in our minds: Jennifer bending down, putting food in the cat bowl, the cat purring around her ankles perhaps. I mean, I didn’t even say all that in the short sentence, but our minds just love to fill in the details. Which is great. After all, your mission as a writer is to populate your reader’s mind with ideas, images and other fun stuff. This is the first real payoff of active voice: it brings the storytelling alive. In comparison, passive voice is listless, lethargic and somewhat boring. When you use passive voice, the elements of your sentence sit there, passively (ahem), at the receiving end of something. The subject of the sentence no longer gets to do anything. Instead, the object of the sentence (in this

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case, the cat) is affected somehow. Here’s the same scene described in passive voice:

The cat is being fed by Jennifer. Blech. Kind of awkward, boring and backward, don’t you think? Since with passive voice there’s no clear actor (subject) who’s doing something (verb), the energy and vitality of the writing drains away to almost nothing. Your sentence loses its vibrancy. I love active voice because it puts someone (or something) in a power position to do something! Consider the difference: Here’spassivevoice: The term paper was turned in by Jim.

No action. A real snooze, right?

Here’sactivevoiceforthesameidea: Jim turned in his term paper.

What a relief! We can imagine Jim walking up to the teacher’s desk and placing the paper on a pile there.

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Here’spassivevoice:

There was a bed, draped in a down comforter, a nightstand and a tall industrial floor lamp in the corner. Even with a few descriptive words thrown in, the sentence reads flat.

Here’sactivevoiceforthesameidea:The bed, draped in a down comforter, sat in the corner next to a nightstand and a tall industrial floor lamp loomed nearby. Can you feel how much more alive this version is? We’ll talk about this later, but active voice gives you more room to plug in juicier verbs.

Here’spassivevoice:

There are four parts of the U.S. Constitution. A sentence starting with “There” begs the question: “Where?” It’s pointing somewhere off in the distance. Not up close and personal for the reader.

Here’sactivevoiceforthesameidea:

The U.S. Constitution consists of four parts… Okay! Now we can see something in our imagination!

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ThesecondpayoffThe second way that active voice pays dividends is by giving you many, many more opportunities to sprinkle in juicy verbs to tell your story and allow your reader to engage. The truth is, passive voice is fairly lazy; it frequently relies on versions of the verb “to be” like was, is, will be, were. Those words have no imagery, no action, and hardly any energy so your writing goes limp. So replace those simple-minded verbs with some more interesting ones. It’ll bring your writing to life.

ThethirdpayoffActive voice delivers the goods in a way that’s more natural for the brain to consume. Your prose becomes easier for your audience to imagine because it’s in better order — subject first, verb second — and because you’re using more lyrical verbs. Complex ideas are more accessible and easier to comprehend. Mission accomplished.

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You can imagine what a difference active voice will make as you write your next blog post or your website copy, where being direct and energetic are essential to keeping your reader’s attention. If you’re writing an article or an application, the same thing applies: you’ll be more convincing and compelling. If you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, too, then using active voice will be absolutely essential. HowtospotpassivevoiceTo detect the use of passive voice, first look for sentences that start with “There is” or “There was.” They will inevitably unwind into a sentence using passive voice.

There was a table in the middle of the room. Second, if the action in the verb phrase starts with the word ‘by’ then it’s using passive voice.

The cat was fed by Jessica. The groceries were picked up by Jason. The document was filed by the office assistant.

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When you spot sentences like these, ask yourself who’s doing what, and try to rearrange things by putting the actors at the beginning of the sentence or phrase with their verbs dutifully following. These are better:

Jessica fed the cat. Jason sped to the store to pick up the groceries. The office assistant reluctantly filed the document.

Third, scan your work to see how often you settle for the verb “is” in your sentences. Aside from using it in a definition (“Technology is the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes blah blah blah…”) it can be overused. Consider swapping it out for words with more imagery and more action. You’ll be amazed at the difference it makes.

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HowtowritewithactivevoiceNow that you see why you want to write with active voice, the rest is simple. Start your sentence with the person or the thing that’s doing something. That puts them in the power position to take some action. Next, choose your verb, describing what the person (or thing) is doing. If desired, sprinkle in other elements to paint the picture and convey the emotion you’re seeking. Voilà! Active voice.

Butdon’toverdoit Having strenuously warned you about the weaknesses of passive voice, I do want to point out that you don’t need to

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force yourself to eliminate it entirely. It has its place; you probably couldn’t do without it completely if you tried. In fact, it’s quite well suited for scientific, technical, educational and political discussions, exactly because of its more detached and abstract voice. So don’t worry about it too much or take it too far. But do transform passive to active wherever you find that it pays off. Turn it around, identify who’s doing what, and put the subject where it’s most comfortable: at the beginning of the sentence.

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Havefunwithverbs.Almost every sentence includes a verb. And that means you have many, many opportunities to enrich, color, animate and spice up your writing. (See what I did just there? Lots of interesting verbs? Okay, maybe I went overboard just to make the point. But you get the idea now!) • Try ‘peeled away’ instead of ‘left’ • Try ‘tame’ instead of ‘control’ • Try ‘sat,’ ‘lounged’ or ‘waited’ instead of ‘was’ • Try ‘delivers’ instead of ‘gives’ Here’s another way to think about it. Consider that your writing will sing with more meaning and depth when you give human characteristics — like feelings and behaviors — to nonhuman elements of your story. We call this personification and it really can enliven what you write. Whether you’re writing fiction or drafting your latest blog post, your ideas and images will start to jump off the page

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when you use verbs expressing human conduct. Here are some examples to give you an idea of what I’m talking about: • The wind kissed her cheek • The chair lounged heavily in the corner • The bed groaned under his weight • The phone refused to ring Kissing, lounging, groaning and refusing are all things that only mammals can do. So when you assign these human-like verbs to things like the wind, a chair, a bed or a phone, they resonate with the memories and associations in the minds of your readers, bringing up feelings and images that make the scene more real for them. Reread the phrases above and see if you don’t experience that! Again, don’t overdo this. If you sprinkle in too many vivacious verbs, they’ll overwhelm and spoil everything else like too much cherry sauce on a vanilla sundae. You’ll stoop to using cheap tricks and your audience will know it. Keep it fun, simple and tasteful as much as you can.

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Shortenthosesentences.Our world has gone global and digital at the same time. That means that more people than ever are writing, commenting, blogging, texting, and otherwise communicating to the world through the gift of words. As we each have a lot to say, we also have an infinite supply of other people’s thoughts, feelings, ideas and commentary to consume. Of course, our attention spans are getting tested hundreds of times a day. We can hardly finish reading one thing without being seduced to read another. So when it’s time for you to toss your own ideas into this ocean of words, I recommend you keep your thoughts and ideas on the short side. Why? One. You’ll get understood more readily.

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Two. You’ll keep people’s focus more easily.

Three. You’ll deliver your ideas more effectively.

In sum, short thoughts pack a punch!

Onesentence=onethought If you’re new to writing, start by limiting yourself to one thought per sentence. If you fold in more than one idea to your sentence, you’ll end up leading the reader down too many pathways and they won’t be able to follow you very well. To catch the sentences that need help, look for where you use the word ‘and’ (when it’s not part of a list). Are you stringing together two different events that would be better served to separate into two sentences? Try replacing the ‘and’ with a period and starting a new sentence with the second event. Or, you can start a sentence with ‘And’. (See how I started this one with ‘Or’? Same idea.) Now, traditional rules of

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grammar used to rail against starting sentences with ‘And’. In fact, if you’re writing with Microsoft Word, you’ll probably get those squiggly green lines under your short phrases, indicating — horrors! — that you’re not complying with standard rules of grammar. But ignore them. The practice has become widely accepted by professional writers everywhere. So feel free.

Asshortasyoucanmakeit Once you’ve mastered writing one idea per sentence, try having some fun with writing short sentences. Very short sentences. They don’t even have to include a verb. Like this one. Or this. Short sentences have been used in advertising for years with great results and their use has spilled over into most other types of communication. Because they’re effective. They have a percussive impact. Like pa-dum-pum. They use rhythm to set themselves apart and just hit the reader on

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deeper levels. They focus the eyes and mind like poetry to convey a thought or feeling. One blogger recently wrote: Truth. Isn’t. Convenient. Talk about breaking the rules. In order to make her point stand out, she separated the three words in an already-short sentence into three sentences. Word period word period word period. If you’re going to go that far, only do it once in a while. Otherwise it gets cheesy. Short sentences are especially suited for websites, blog posts, email campaigns and teaching tools. Content you write online needs to stay succinct, clear and focused. But from time to time, even fiction and non-fiction works benefit from the rhythmic variation and the implied emphasis that short sentences deliver. Try it!

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Now for the caveat. Again, I don’t mean to imply that there’s no place for long, winding, compound sentences that weave the reader through a scene or pull together several concepts. There’s still a need for sentences that luxuriate in their length and transport the reader to a holodeck of new ideas, images or feelings. If that fits your audience and the forum of your writing, then go for it — absolutely. So please don’t go too crazy with this principle. There’s a place for compound sentences that have ‘and’ or ‘but’ in the middle. Just review them thoughtfully and see if a simpler, one-event-per-sentence treatment would be clearer. Your choice.

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Writetooneperson.I know you want your words to be read by thousands or maybe millions of people, but ironically the way to do that best is to write to just one person at a time. Somehow the practice engages your heart and mind so that you sprinkle in just the right amount of detail and express yourself most clearly. Imagine you’re sitting in an audience of 500, listening to a speaker talk about something that is personal for you. Maybe she’s talking about business management skills, or how to talk to your teenager so that you get heard. She walks out on stage and asks, “How is everybody today?” How would you likely respond? If I’m in the audience, I look to the person on my left and then the person on my right and say, ‘Geez, how are you?’ After all, she’s asking about “everybody” so I better start taking a poll.

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By asking this way, the speaker has made it real easy for you to pass the buck, sit back, and avoid interaction because she’s not addressing you in particular. She’s asking about everybody. Even if you wanted to answer the question, you can hardly presume to know how “everybody” is, right? Now imagine that the speaker comes out on stage and looks at individual faces in the audience and asks, “How are you today?” Now she’s talking to you. And in response to her question, you can hardly stop your lips and mouth from answering her. Same goes for everyone else in the room. The speaker will get much more participation if she asks the question this way. So when you sit down to write your next book or blog post, think about one single person that you can write to. One person who could represent others you want to reach by way of their temperament, interests, and even style. Who is a typical audience for your words? Write to them.

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If you’re writing copy that aims to be persuasive — like websites, email campaigns, landing pages, job applications, sales letters, etc. — you’ll make more of an impression if you understand the people you’re writing to. Ask yourself questions like What do they want from me? What’s most important to them? What relief are they seeking? How do they word their concerns and their solutions? If you speak their language, it’s more likely they’ll hear you and respond to you. After all, writing is all about relationships; with the help of a pen or a computer, you can share your passions, your imaginings and your ideas with people all around the world. So keep that in mind as you write.

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KeepitSimple.One of the biggest mistakes new writers make is to think that big fancy words can buy them respect and prestige. Not true. Big fancy words will only buy you boredom and impatience unless you’re writing for a specific group of people (perhaps, writers?) who speak that language on a regular basis. On the other hand, simplicity will take you a long, long way to expressing yourself powerfully, standing out from the crowd, and inspiring change. I’ve already expressed to you the power of using short sentences for emphasis and impact. Simplicity takes that a step further because plain and simple is usually more effective than fancy and elaborate. Think of Michelangelo, who slowly chipped away at the unformed marble to uncover the masterpiece of David within it. As a writer, you do something similar. Look at what you’ve

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written and notice what can be chipped away without disturbing the essence of your sentence. What’s unnecessary to your point? What’s redundant? What can be boiled down? What can be stated more plainly and clearly? If you want to impress your readers, impress them with your thoughts, not your words. Even better than trying to impress: be yourself. Express your own thoughts. And do so with as direct a transmission as possible: plain and simple. Be straightforward: • Try ‘get’ instead of ‘obtain’ • Try ‘show’ instead of ‘demonstrate’ • Try ‘to’ instead of ‘in order to’ • Try ‘meet’ instead of ‘encounter’ • Try ‘understand that’ instead of ‘have an understanding that’ You get the idea. When you go back to basics, you usually communicate a lot more clearly. It’s easier than you think!

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Reread.Revise.Repeat.There’s an old saying about writers: There are no writers: only re-writers. The truth is, unless you’ve got a Mozart-like ability to channel pristine prose through your fingers, you won’t get it perfect the first time. Professional writers pore over their words again and again to whittle down their message to its most potent form. They weed out redundancies; they transform complex into simple; they shift passive to active. They take the time to craft their message so it rings with meaning, sings with impact and pings with inspiration. So take the time to revisit your words. Turn them over like stones to find the right setting. Play with the rhythm of your sentences. Replace tired passive passages with the immediacy of active ones. Find the balance between lively verbs and getting to the point. Simplify and shorten when you want to

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add emphasis. And go back to the beginning and remind yourself of the bones of what you want to say. The truth is, you literally have an infinite number of ways to communicate a thought. There is no right way. There are only better ways. So don’t short-change yourself by just grabbing an orange from the top of the fruit pile. Do some digging and find the one that is just right for you. Spend some time with your writing. You’ll find a new connection to your mind, your heart and your words. The love and attention will reflect well on you. Happy writing!

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Diane Eaton is The Writing Doctor. She has been writing, editing and ghostwriting books, website content, business literature, ad copy, blog posts, articles and more for nearly 25 years. Learn more at www.thewritingdocrx.com. Have any questions or comments? I'd love to hear from you! Email me at: diane [at] thewritingdocrx.com Copywriting, Editing and Ghostwriting Services Would you like your website to draw lots of new business? Would you like your book to shine with professionalism? Email me at: diane [at] thewritingdocrx.com

© 2016 The Writing Doctor

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