Famous Dead Authors’ Secrets for Writing Success

By Sara, My Web Writers Intern

It has been said that writers are born, not made. Some take that to mean that you are either born with talent, or you may as well not try. That’s probably bunk. If writers are born, they are born out of the sweat and tears of determination and practice. Whether you are drumming up SEO content or working on the next great American novel, writing well and employing the habits of effective writing are essential.

First, it’s important to practice.

Practice keeps you in the habit of writing and thinking about writing. Nineteenth century author C.S. Lewis, most famous for The Chronicles of Narnia, says that “what you want is practice, practice, practice. It doesn’t matter what we write… so long as we write continually as well as we can. I feel that every time I write a page either of prose or of verse, with real effort, even if it’s thrown into the fire the next minute, I am so much further on.”

Another prolific writer, recently deceased Saul Bellow, observed that “somewhere in his journals Dostoyevsky remarks that a writer can begin anywhere, at the most commonplace thing, scratch around in it long enough, pray and dig away long enough, and lo! soon he will hit upon the marvelous.” When you practice the craft of writing and pay diligence to it, you grow. Even if you write tweets for a business firm, you are bound to come up with more unique, interesting, and creative content when you practice. Imagine an athlete who only played her sport at game time — she wouldn’t be good at it and would not be long rewarded for her “efforts.” So practice, practice, practice. Start now. Call it writers’ Spring Training.

Having some “filler” in your drafts is o.k.

It’s certainly tempting for any writer to stop when we have so-called “writer’s block.” Larry Gelbart, though, says “don’t stop.” He wants us to put something there and keep moving. Recently I wrote an article on decade themed parties and decided to employ Gelbart’s advice. I could have stopped and stared at the computer screen when I was stumped on what to write about a 1970s party that wouldn’t be a tired cliché. Instead, I wrote, “too much Footloose not enough Studio 54,” and moved on to the 1980s. Later, while editing and revising, I realized Footloose wasn’t even set in the ’70s, but I understood where my mind was headed. If I had tried to flush that out in the first draft, I’d still be writing it. Listen to Larry. Use filler and keep writing.

Beware of clichés.

“Beware of clichés…. There are clichés of response as well as expression. There are clichés of observation and of thought — even of conception. Many novels, even quite a few adequately written ones, are clichés of form which conform to clichés of expectation.”

-Geoff Dyer

Geoff Dyer is not dead (here is his website), but this advice was too good not to share. Clichés are death to all that is interesting. I can’t say that clichés are never ok, because writing, like most art, only deals in absolutes for the strict business of breaking them. That being said, clichés are never ok. “It goes without saying” that the “early bird catches the worm” and “curiosity killed the cat” so a true “jack of all trades” would never to “keep up with Joneses” by recycling tired clichés.

If it goes without saying, then please, please, just don’t say it.

Ctrl-F and Delete those Adjectives

“Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”

-Anton Chekhov

Adjectives are not the enemy here (Hint: its clichés). Adjectives can be a crutch, though. I recently read an article about a mama raccoon saving her litter of baby raccoons during a bout of bad weather. It passed through my twitter feed with the phrase, “mother raccoon shields her litter on turnpike from cold,” so of course I read it. I read it and said “awwww… how heartwarming and precious!” If the tweet had falling back on adjective addiction, I probably wouldn’t have clicked on the link following “Heartwarming and precious tale of courage.”

“Don’t say it was delightful; make us say delightful when we’ve read the description. You see, all those words (horrifying, wonderful, hideous, exquisite) are only like saying to your readers, ‘please, will you do the job for me?’”

-C.S. Lewis

Reflect on What You Wrote

In Politics and the English Language, George Orwell claims that a “scrupulous writer” will constantly, even after every sentence (so definitely before sending that tweet), ask him or herself four questions. I leave you with those four questions to take back to your own stack of papers and document files (and practice!):

What am I trying to say?

1. What words will express it?
2. What image or idiom will make it clearer?
3. Is this image fresh enough to have an effect?

Other Articles from My Web Writers:

Tweet for ReTweets- Twitter Tips

My Favorite Writer and Online Marketing Websites and Blogs

What Stephen Covey Knew about Marketing

Tell a Better Story: Tips and Tricks from Mark Twain

Overcoming the Beautiful Little Fool

Party Crashers App Embraces Digital Marketing and the American Dream

Annual Essay Contests You Shouldn’t Miss

Tell a Better Story: Tips and Tricks from Mark Twain

by My Web Writers

Mark Twain’s writing represents the hallmark of distinctly American literature in the late nineteenth century and also a shift in the writing techniques that constituted literary fiction at the time. Readers and non readers may recall fondly the image of Huckleberry Finn and Jim on a raft drifting down the Mississippi River in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) or Tom Sawyer’s appearance at his own funeral in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). These works, while some of the most famous, are hardly the nostalgic fare that these iconic scenes portray them to be. In fact, at the time of their writing, these works were considered quite innovative and continue to be a resource for writers even today.  Here are a few lessons to learn from the master for your own content development.

Dialog

Dialog is one of the most difficult components in fiction because it must sound like “real” speech without following the actual course of real speech. In daily life, conversations meander. Discussions go on tangents, return later to original topics and lots of comments about weather, current events, and appearance are stuck in along the way. Dialog in fiction must advance more quickly to the point. It must be intentional but not read that way. One method for writing dialog is to free write, allowing characters to talk and say any and everything they might to one another in a given situation. The writer must then return and revise by cutting out the majority of the text until only the essential remains. In Twain’s fiction, the dialog often runs counter what the reader knows to be true. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, two con men present themselves to Jim and Huck as a duke and prince. The dialog moves the men into the position of sharing the raft and soon Jim and Huck are calling them “Lord” and “Your Majesty”.

Dialect

Twain is considered a master of dialect and one who pioneered its use in literary fiction. While dialect is not necessary for all types of writing, it can be a useful tool when creating character and place. The contractions, odd spellings and strange pronunciations in Twain’s work have posed a challenge for some readers, and that is something to keep in mind when deciding whether or not to use it. But dialect also contributes to the sense of place and adds a flavor to the text. Likewise, Twain even uses dialect as a way to break up Huck’s voice and to introduce new perspectives.  Twain also uses a technique called eye dialect, where a word is misspelled, but still pronounced correctly—for example, “becuz” versus “because”—to delineate education.

 Show Don’t Tell

While Huck Finn, as the first person narrator, recounts his adventures in detail, effectively telling the story, the reader is constantly situated within the story through use of scene. Rather than dramatize all the events in the story, Twain glosses over travel scenes and dramatizes and slows down the scenes with the most action. Though Huck Finn is “telling” the story, the reader still experiences it. Details are one of the best ways to show not tell. When searching a wreck for supplies, rather than say, “we found a lot of gear,” Huck says, “We found boots, blankets, and clothes, and all sorts of other things, and a lot of books, and a spyglass, and three boxes of seegars.”

Situational Humor

Situational humor is often created in Twain’s work using dramatic irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the reader knows something that the characters do not. For example, when Huck and Jim’s raft is boarded by a king and a duke, who command the boy and the runaway slave to serve them in a variety of different ways, the reader quickly realizes that these supposed nobility are actually con men. At first, this knowledge creates a sense of danger, but as the storyline progresses, the behaviors of all the characters grow comical, specifically the fighting between the two con men. This type of humor is often more successful than jokes told in dialog or with a humorous tone. Remember, when dealing with humor, it is best to avoid clichés, and readers are more likely to be amused by scenes they can envision.

 Mark Twain continues to influence and inspire with his large volume of work. And these lessons only the scratch the surface of what can be learned from him. Probably the best advice he gives is to start out with a good story that will capture your readers’ imagination and then let these tips guide you along the way.

~Lindsey

Five Considerations When Marketing to Women

by My Web Writers

Women represent one of the largest buying forces in America’s economy both as individual buyers and as the chief purchasers in their households. Women also tend to be more vocal about products they like, and they often buy for others. This means that even products that are not specifically for women are often purchased by them. On average, women exchange gifts with other women more frequently than men exchange gifts with other men, and beyond this, many women serve as professional buyers for companies and organizations. With this kind of consumer on the loose, the savvy marketer will want to consider and address their specific needs and preferences. But a successful campaign will require more than pretty pink packaging and will need to take into account the fact that this demographic encompasses a variety of ages and lifestyles. There is certainly no one-size-fits-all marketing plan. However, here are a few tips on how to appeal to and respect female consumers.

1.      Create a Narrative for Women

Narrative is one of the many tools that successful brands like Starbucks, Nike and Dove use to connect with consumers on a level that goes beyond utility. Traditionally, these companies have paired quality products with carefully crafted consumer narratives. Where Starbucks represents an affordable luxury and an escape from the grind, Nike represents athletic prowess and maximum effort. In commercials and ad campaigns, consumers are invited to envision the best possible outcome of their interaction with the advertised product. This method can appeal to male and female consumers. Remember, part of advertising is helping the potential buyer to foresee the utility of the product, and a narrative is a packaged way of accomplishing this.

If you are new to the advertising world and need more examples, commercials are an easy place to identify a storyline. Once you have a better sense of the kinds of stories commercials tell, you can look more closely at online and print advertisements to see how well-placed graphics create a similar effect.

2.  Educate Both Female and Male Consumers

While women value emotional connections and often respond to products showcased using a narrative element, marketing cannot be successful without a quality product. Typically, women want well-made, practical items. So marketers will do well to educate consumers as to all the practical uses for their services or retail items. Don’t assume that everything about your product is intuitive; make the connections easy for your consumers. Furthermore, if you are marketing related products or products that can be purchased in a bundle, highlighting that information can result in additional sales. In this economy, women and men alike are looking to make their money go further.

3.      Market to Women Via Word Of Mouth

Women love to share bargains, brand names and favorite buys so it behooves the retailer to make the buying and return process as simple as possible, especially if the purchasing is done online. Women who have a positive buying, exchange and even return experience, and who find the product useful, will share this information with their friends. Allow your consumers to market for you by making it possible to “Like” your product on social media sites and by enabling on-site product reviews. Also, avoid tactics that take advantage of consumers such as hidden pricing that appears only at the time of sale and misrepresented bargains and ensure timely deliver. Negative information will get out via word-of-mouth and can reduce sales potential.

4.  Get Women Involved in Marketing and Purchasing Processes

Women often prefer to buy on recommendations from other women, and some companies have found that a woman sales force can increase revenue from the female demographic. Depending on your product, this may mean hiring additional female content writers or sales reps, seeking out women endorsements or simply involving women team members in product design and marketing if this is not already being done.

5.  Avoid Gender Marketing Stereotypes

While depictions of women in marketing ads have made great strides from the strict gender roles of the 1950’s, there are still plenty of opportunities to expand towards more realistic depictions. Remember, women do not whip into a frenzy at the mere sight of pink or the promise of easy weight loss solutions. They want more information to validate the claims made about a product before they buy. And at this point they’ve heard a lot of the bogus claims, seen the cheesy color schemes and the cliché-phrasing and it all has become one big turn-off. Remember, if your product is sold predominately online, women can easily compare it with your competitors.

Now, more than ever, women want efficient products that cater to their busy lives and that recognize and celebrate them as career-oriented, family-focused, and in general, people with a lot on their plates. Some are tired of browsing the bookstore in the “Men’s Interest” sections. Others want to be recognized and valued as caregivers, mentors, parents, or professionals. They want to see their diversity represented in age, race and body type. Within these categories and many others are opportunities for marketers to better reach this distinct group of consumers.

~Lindsey