WRITING HEADLINES
5 Reasons Why You Should Avoid This Killer Story
Clickbait alert.
You don’t listen well, do you?
Well, as long as you’re here, listen up.
There are Five outstanding reasons to avoid taking the bait.
And one even better reason to set one.
Ready? Here we go.
#5 It’s obviously clickbait.
You knew that, but you clicked anyway. Curiosity got the better of you, and that’s the point. You were even warned that it’s clickbait.
#4 There is nothing of value here.
Or at least nothing new. I am just going to tell you that the interwebs are full of clickbait stories that sucker you into reading.
#3 What is the point?
If you’re asking me that, then you’re asking the wrong person. I told you not to read it. Maybe you should learn a little bit about being discerning when you’re curious.
#2 There is very little value if any.
Okay, you learned that you need to be discerning when you’re curious. As a friend of mine is fond of saying, even a blind squirrel finds a nut sometimes.
#1 I told you so.
The number one reason you shouldn’t have clicked on this story is that you knew there are many reasons you shouldn’t, but you didn’t listen. And now you’re shaking your head and cursing me for tricking you into clicking. But I warned you.
Here is the takeaway.
The takeaway depends on whether you’re a reader or a writer.
If you’re a reader, stay away from stories that use clickbait headlines. At the least, be discerning about how you spend your time online.
If you’re a writer, it is evident that you should put time and effort into crafting your headlines. If they are not enticing or inviting, no one will click on your story, and all the hard work you put into creating the masterpiece of an article will be for naught.
The main inspiration for this came from Caroline de Braganza’s excellent story in the Rogues’ Gallery.
However, I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize Linda Caroll, who is a master of delivering exceptional value using listicles, and Sinem Günel, whose success has inspired me to revisit my why for writing on this platform.
Also, writers like Sherry McGuinn, P.G. Barnett, Timothy Key, and Helen Cassidy Page, have taught me that you don’t have to be a stand-up comic to create and add humor to your work.
Holly Jahangiri, Sharon Hurley Hall, Paul Myers MBA, Joe Luca, Tim Maudlin, Ming Qian, Bob Jasper, Dr. Mehmet Yildiz, Michele Thill, Trista Ainsworth, Amy Marley, Aurora Eliam, CMP, Gurpreet Dhariwal, Dipti Pande, Henery X (long), Manasi Diwakar, and Desiree Driesenaar, are among many who keep me on my toes to do my best. I don’t always succeed, but I am a work in progress.
As always, thank you for reading and responding.
Here are a couple of related stories:
Rasheed Hooda is a published author, and a regular contributor and editor for ILLUMINATION, a writers’ community on Medium, where writers support each other.
He is a self-proclaimed weirdo who lives a Freedom Lifestyle and writes about related topics — Travel (a top writer), Personal Growth, Freedom, and entrepreneurship. (Get the Newsletter)
More about me:
An interview by Dr. M Yildiz for ILLUMINATION
Testimonial by other writers.