Bleed in the First Line and 6 Other Writing Tips No One Tells You
Too many writing tips are a big waste of time.
Too many writing tips are a big waste of time.
You know what they are? “Content creation.” Things written just to write something, not to actually help anyone.
— For example , who needs to be told to make time to write? So many writing tips say “you need to make time…” —talk about stating the obvious.
— Also, no one cares if you start with a preposition. Half your readers don’t even know what a preposition is. Or care if you start with one.
You know what people care about?
— They care if you’re interesting. — They care that they learned something or felt something — They care that reading doesn’t feel like a waste of time when they’re done
So here you go , 7 tips to punch up your writing…
1. Bleed in the first line.
Not literally, but start with a bang! The first sentence (and paragraph) has one job… to get people to read the next one. If it’s boring, it’s a fail. A lot of writers could chop the entire first paragraph and the starting would be 100% better. You must start strong.
2. Time is linear. Writing doesn’t have to be.
No one ever said you need to tell every story in order. Mix it up a little. I read one story that hopped around in time. She’d say something that made me raise my eyebrows and think wtf — and then she’d backtrack so I could make sense of it. There’s another part to this — I’ll come back to it…
3. Stop asking for permission or justifying
You don’t need to say “in my opinion” — we know it’s your opinion. You’re the one writing it. If you’ve ever lived with an abusive person (and I have) you know what it’s like to walk on eggshells. Don’t write that way. It comes across as weak and wishy-washy. If you believe it, just say it.
4. Stop with the long paragraphs, already
You’re not writing a book. You’re writing something people might read on a phone. Have you ever seen a wall of text on a phone? Don’t do that. You might have something great to say and a lot of people will never know because it’s hard to read. White space and subtitles really help. Unless it’s poetry. Then nevermind the subtitles.
5. Pretend Clicking Costs Every Reader a Penny
I’ve written about how I hate all the click-baity title advice floating around there. I don’t mean you should write click bait titles. But when people visit Medium, 2 things make them click — or not. The photo and the title. It helps if we know what your article is about. Less vague would be great.
6. Say the Hard Stuff
Be like the kid in The Emperor Has No Clothes. Whatever you’re writing about, say the stuff everyone is going to think anyway. Not everyone will agree, but the people who do will appreciate your candor. “I really love that writer because of how he/she sits on the fence about everything,” said no one ever.
7. End with a kick in the pants
The last line needs to kill it. You know that part about not being linear? If you’re not writing poetry, the last line should take you right back to where you started — and BOOM! Strong finish, tied to the beginning. If you can do that, it “clicks” in the readers head and doesn’t feel like a waste of time.
Happy writing!
❤
Can we talk? There’s so much bad advice for writers on the internet it makes me a little sick. Get help with writing, marketing and join at team of writers helping each other grow at https://lindac.substack.com/
