WRITING TIPS

Some Pro Tips to Succeed 9 Times Faster As a Budding Writer

We all started somewhere

We all started sometime. And we all read the stories of other writers succeeding in whatever way. Whatever progress. On this platform perhaps. Or other social media. As a freelancer. Strengthening their day job. Or spreading their passion.

So, here’s my take on how to do it.

1- Have something to say

If you don’t, there’s no use being out there. If you don’t know what you have to say (yet), just start writing about what you know. And things will progress the more your read. The more you write.

The more you dare to be out there.

Things will progress the more your read. The more you write

2- Have conversations

Social media are just that. Social. Make friends. Enjoy the conversations. And from every comment, positive or negative, you’ll learn what your audience expects of you. What their needs are. What do they like to read? What triggers them?

Don’t you like negative comments? Be like a greasy duck. Let these bullying comments glide off your skin. Our planet is a mirror. And these people just want to take you down because they feel lousy themselves. Don’t doubt yourself.

Chin up. Grow up. Mature.

Becoming a good, successful writer is a journey that never ends. And it involves your audience. Never be haughty. Never try to be smarter than them.

Just be kind. Observe. Listen. And learn.

3- Good titles are mighty important!

People don’t click if your title is crappy. Use a Headline Score tool to judge your title. Don’t stop at anything less than 70. And a score of 80 is way better! Viral stories often have controversial titles.

Not clickbaity. Controversial.

Viral stories often have controversial titles

4- Quantity matters too

Quality matters. That’s logical. No one wants to read a story that’s full of typos. So you write in flow first. And you edit, edit, edit. Until you get the hang of it and manage to do less editing and write faster.

Quantity matters too. Write often. And combine several social media together. Linking to each other. Creating webs.

Social media work with algorithms. And algorithms love quantity. And they love it if you are social. If you are reading other people’s stories. Commenting. And having conversations.

Big brother is watching you if you are an online writer. And if that bothers you, either step out of the game or get used to it. It all makes us uncomfortable sometimes. That’s normal.

But don’t get too scared. Social media are temporary and fleeting. You can experiment. Try things out. And if they don’t work out. Try again.

Social media work with algorithms. And algorithms love quantity

5- Follow and read

When I first started out, I used a marketing trick. I entered the profiles of writers who write about kind of the same subjects as I do. Clicked on followers. And started following the ones with a green band around their profile photo.

Those are the paying members. So, if you want to gather some income from your readers, these are your favorite readers of all.

It gave me a quick head start. I stopped doing this when I had my first 1,000 fans. Sometimes, I still do it when I come across a new writer gem discovery.

Someone who’s a real Wild Writer.

Or who writes about the future as I do.

Green bands around profile photos mean paying members. They give you an income

6- Design your writing

Readers like words. But they’re also visual. So, make sure you have an attractive photograph at the top. Make it surprising. Not too obvious. Make the picture add something extra to your story.

Use white lines. It blows air into your writing.

Use single lines when you want something to stand out.

Use the quote button. One time for a real quote. Two times for a sentence in your story you want to highlight.

Use white lines. It blows air into your writing

7- Alternate short and long pieces

Sometimes you want to tell a story with loads of context. So you make a long story. But to attract attention to this story, you make a short piece a few days, weeks later.

I alternate short and long pieces. And every day I also post inspiring images with a few sentences on other social media than Medium. To be honest, on Medium I haven’t seen the short form really take off. So, I don’t use it often. And for whoever doesn’t know (yet) what the short form is, it has no title but highlights the first sentence.

I cannot repeat it often enough. Combine quality with quantity.

8- Become personal and emotional

Emotional writing is good writing. Some writers get up at 3 AM at night because the veil is thinnest then. And they can reach their emotions more easily.

I don’t. I write immediately after I get up in the morning. My veil is thin then. I have experienced the night. And I have the peace and quiet writing time I crave to start my day with.

Combine personal anecdotes with value for your readers. Always remember that your reader wants to learn something. Or be entertained. They want to get to know you a little. The maker. The artist. The person behind the words.

If you are writing serious pieces, think about stating your credibility.

Why would anyone believe you? Especially when you write controversial, contra-intuitive things. They want to know. They want to make sure it’s no hoax. No bullshit. No fake news.

You can do it in between the writing. You can do it at the end. You can include a link to your LinkedIn profile. Do it your own way. But don’t forget.

Some writers get up at 3 AM at night because the veil is thinnest then

9- Alternate serious and playful pieces

Some writers are going deep, deeper, deepest into one subject. They are the specialists. Some writers, like me, want to express a variety of subjects. Want to combine everything in a portfolio so the readers will understand context and depth both.

If you are like me, define a red thread. A magical cord through all of your writing.

Mine is Wild Writing. Gaia. Nature. Culture. Travel. And my job, systemic design.

If you don’t know what your red thread will be, start writing anyway and find out while you write. As I said before, it’s a journey. Treat it as such.

And grow into your own progress.

Happy writing, my friends! And make sure you enjoy what you’re doing. If this writing vibe is not your thing, do something else. Be another kind of artist. Life’s too short to be struggling mindlessly.

And if you want to learn from my writing journey, this is what I wrote one year after I started on Medium in 2019.

By now, I have written 500+ stories. I haven’t been out here all the time though. I do it next to my job. But I love, love, love the writing itself and my conversations. They color my days!

So, you’ll most probably see me around for quite a while still.

Thank you, Gaia, for giving me Wild Writing. © Désirée Driesenaar, 2022