The 3 Worst Pieces of Writing Advice I’ve Ever Gotten

And how to correct them

When I first started blogging around 5 years ago, I was a terrible writer. I focused solely on getting my ideas across, no matter the delivery.

If the message is good, nobody will care about the style. Or so I thought.

It was a bit like raw pizza. The ingredients had potential, but without the proper oven, they were useless.

To improve the mechanics of my writing, I consulted hundreds of articles, textbooks, and online courses. Over 2–3 years, my skills improved drastically.

Even today, I don’t claim to be a great writer, but I’ve turned my writing from a small side hustle into a passable income stream.

Throughout my time as a blogger and freelance writer, I’ve come across countless articles entitled “how to become a great writer” or “if you want to succeed as a writer, do these 3 things”.

Frankly speaking, most of these “tips” are questionable at best.

If there is one thing I’ve learned in the past 5 years, it’s that there is no magic formula. Most writing tips work for certain people, but not universally.

Consequently, You have to find the best writing hacks for your style and message.

There are, however, certain common writing tips I find utterly misleading.

On this basis, here are the 3 worst pieces of writing advice I’ve ever gotten.

1. Choose a niche and stick with it

This might apply to a blogger but not to a writer as a content creator.

If you plan on launching a blog, you should define a general concept for the site. This doesn’t mean that you have to publish content on the same topic for the next 10 years.

In this context, many first-timers make the mistake of choosing an excessively restrictive niche. After a few months, they end up trapped.

If your blog is about food for Saint Bernard dogs, you might run out of ideas after 50 articles.

As a blogger, the best approach is to enter a flourishing niche like personal finance or health and to add your angle to it.

For freelance writers, things are a bit different.

I haven’t come across a single successful freelance writer who only writes about one particular topic.

Of course, everyone has their preferences and expertise, but versatility is an integral part of your appeal for clients.

Lots of clients struggle to find suitable content writers for their business.

This is why many companies try to establish long-term relationships after having found a decent freelance writer. And for that, they need someone who knows more than one subject.

I’ve written for freelance clients all across the spectrum. Some of them were in the tourism industry, others in the personal growth niche, and many in the world of budgeting and finance.

Most of them want adaptability, but they also appreciate a writer’s voice.

Better advice: find your voice

Instead of locking yourself inside a niche, try to find your voice. Try to conceive your way of transmitting a message.

In this context, certain style elements, narration quirks, and literary subtleties can form an unmistakable voice — guaranteeing a writer’s uniqueness.

Finding it will be a long and tiring process, but it will pay off in the end.

You’ll please clients and blogging audiences alike.

On the one hand, the clients will recognize your style and hire you for it.

Your readers, on the other hand, will remain loyal. They will consume your content consistently because they enjoy the way you transpose your views into expressions, metaphors, and analogies.

2. Don’t use “big words”

I’ve lost count of the times I heard so-called top bloggers and internet celebrities argue against the use of “big words”.

This raises the question: what are big words anyway?

Words most people don’t understand? Archaic terms? Or maybe highly specific academic expressions? To be honest, I have no idea.

No matter, I believe that the complexity of a word doesn’t preclude its use per se.

Of course, you shouldn’t adorn your intricate phrases with a convoluted assortment of exuberant adjectives. See what I mean?

Your expressions should, nonetheless, be pertinent.

Ergo, good writers manage to combine pertinence with readability.

Better advice: keep your text understandable, but choose the right words

Choose the right words. Not the easiest, but not the most show-offy either.

For example, the book I read yesterday wasn’t great. It was eye-opening. This elegant house isn’t beautiful, it’s stately.

English is a fascinating language. Every term has at least 5 synonyms and none of them mean exactly the same.

With experience, a lot of reading hours, and a bit of studying, you will find your style and your choice of words will become appropriate — not kindergarten-level, but not Shakespearean either.

3. To be a successful writer, you need to write quickly

This might be the single worst piece of advice I’ve ever received.

Whether it’s through online gurus or personal acquaintances, a lot of people told me that I should write a blog post in less than an hour.

Curious as I am, I tried my hand at writing posts like an express train.

The results were mediocre at best. The stuff I wrote in less than an hour either needed 5 hours of editing or lacked any real substance.

Spending more than 6 hours on a single piece, however, doesn’t work either.

To make your writing profitable, you need consistent output. If one blog post takes you an entire day to write and edit, you will not publish enough to attract a sizeable audience.

In that same vein, your clients will set deadlines and your audience will move on if you don’t spoil them with regular, fresh content.

So, how do we get out of this pickle?

Better advice: strike a balance between quality and speed

I would love to tell you that there is an easy solution. Surprise, surprise, there isn’t.

Nevertheless, there are a few habits that accelerate your writing process without sacrificing the quality and verve of your content.

As an example, mapping out a piece before starting usually helps.

Every headline and every polemic should be prepared in advance. This prevents you from re-evaluating your arguments later.

Aside from preparation, cut out all distractions and focus entirely on work. This doesn’t apply to writers in particular, but it’s a must if you want to expedite your writing.

To conclude, the solution is to find an adequate balance between speed and quality.

Try to develop productivity hacks that serve a dual purpose: boosting your speed while keeping your quality at a satisfactory level.

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