Annoying Writer

This writing tip actually has science in it.  Regardless of whether I had science to back me up, I’d still tell you not to do what I consider…

The Most Annoying Thing A Writer Can Do!

What is it?

WRITING IN ALL CAPS

It has it’s purpose.  In fact, the way I just used it was great.  But notice that sentence is short and sweet (and easy to read).  Sometimes the writer goes too far and capitalizes an entire sentence… or worse… the paragraph.

Never do this:

YOU’LL NOTICE WHEN YOU READ A SENTENCE OR PARAGRAPH WRITTEN IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, THAT AFTER A WHILE, IT CAN GET VERY HARD TO READ THAT SENTENCE.  AS THE SENTENCES START RUNNING TOGETHER AND THE PARAGRAPH IS FORMED, IT GETS VERY DIFFICULT TO KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE RIGHT SPOT AND STAY FOCUSED.  THIS TACTIC CAN ABSOLUTELY KILL YOUR ADVERTISEMENT.  I THINK THIS IS EVEN A TACTIC THAT COMPANIES USE WHEN THEY DON’T WANT YOU TO READ SOMETHING… DOESN’T THIS LOOK LIKE A TERMS OF SERVICE AGREEMENT OR SOMETHING?  I THINK SO.

Whew… give your eyes a second to relax… let’s get back to business the normal way!

On the other hand, you can use a word or phrase in all caps.  Look at this example from a previous project:

PLUS: The Facebook-Twitter Strategy – a stealthy way to combine the profit power of fan pages with easy traffic from Twitter.  (Get people to recommend their own products using YOUR affiliate link!) Seriously: You’ll think Video 4 was smuggled out the Army Special Forces training camp.

In this case, I capitalzed the entire word YOUR because I want to slow the reader down and emphasize other people will promote THEIR affiliate link.  See… did it again.

Our language, the English language, is very flexible and pliable by nature.  Simply by changing the emphasis of a word, you change the meaning of a sentence.

Watch…

Let’s take the sentence, “Mary gave the money to Justin.”

I could say it like this, “MARY gave the money to Justin,” emphasizing it was Mary, not Roger, Mike, or Tom Cruise… Mary gave me the money.

I could say it like this, “Mary GAVE the money to Justin,” she didn’t loan it to him, she gave it to him.

I could say it like this, “Mary gave the MONEY to Justin,” but it was ROGER who gave Justin the baseball tickets.

And last, I could say it like this, “Mary gave the money to JUSTIN,” she didn’t give it to Roger.

Good emphasis in the right place gives you more power as a writer to communicate with a reader you can’t see, hear, or speak to.

As I reflect back on my life, it’s hard to believe I love reading and writing.  I used to hate both and I’d imagine you either felt the same way once upon a time, or you still do.  Let me tell you, the ability to write well and sell well can make you a ton of money and it can also make the people around you a ton of money.

One thing’s for sure. If you want to write better, you need to practice.

I’m often asked for advice on writting well and it’s kinda silly.

If you want to ride a bicycle better, practice riding the bicycle.

If you want to swim better, practice swimming.

And you know what I’m about to say, right?

If you want to write better, practice writing.  You’ve got to write.  Put pen to paper, finger to keyboard, and write.

For fun, let’s see how you write.  Don’t be bashful.

Tell me in story form what you had for breakfast or lunch today… create a story around it.  It can be as long or short as you’d like.

Don’t be a wuss.

Can’t wait to read it.