The Write Blog

I was listening to the radio when my ears perked up by some extra-pertinent information: how the business of publishing is changing – and how authors are making more money than ever using the internet.

There have traditionally been two ways to get your book in front of a mass audience: you either get signed by a publishing company, or you make the leap and publish the book yourself, fronting the bill for printing out of your own pocket.

Enter the internet. Now the longstanding pastime of reading has gone digital, primarily with the success of Amazon.com’s Kindle, the PDA that allows people to download books, magazines, and newspapers and carry an entire virtual library in their briefcases. It was the Kindle that proved that people are willing to pay for a downloaded book, which is where the self-publisher comes in. The only problem is that Amazon controls what can be downloaded – usually best-sellers and national periodicals.

But now there are online-only self-publishing sites. Continue reading Make More Money by Self-Publishing Online

Everyone uses Wikipedia – in fact, if I see a Wikipedia entry come up on a Google search, that’s usually the first link I click on.

Can Wikipedia be used for marketing purposes? The answer is certainly – though probably not in the way you think. A Wikipedia entry on you or your business isn’t going to directly sell widgets or get you your next commissioned painting. However, what it will do is add credibility to your name or brand by putting it up on the web for everyone to see. But, like most things in life, there are a few drawbacks to using Wikipedia. Continue reading Should You or Your Business Be on Wikipedia? The Pros and Cons.

Do you know the #1 reason that good writers fail at writing as a profession? Bad customer service. Well, no, that’s not exactly accurate. A lot of writers are capable of decent customer service. But, in the end, they’re only human. And the truth is, when it comes to writing for a client, some supernormal skills are required — which is why to be a great copywriter, you must be superhuman.

The good news is: Anyone can become superhuman. But it does take a lot of work, a lot of dedication, and an ability to swallow that all-too-human emotion: pride.

Here are my top three tips to developing paranormal powers and, along the way, establishing long-lasting, successful relationships with your clientele. Continue reading Wanted: Paladin. Telepathist. Saint. …Writing Skills a Plus.

As any writer knows, getting that first draft down on paper is only half the battle. Whether you’re writing web copy, a sales email, or a journalistic article, chances are, you and your editing team will go through a few rounds of tweaking and fine-tuning before your work is really done. So, I’ve decided to do a little mini-series to share some of my favorite writing and editing tips.

One of the really cool things about writing is, it’s always a work in progress – there are always things you can do to make your writing clearer, or more powerful, or just more interesting. And, if you write every day, you’re constantly honing your craft. From major rewrites to itty-bitty changes in word choice or punctuation, there are about a million things you can do to change, improve, and streamline your work.

Here are three of my favorite ways to pack more punch into your prose: Continue reading Killer Tips for Streamlining Your Copy, Part 1

I was recently working on a direct mail marketing letter and wanted to share a little pearl of wisdom with everyone: how and why the P.S. line is so important.

Research shows that almost 80% of people will open a letter, scan the return address to see who sent it, then skip straight down to the post script. (It’s so true too – try it yourself!)

So that means that your P.S. is both your first and last opportunity to get through to your reader – it’s the one line that’s going to get read the most thoroughly. So, what should you include in your postscript? I happen to have a few ideas in mind…

• DON’T include any new information in the postscript. The body of your letter should get straight to the point, including all benefits and features. If a piece of information isn’t in the letter, don’t include it in the postscript – that’s confusing to the reader, and just bad writing. One exception: you CAN introduce a good teaser – like a special offer – in your postscript in order to get people to act immediately.

• DON’T write a paragraph. Postscripts are short, so keep it down to a sentence or two.

• DO summarize your sales message, or drive it home. Remind the reader of what you’re offering – and make it punchy: give people a timeline, or create a sense of urgency with phrases like “Limited time offer” or “One week only.”

• DO repeat your key benefits, but briefly. Are you saving people money? Why should they give you their money? Any key benefits in the postscript should reinforce the message in the body of your letter.

• DO give contact information and encourage people to learn more about your product or service.

• DO have a call to action. Use action verbs that spur people to pick up the phone, buy your product, log on for more information, etc.

• DO make sure that you’re effectively targeting your audience in the postscript and providing relevant information.

• DO keep it personal and conversational. This should be done throughout the body of your sales letter, but especially in the postscript, since 4 out of 5 recipients will be reading it first. Save those five-dollar words for someone else.

Let’s look at a few good postscripts:

P.S. – Remember, due to space constraints, you must reserve your seat at the Annual Charity Luncheon by Thursday, March 21st. For reservations, call 123-456-6543 or log onto our website, www.charitylunch.com.

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Most professionals would agree that a sales letter isn’t complete without a postscript. Those two little letters carry a lot of weight, and can mean the difference between a new sale or your hard work and postage down the drain. There are a million variations on writing good postscripts, just remember a few of the rules above: keep postscripts short, benefit-oriented, and compelling.

Moral of the story? Don’t take your P.S.’s for granted.