Yes, you know your subject. You also need to think about
entertaining your audience, and making your book or other
writing easy to read. If your writing lacks organization and
compelling, vital sentences that convince your readers to
keep reading, they will leave your book or Web site
immediately. There goes your "word-of-mouth" promotion.
Try my "Check and Correct" for These Top Five Mistakes:
1 — Stop passive sentence construction.
When you write in passive voice, your writing slides into
long sentences that slow your readers down, even bore them.
Remember the average sentence length is 15-17 words. Make it
easy to read!
Correct. Before you put your final stamp of approval on your
writing, circle all the "is," "was" and other passive verbs
like: begin, start to, seems, appears, have, and could. Use
your grammar check to count your passives. Aim for 2-4%
only.
2 — Stop all pompous language and phrases.
Well-meaning professionals often use the word, "utilize."
You see this criminal in resumes, military directives and
medical or lawyer documents. Utilize not only puts people
off because we don't relate to "jargoneze," but because we
want simple language. Think of Hemingway who knew that one
or two syllable-words work better than longer ones.
Correct. When you aim at 10th grade level, you make it easy
for your audience to "buy." Attempts to impress your
audience with research babble or long words fail because
they sound unreal and create a distance from the audience.
Your reader wants a savvy friend who happens to be an
expert, not just an expert.
3 — Show, don't tell to keep your audience reading.
When you take the lazy shortcut using -ly words like
suddenly, or the adverb "very," your telling makes your
reader yawn a "ho hum" and stop reading.
Correct. Instead, show "suddenly." For example, "When she
saw the pistol, she ran and slammed the door behind her,
shows "suddenly." Instead of "Alice was fat," say "Alice's
girth prevented her from buying just one airline seat."
Circle the -ly and very words and sit down with your
Thesaurus and replace them with power words that describe or
show emotion.
4 — Reduce your passive -ing constructions.
Think of a title that inspired you in the past. I like "Jump
Start your Book Sales" by Marilyn and Tom Ross. "Jump
Starting" lacks power because it doesn't ask for action.
"-Ing" construction implies passive. Next time you think
heading, title, or even compelling copy, think command verbs
as sentence starters as well as using other strong verbs and
nouns. Keep your sentences active using verbs in either
present or past tense.
5 — Take the "I" out of your writing to acknowledge and
engage your reader.
Correct. Whether you write a book introduction, biography,
chapter or web sales message (did you know these are part of
The Essential Hot-Selling Points?"), keep the "I's" to a
minimum. Your audience doesn't care about you, only what you
can do for them. Think about where your audience is
now—their challenges or concerns.
Remember to answer their
question, "Why should I buy this from you?" Put a big YOU at
the top of each page you write. Write three or four
paragraphs. Then, circle the "I's" and vow to replace them
with a "you" centered sentence or question.
Instead of telling your story, (I know that's important to
you) put your story in the third person. Or, use this
phrase," If you are like me, you . . ." Use another name,
maybe a client's or friend's.
If you think your bio is
important, instead of placing a long passage on your home
page, place it instead, on your "About Us" page. Keep it
short on your book's back cover. Put your longer bio and
photo inside the back cover page, so you can put more of
what sells on your back cover—testimonials and benefits.
Get everything you write checked by a book or writing coach
to make sure it sells.
Not only can you get more sales from what you write, you can
put yourself out there as the savvy friend to your audience
who wants a problem solved. In the long run, these satisfied
readers will return to you again and again--even buy your
products and services.
©2006, Judy Cullins, All Rights Reserved
===========================================================
Judy Cullins, 20-year Book and Internet Marketing Coach
works with small business people who want to make a
difference in people's lives, build credibility and
clients, and make consistent life-long income. Judy is
author of 10 eBooks, including "Write your eBook or Other
Short Book Fast," "Ten Non-Techie Ways to Market Your Book
Online," "The Fast and Cheap Way to Explode Your Targeted Web
Traffic," and "Power Writing for Web Sites That Sell." She
offers free help through her two monthly ezines, "The
BookCoach Says...," "Business Tip of the Month," blog Q&A
at http://bookcoaching.com and over 185 free articles.
Email her at Judy@bookcoaching.com or Cullinsbks@aol.com
Phone: 619/466-0622 — Orders: 866/200-9743
