My good friend Ash Ambirge at the Middle Finger Project is one of the best writers I know. She targets female biz owners, and although I’m not one, I still love how she engages her audience. She’s not scared to drop an f-bomb (or a lot of f-bombs), which helps slap you awake. Here’s one of my fav’s from her…
http://themiddlefingerproject.org/why-your-writing-sucks/
There’s a lot of horse shit going around the internet these days about “writing from the heart” and eliciting emotion in your readers/audience/customers/landlords.
Okay, so not landlords.
And you get it. You know it’s important. Because nobody wants to buy from a faceless mime.
But what you don’t know is how to actually do it.
In your best attempts, you end up with something that still feels generic, forced, trite and/or overly earnest. You write things like, “Live a life you love,” and “feel the fear.” Actually, I don’t know if anyone says “feel the fear,” but if they do, they probably need a drink.
I’ve thought a lot about what makes for brilliant writing that connects with people; writing that pierces people’s immune system. And the number one finding is this (yes, finding): To talk to humans, you’ve got to talk like a human.
First of all, the headline’s awesome (Why Your Writing Sucks) but my eye was immediately drawn to “horseshit”.
She stirs the pot on a desire a lot of her audience has (writing from the heart). And you naturally want to listen.
She shows empathy. And points to a solution (talking like a human).
The structure isn’t as clearly defined as our 5-point checklist, but it’s on the right track, I’d say…