Word Wise Blog: Content Writing Made Easy
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Word Wise is for busy people who want to write more (or need to), but don't have a lot of time.
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Mar 24, 2023
Easter is just around the corner - make it memorable for your family
During the spring my daughter turned three, I looked for activities to help her learn about Easter.
Within the 20-mile radius of my home, I found only two: she could meet the Easter Bunny at a local appliance store one Saturday afternoon, or she could hunt for eggs with 100 other frenzied kids at ...
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Mar 23, 2023
Before you begin writing a grant, gather these documents ...
As you write your first few proposals you may be surprised at the number of grant application attachments you need to include.
Every grant application is different. Each grantor asks for different elements in an application and even for a Letter of Inquiry (LOI).
Because of that, you will save yourself hours of scrambling and an untold amount a frustration if ...
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Mar 22, 2023
10 simple writing tips for beginners (and seasoned pros, too!)
Can a few writing tips for beginners help you write more clearly – and shorten your learning curve in the process? You bet.
And these tips aren’t just for beginners. I’ve been writing for a couple of decades and refer to this list all the time. Even if you’re a writer with a bit of experience or a seasoned pro, these tips offer easy fixes to common writing mistakes – mistakes that muddy your content ...
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Mar 21, 2023
What is a niche site? Consider building one for fun and profit
One question I hear a lot from writers is, “What is a niche site – and should I create one?”
The confusion about niche sites creates plenty of angst for writers because digital content has become more specialized. New and prospective bloggers want to know how detailed their website must be – how “niched down” – in order to get traffic.
Should you create a niche site? It depends on ...
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Mar 20, 2023
How one blogger writes 5 blog posts in a week
Author and speaker Michael Hyatt uses a simple blog writing template to churn out quality posts five days a week.
He fell into blogging by accident - literally. He broke his leg and during his recovery, he started a blog that eventually shifted his then-editorial career in a whole new direction. Michael will be the first to tell you that ...
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Mar 19, 2023
Build your reach with this particular writing skill
One indispensable copywriting skill you must have has little to do with writing at all.
It’s empathy.
“It’s your job to be Chief Empathy Officer for your audience,” says Copyblogger co-founder Sonia Simone.
When I read that quip from Sonia, I wanted to shout ...
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Mar 18, 2023
The REAL cause of writer's block - and a way to overcome it
Writers block is not caused by a lack of creativity. It’s rooted in fear.
Fear of failure: “What makes me think I can write?”
Fear of criticism: “People will find plenty wrong with my writing.”
Fear of rejection: “No one will publish this.”
Fear of offending readers: “My ideas will hurt or anger others.”
Fear of success: “I’ll never write anything good ever again..."
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Mar 17, 2023
Write your book in a year or less
“I want to write a book.”
The problem, you’ve found, is getting started and getting it done.
What you need is a plan. That's why this book writing planner can help you get your book out of your head and onto paper so that in a year (or less) you can hold your manuscript in your hands ...
Mar 16, 2023
10 ways to start a letter
The cursor blinks incessantly, begging you to start a letter. But you can’t get any words on paper.
Yet getting the words flowing can be a stumbling block for new writers as well as those who have written hundreds of letters and are afraid of sounding like a broken record.
It can happen when ...
Mar 15, 2023
What is short form content?
Long-form content vs short-form content: a debate swirls around the merits of each one. But in the words of Content Hacker founder Julia McCoy, “There’s a time and a place for both types.”
If you’re a content writer, you want to understand the two forms and when to use them...
Mar 14, 2023
12 templates for writing winning Asks
These 12 tips for writing winning Asks follow a simple fill-in-the-blank format you can use to write an important part of a call to action: the benefits of your product, service, or cause ...
Mar 13, 2023
Stop editing as you write -- and get more writing done
Write first, edit later. It’s a cardinal rule for writers. Yes, there’s one rule that precedes it: there are no rules. But the “write first, edit later” rule clocks in as a close second.
The principle is simple. Write-first-edit-later means that you get your thoughts out on paper or the screen before you go back and tidy them up. Doing so means you save time and save work ...
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Mar 12, 2023
How did Paul get his mission statement to just 10 words?
Apostle Paul’s mission statement was clear: “I proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles” (Galatians 1:16).
In just ten words, Paul summarized the call on his life. How did he come up with that one?
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Mar 11, 2023
An extra way to use your FAQs page
An FAQs page on your website (or as a white paper) provides answers to the most common questions you’re asked about your products, your services, or your biz.
It’s a useful document because it allows you to organize information in one place.
Plus, it saves you time in answering the same questions over and over.
Your FAQs page also offers you another opportunity...
Mar 10, 2023
Yes, you CAN build your own resume
Yes, you CAN build your own resume.
Whether you’re building a resume for the first time or you’re updating yours after years in the marketplace, you can do so on your own.
There's a handy tool to help. Your Reusable Resume Builder is THE place to gather and organize your information. The Resume Builder takes the frustration and stress out of putting together your resume. It guides you through each section of your resume and explains what information to include – no matter what job you’re seeking ...
Mar 09, 2023
News story vs feature story: what's the difference?
A news article and a feature article are two different kinds of content.
But plenty of writers confuse them.
And that’s a no-no. Both news articles and feature articles are standard fare in magazines, newspapers, newsletters and yes, blogs.
You don’t want to deliver a full-fledged feature when your client, an editor, or a publication asks for a news story. And vice versa.
So here’s the gist ...
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Mar 08, 2023
What to write after you write "The End"
You’ve just typed “The End,” but you’re not done with your book just yet. There’s still the issue of the back matter of a book.
What is the purpose of the chunk at the end? What should you include? And if you’re self-publishing, how do you decide the order in which to organize the elements in the back of the book?
Mar 07, 2023
Top 10 blog writing tips
This blog writing checklist is a helpful self-check tool. You can use it every time you write a new blog post.
And the checklist also boosts your confidence, particularly during those moments when you're ready to hit "Publish" but your nerves hit and you wonder ...
"Did I forget anything?"
Run through the checklist and ...
Mar 06, 2023
Use this quick tip to simplify your writing
Clean writing is easier to read than cluttered writing. And my guess is that like me, you want to make it easy for your readers to read what you write.
Your reader can get bogged down with wordy baggage at the beginning of the sentence. Do her a favor. Eliminate it or move it to later in the sentence.
Instead of writing this …
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Mar 05, 2023
The cost of writing a blog
“How much does it cost to write a blog?” That’s a question I hear a lot from writers.
They’re not talking about writing the content. They’re asking about the cash layout, which can be really, really cheap. As in about $10 a month for web hosting and $9.99 a year for a domain name ...
Mar 04, 2023
How to gather a pool of content ideas
During a brainstorm session, your purpose is to gather as many content writing ideas as possible about a particular topic.
After brainstorming, you can drill down your topic to a specific truth.
But as you brainstorm, the key is volume. This is not the time to decide if ...
Mar 03, 2023
Create a personal content writing strategy you can stick with
If you’re a writer, freelancer, solopreneur, or small business owner, you need a content writing strategy.
And you don’t need an MBA to create one. nstead, you can use a ...
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Mar 02, 2023
What kinds of projects are freelance writers hired to do?
Just exactly what kinds of writing projects can a freelance writer expect to get hired to do?
Dozens. But in the end, it all boils down to three basic types of pieces...
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Mar 01, 2023
5 ways to become a better writer
During a recent site audit, I dug into a set of blog posts that I wrote several years ago — and cringed.
Then I edited. In some cases, ferociously. In other cases, I made just minor tweaks.But regardless of the amount of repair needed to my past work, I noticed a difference in how I wrote then and how I write now. During the time ...
Feb 28, 2023
How to write a story to make a point
“Let me illustrate …”
When you know how to write a story, you up your writing game. I’m not talking about writing a novel, short story, or another form of fiction, but rather storytelling in content and copy.
It’s standard operating procedure for writers to use a story as a hook, in a transition, or to ...
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