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Word Wise Blog: Content Writing Made Easy
Award-winning writer Kathy Widenhouse has helped hundreds of nonprofits and writers produce successful content , with 750K+ views for her writing tutorials. She is the author of 9 books. See more of Kathy’s content here.
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Apr 20, 2025
How word choice can turn a "No" to Yes"
Science affirms what writers have known for decades: word choice matters.
British psychologist and mediation consultant Elizabeth Stokoe has analyzed hundreds of phone calls between mediators and potential clients. She has discovered one word that makes a difference for a resistant prospect to agree to mediation: "willing."
When asked if they would be "willing" to mediate rather than "interested" in mediation, even the most resistant prospect...
Apr 19, 2025
How one small typo had big consequences
A typo is a small mistake in published content.
One of the most well-known typos dates back to 1631. A single, 3-letter word was omitted from the second printing of the King James Bible – a word that should have been carefully placed smack in the middle of The Ten Commandments.
The correct version of the seventh commandment states, “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14).
But the typo left out the word “not,” causing the verse to read ...
Apr 18, 2025
How to start (or restart) your blog and make it a success
Less than 10% of blogs succeed. But yours can!
This toolkit is for writers who are starting a blog, restarting a lapsed one, or simply want to manage their blogs more efficiently...
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Apr 17, 2025
10 words to use when writing headlines
It’s no secret that writing headlines is an important skill for any writer.
And I’m talking about headlines of all kinds: the title of an article, the subject line of an email, the teaser on an envelope, the header on a web page, the post title to a blog – even the caption to an image.
Each of these functions as a headline – that is, text that introduces.
A strong headline is important because ...
Apr 16, 2025
How to find your writing niche: take the quiz!
Want to know how to find your niche in writing? You’ve been told it’s important to have a niche to succeed as a content writer. But you are uncertain how to go about zeroing in on a writing specialty.
And since specialization is today’s business currency, you want to know how to find a niche where you can thrive. A specialized writing niche lets you ...
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Apr 15, 2025
What's the ideal length for an email campaign?
What’s the ideal email length?
I’m not talking about the email that you send to your boss about next week’s schedule. And I’m not talking about email that you send to a client with a list of questions for the project that’s due in two weeks … or an email in which you reach out to a vendor for information … or a quick “thank you” email to your sister for the care package she sent you…
I’m talking about the email marketing messages you send to your own email list ...
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Apr 14, 2025
When do question headlines work?
Question headlines can be a powerful way to pull in readers.
A question raises curiosity about your reader’s problem. Your question headline — whether it’s for an article, blog post, social media caption, book title or subtitle, web page heading, or email subject line — implies there’s a solution in the content. And readers want answers...
Apr 13, 2025
The Delete Key: Friend or Foe?
One writers' camp views the Delete key as their foe. Another group sees it as their friend.
If the Delete key is your enemy, then you view it as an adversary that will eradicate your creativity ... your ideas … your hard work ...
Apr 12, 2025
Don't miss this opportunity to connect with your readers
Only one-third of online marketers and writers send a weekly email or email newsletter to readers. Yet more than 4 billion people in the world use email every day.
Does anyone but me see the disconnect? If you don’t publish an email newsletter, you could be missing an opportunity to ...
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Apr 11, 2025
How to test your book idea before you start writing
You’ve got a book idea. You’re gung-ho to get writing. But should you proceed?
Given the potential mine fields to writing a book and getting into the hands of readers, you want to make sure your idea is book-worthy. You’ll invest a significant amount of your time in writing the book. And once you start, you want to finish it rather than let your first pages languish in your uncompleted projects file.
But how can you know that the sweat and tears invested in this book will yield readers? You want to know that there’s an audience for your book idea ...
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Apr 10, 2025
Top 5 web content writing tips
“Content” is the sum of all the information you create and produce. Web content copywriting – providing practical info about your nonprofit cause, but online – has developed its own notoriety, thanks to the rise in social media.
The Nonprofit Communications Trends Report cited the leading types of content which leaders plan to spend the most time producing: email newsletters, Facebook updates, event marketing, articles for websites and email appeals.
Note: none of the leaders reported plans to invest the bulk of their time producing content for print. Every item on the “Top Five” list was for an online medium.
Which tells me that knowing how to write content for the web is a pretty important priority for most businesses and nonprofits ...
Apr 09, 2025
The 2 best ways to narrow your topic
"A blog post about everything is a blog post about nothing."
It’s a familiar principle that’s applicable not just to blogs, but to writing an article or a book even a headline.
Put another way: the best content zeroes in on one single thing.
Readers want laser-focused content. When you narrow your topic, you stand out. Proof is in the numbers ...
Apr 08, 2025
How to avoid 5 of the biggest freelance writer mistakes
You're a freelancer - or want to be one. So far, you’ve avoided the usual freelance writer mistakes by getting plenty of advice and reading the plethora of how-to’s that are available.
And you haven’t simply accumulated information. You’ve taken appropriate actions to get started, like ...
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Apr 07, 2025
5 magic words that open doors
These 5 magic words can open doors and get readers to support your cause.
These five words empower your readers to take action. Some copywriters refer to them as the Ask or the Call to Action...
Apr 06, 2025
What's an evergreen post - and why should I write them?
Like evergreens in my landscape, an evergreen post stays relevant long after it’s been published.
This content addresses topics that are always interesting to my readers, no matter what is going on in the world.
Just as evergreen shrubs provide a foundation in my landscape, evergreen posts act as ...
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Apr 05, 2025
Feature article vs news article: what's the difference?
A feature article is different from a news article. Both report on a topic, person, or event. But a news story sticks to the facts.
A feature article goes further. It offers analysis about the subject. And here’s a twist: two or even three (or more) writers can put together a feature article about the same topic, but ...
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Apr 04, 2025
God & Me! 3: Fun devotionals for girls ages 6-9
When my editor asked me to write a book of fun, children devotionals for girls ages 6-9, I saw a perfect opportunity to help young ladies understand that God is their friend.
They can get close to ...
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Apr 03, 2025
How to write a tagline for your biz or blog
“I need insight on writing a tagline,” wrote a member of my online writing group. “Does my blog really need one?” Great question.
But first, let’s get some clarity. A tagline is a short (5–10 word), descriptive phrase that ...
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Apr 02, 2025
The best formula to use in short content
The PAS copywriting formula, says millionaire-maker and business strategist Dan Kennedy, is “the most reliable sales formula ever invented.”
PAS stands for Problem-Agitate-Solve or Problem-Agitate-Solution.
The PAS framework is straightforward...
Apr 01, 2025
Find more time to write with these 3 strategies
“How do I find time to write?”
It’s a question I hear all the time from writers and those who want to be one.
I admit it … finding time to write has been one my key struggles in the writing business.
Freelancing and writing to be published involve a whole lot more than actual writing. I have to set aside time to ...
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Mar 31, 2025
7 of the best jobs for beginning freelance writers
Just getting started as a writer?
Freelance writing jobs for beginners are out there, even if you have no paid experience. Every writer snagged her first gig. Which means you can, too.
Freelancers can be hired for all kinds of writing jobs. To get started, you simply need to find someone who is willing to let you write for them. But plenty of those folks don’t realize they need a writer. That's where you enter the picture ...
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Mar 30, 2025
What to include on your About page
Writing content for your website About page is full of surprises.
One of the biggest surprises is that this page is not about you at all. It’s the place on your website where visitors learn more about what you do for them...
Mar 29, 2025
What should you put on the back cover of your book?
In Romans 1:1-17, Paul offers us a tidy example of content to include on a book’s back cover … even though the passage is at the beginning of the book.
Look how Paul includes each of the back cover elements ...
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Mar 28, 2025
Learn to write devotionals
Devotionals are a unique genre. And you can write them!
Writing Devotionals That Stick is a full-length, online course that walks with you step-by-step as you learn to write devotionals in a way that stays with today’s busy, distracted readers.
Leaders, entrepreneurs, students, moms, professionals, writers – or those who want to be – have learned to write devotionals by using the principles found in this course.
It’s a fun and easy-to-use guide packed with ...
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