A mistake?

A guest post by Sean DSouza of Psychotactics

I remember the time I was watching a video on the ‘water test’

The ‘water test’ is a method to accurately gauge if a pan is exactly at the right temperature, as the accurate temperature prevents the ingredients from sticking.

As you might have realised, I had my nose to the video to make sure I wasn’t getting the steps wrong. Yet when I tried it on my pan at home, I couldn’t replicate the water test. No matter how many times I watched the video and tried the exact steps, I still couldn’t get the ‘water test’ to work.

The reason? I was using a non-stick pan

Yeah, mine was non-stick and the pan in the video was a stainless steel pan. Heck! You think I would have seen the difference. But I never did, and your readers have the same problem when they’re reading your articles.

And that’s because they’re not just reading. They’re trying to read, assimilate and execute the learning at one go.

And in doing so, they miss out some valuable points

In effect, they make ‘mistakes’. And those in-attentional mistakes can be avoided if you take the trouble to educate your reader. Of course the easiest formula to achieve this goal is to do the following:

Step 1: Give the reader the steps to follow.
Step 2: Point out the hurdles along the way.

Step 1: Give the reader the steps to follow

Let’s say you’re teaching the reader how to cook a delicious chicken tikka masala. Obviously, you’d give them steps, because the reader is now following a recipe. And that’s what most recipes do. They tell you what to do. But they don’t tell you what possible problems or mistakes you could make while executing the dish. Which is where Step 2 comes into play.

Step 2: Point out the hurdles along the way

So ha jee, we have shown the reader how to make the chicken dish, but now we need to point out where they can go wrong. They may fry the spices too long, causing a bitter after taste. Or the gravy may turn a bit sour. And when we point out these mistakes, we help the reader avoid the obstacles in advance.

This gives your article two solid advantages

Any article that covers both the how-to as well as the mistakes immediately marks itself out as a solid, enduring piece of information. The second advantage however, is that if your article instantly gets beefed up to a nice, solid consistency every single time.

But what are the mistakes you can make when adding ‘mistakes?’

The problem with article-writing isn’t that you have less information. In fact the reverse is often true. You have the curse of knowledge. So you try to stuff your article with a whole lot of how-to information. And then while the reader rolls around with indigestion, you proceed to add even more on his plate.

And there’s a way around this problem

You want to balance out the how-to with the mistakes. If you have two or three steps involved in the how-to, then a mistake or two is fine to slip in, just to balance things a bit. But should you find yourself generating half a dozen mistakes or more, it’s probably a better idea to write an article (or two) that covers the mistakes alone.

Pointing out the mistakes a reader can make are crucial

I sure as heck should have known that I should have been using a stainless steel pan. The pan was right in front of my eyes in the video I was watching. And yet I missed it. And so will your reader.

So point out the mistakes and both you and your reader will go on to make many more perfect chicken tikka masalas for a long, long time.

To read more articles by Sean DSouza—and get a very useful report on “Why Headlines Fail”, go toPsychoTactics.com

Put couple of tablespoons of petrol in your car’s tank today. And see what happens to the car.

I’ll tell you what. It’ll probably take you a few inches further.

And you’ll say to yourself: “What the heck? What difference will a few inches make?”
Just as you’d say: “What the heck? What difference will a word or two make to enhance the power of a headline?”

You’ll be amazed, how by simply adding a target + a specific, you’ll make your headline far more attractive in a matter of seconds.

Why don’t we find out for ourselves, eh?

And let’s start off by taking a random topic…

e.g. Let’s take an topic such as: ‘Why article writing is the key’

But the key to ‘what?’

Most writers leave out the core detail. They miss out telling you where the article is going in the first instance. And these writers don’t leave out the core detail on purpose.

They just don’t realise the importance of the core detail. And the core detail should usually contain what we’d loosely call a ‘target.’

A ‘target’ is simply ‘who or what are we speaking about?’

Let’s me demonstrate what I mean, by doing a little addition.

So instead of: Why article writing is the key…

We say: Why article writing is the key ‘to getting strategic alliances.’
We say: Why article writing is the key ‘to getting clients.’
We say: Why article writing is the key ‘to getting paid.’

Notice what happened when we put in that ‘target’?

First, it actually gave your article a solid direction. And hey, it did even more. It created curiosity. Your la-la topic, suddenly spruced up, brushed its hair, and put on a tuxedo.

And if you’re amazed at what adding a ‘target’ could do, let’s now add a ‘specific’ to that headline. I’m going to replace just one word/one phrase at a time. And you watch.

Watch how the article literally swings from one side to another.

Example 1:

Why article writing is the key.
Why article writing is the key to getting strategic alliances.
Why article writing is the key to getting ‘active’ strategic
alliances.

Example 2:
Why article writing is the key.
Why article writing is the key to getting clients.
Why article writing is the key to getting ‘higher-paying’ clients.

Example 3:
Why article writing is the key.
Why article writing is the key to getting paid.
Why article writing is the key to getting paid ‘in advance.’

So you see what we did?

We took the core topic.
We added a target.
We added one specific such as ‘active’ or ‘higher-paying’ or ‘in advance’.
And we instantly intensified the power of the headline.

Amazingly that change in the headline did a lot more. It made the article easier for you to write. Without the ‘target’ and the ‘specifics’, the headline was weak, and the resulting article would be a soggy waffle.

But as we put in the ‘target’ and the ‘specific’ it actually forced you to focus on that specific, thus resulting in a mucho superior article.

Instead of the article being general and vague, it’s now specific.

You’re either going to be writing about ‘article writing’ and ‘active strategic alliances.’ Or ‘article writing’ and ‘higher-paying clients.’ Or ‘article writing’ and ‘getting paid in advance.’

You’re most certainly not going to write about all three (not right today, at least!)

Because as you can plainly see, they’re three completely different articles, going in three completely different directions. But when you have a vague headline, it’s almost impossible to keep the content of the article focused.

When you have a specific headline, it’s darned impossible to go off track.

What’s more is that your audience is more focused too, because the rest of your article is delivering exactly what the headline promised.

The specificity of the headline is what drew the reader in, and it’s the specificity of the rest of the article that will keep the reader reading.

And if you don’t believe me, remove those measly words…

Remove the specifics. Chop off the target.
Then write your article.

The headline loses power. The article weaves, then stalls. What’s worse is that the entire article becomes so much harder to write.

And even if you were to actually complete and publish the article, your reader would not experience a sense of clarity.

And you get that clarity with just two measly words. The addition of just a measly word or two, and your article is vrroooming down the road.

And hey, in the right direction too!

To read more articles by Sean DSouza—and get a very useful report on “Why Headlines Fail”, go to PsychoTactics.com

I’ve focused almost my entire career on speechwriting for senior government officials.  When I left the public sector to launch my own speechwriting firm last year, I almost immediately started receiving inquiries from journalists and freelance writers interested in learning more about speechwriting.  In this article, I’ll tell you about how I became a professional speechwriter and share some tips for dipping your toe into the profession.

I was fresh out of college and living with two roommates in a tiny old walkup apartment in Manhattan’s Lower East Side.  I hadn’t taken my first step in the professional world, but was reaching out for advice and job leads.

One morning, I got an email from a friend of a friend.  He informed me that the new governor of a very large state had already cycled through a handful of speechwriters in his first few months and desperately needed someone for the job.  I had some political experience from summers growing up in New York and took quite a few writing-intensive courses during college.  I knew a little bit about politics and a little bit about writing, but I had never written a major speech for myself or anyone else.

I figured I didn’t have a shot at the job.  I was 22 years old and had virtually no relevant experience.  But since email is free, I figured there was no downside to sending in my resume.  I emailed it along with a cover letter that put a brave spin on my inexperience, and then promptly forgot all about it.

A couple of weeks later, I got a phone call from the governor’s communications director.  She received my resume and liked it enough to request a writing sample.  Three days later, I was on a flight to meet with the governor and was offered the job on the spot.  I didn’t even have enough time to fly home and pack up before moving and diving headfirst into my new job.

Like that, I was a professional speechwriter.  It took a stroke of good luck, an employer desperate to fill a slot, and a little bit of a knack for decent writing.  And aside from a few detours, it’s pretty much all I’ve done since then.

After spending several years writing on Capitol Hill and the U.S. Department of Justice, I’m now president of Inkwell Strategies, a Washington, DC-based firm that specializes in speechwriting and message development.  Frequently I’ll get an email from someone looking for advice on how to break into speechwriting.  Here are some of the things I usually tell them:

-          The first speech is the hardest. As is the case for many niche professions, most speechwriting jobs require significant previous experience.  This creates a classic chicken and egg conundrum: how do you get that previous experience if there aren’t many entry level opportunities? Your best bet is to write a few speeches for free or on spec to build a small portfolio.  When I’m hiring a writer, it doesn’t make much difference to me whether they previously wrote for a Fortune 500 CEO or a town councilman.  If the writing is good, I’ll take notice.

-          Great writing for speech is different than great writing for paper.  I’ve heard from a number of journalists who have tried to make the leap to speechwriting and found it surprisingly difficult.  The longer, more complex phrases and sentence construction you might find in literature doesn’t translate when spoken.  If you’re new to speechwriting, the most important thing you can do is stand up and read your draft aloud.  If you stumble on it, your boss will, too.

-          Simple is always better. TV shows like The West Wing might give the impression that speechwriting is all about sweeping, grand phrases.  Yes, there are rare instances when big words are appropriate.  But the number one trap for novice speechwriters is writing “too big.”  If you’re writing the president’s next State of the Union address, by all means break out the thesaurus.  Otherwise, stick to clear, simple language, expressed in short sentences that are easy for the speaker to deliver and the audience to follow.  You’ll notice that even history’s most famous rhetorical flourishes are usually comprised of concise language artfully composed.

-          Read first.  Write second. Whether you write for an elected official, corporate CEO or as a freelancer, you’ll be called on to write speeches on a wide variety of topics.  No speechwriter can be an expert on everything.  When an assignment comes in, give yourself at least a day or two to gather and read as much material as you can put your hands on.  The depth of your research will depend on the scope of the project.  If you feel that the amount of research required will leave you with little time for writing, consider working with a researcher or asking your client for assistance with research.

-          Beware of burnout. A colleague who wrote for President Clinton once described speechwriting to me as “the best dead-end job in the world.”  It can be extremely exhilarating and rewarding, but at a certain point, most professional speechwriters hit a wall.  Churning out constant content is emotionally – and even physically – exhausting.  I once calculated that during my career as a U.S. Senate staffer, I wrote more than 1 million words in the Congressional Record.  That meant staying constantly wired to the news and issues of the day, developing an in-depth knowledge of major policy initiatives, and burning through quite a few keyboards.  It’s a great ride, but few can stay on it for long.

Some have raised concerns that the modern media, which can value sound bites and 140-character Tweets over thoughtful prose, could prove fatal to the speechwriting industry.  But legendary speechwriter Peggy Noonan recently opined that on the contrary, backlash to this “CliffsNotes” version of political debate is creating new demand for deeper dialogue.  As she put it, “speeches are back.”  I’m inclined to agree.  If so, it’s great news for current and aspiring speechwriters alike.

David Meadvin was chief speechwriter for the U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Senate Majority Leader, among others.  He is president of Inkwell Strategies, a professional speechwriting and executive communications firm.

We ended up with 20 finalists.

The finalists were closely examined by our panel of judges,with the greatest weight on the quality of their content. Here are the judges:

• Leo Babauta, the creator of Zen Habits and mnmlist, the author of Focus and co-creator of Write to Done.
• Brian Clark, the creator of CopyBlogger, as well as co-founder of Teaching Sells and Third Tribe.
• Michael Stelzner, the author of “Writing White Papers” and Founder of Social Media Examiner
• Deb Ng, the founder and former owner of the Freelance Writing Jobs. She now blogs about blogging and social media at Kommein and works as Conference Director for the BlogWorld and New Media Expo.

And now is the time to reveal the winners of the Top 10 Blogs for Writers. There’s some serious gold here, folks!

1. StoryFix
   .
2. Men with Pens
   .
3. Make a Living Writing
   .
4. Cats Eye Writer
   .
5. The Renegade Writer
   .
6. Writer Unboxed
   .
7. Word Play
   .
8. The Creative Penn
   .
9. Victoria Mixon
   .
10. Courage to Create

Congratulations to all the winners!

Readers, be sure to check out these awesome blogs.

And please help spread the word!  Click the retweet button to share this post with friends and fans.

The badge of distinction: If you are a winner, feel free to post the image you see here on your blog. Please link the badge back to this page.

I’d like to thank the judges for all their work. It’s a big responsibility and takes a lot of time to examine each blog with care. Leo, Deb, Michael, and Brian – you have lifted this contest to a whole new level.

Mary Jaksch – Chief Editor WTD

I would also like to acknowledge Scott McIntyre of Vivid Ways for his generous help with organizing this contest.

A guest post by Darko of FinderMind.com

Don’t just do it, just get started!
What a great name of a blog for this topic! Write to Done, implying ‘Write and get it done!’.

Procrastination is a topic commonly discussed in the writer’s community. Yet, when it comes to the evidence presented to back up specific claims on procrastination, it all comes down to opinions. No specific studies are mentioned nor the things we can learn from these studies. Maybe because people aren’t aware of them.

I hope all of this is going to change with this article. We’ll explore some of the findings from the  psychology on procrastination and the lessons we can learn from those studies.

Just do It Doesn’t Help Much

One great quote I once heard about this is, Telling a person who chronically procrastinates ‘Just do it’ is like saying to a chronically depressed person ‘Just relax! This might sound funny at first, but think about this quote for a while.

We have an entire self-help industry with a bunch of books preaching this Nike’s logo as the ultimate way to get out of procrastination. Just do it, don’t delay! I wish it worked so well. I don’t want to imply this particular motivational phrase doesn’t work at all, but it doesn’t work as well as many people (who write pop psychology books) would like to.

Timothy A Pychyl is an associate professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. He and his students did a series of studies where they determined that the participant’s perceptions of the tasks they needed to get done changed over the course of the week (many avoided doing a task on Monday). The second thing they discovered is once people started doing the task, they didnít find it so dreadful as they thought it would be.

What’s the lesson here? According to professor Pychyl, the lesson is to just to get started. I found this phrase useful to replace the Nike’s logo. You don’t have to just do it, but just get started. It only takes you a small start to see that the thing you wanted to do isn’t as scary as you thought. Do you think that new article you plan to write will be a nightmare? Try to get started and you’ll probably see it isn’t that bad. To get started is way easier than to do it.

How to Resist Short-Term Temptations

You’ve probably heard about that Marshmallow study where they determined the kids that resisted eating the marshmallow were WAY more happier/positive/persistent/successful than the kids who ate it immediately. If you haven’t heard of the experiment, here’s a short summary:

A kid is placed in a room with a table and a marshmallow on it. The kid is explained by the experimenter that he can eat the marshmallow now or wait until the experimenter is back and then he’ll get two. The goal here is to examine whether the kid is going to resist eating the marshmallow while nobody is in the room.

This is just one experiment to demonstrate how self-will and self-discipline is important in long-term success. The problem I have with all this is that nobody TELLS you HOW to NOT eat the marshmallow! I think that telling someone “resist short-term temptations” is far from enough to get him to do that. I think this is like telling a depressed person “resist feeling depressed!” It just doesn’t work well.

Two psychologists (Fishback from the University of Chicago and Benjamin Converse from the University of Virginia) have a few specific suggestions to offer on overcoming temptations.

The first suggestion is the concept of width. Temptations might seem harmless at first (should I not exercise these two days? It isn’t a big deal!) if we consider them in isolation. What we should do is to expand out view and consider other opportunities that will impact our long-term goal. Something like ‘Yes, being lazy and not exercising today might be harmless but tomorrow I’ll be in the same situation).

The second concept is consistency and it implies that we need to expect that the particular decision we’ll make at the moment will play out in the future. This is common sense if you think about it: You are more likely to do tomorrow what you did today. Or at least it will be easier to make the same thing in the future. So if you listen to your temptation today, you are more likely to do the same thing tomorrow. If you avoid your temptation today, you are also more likely to do that tomorrow. What will you choose?

The same concept applies to writing, if you avoid starting writing today, you’re more likely to do it tomorrow. So just get started and realize that the more you do it, the easier it will get and will eventually help you get closer to your long-term writing goals.

Darko is currently writing for FinderMind.com

Four weeks ago we asked you to nominate your favorite blog for writers. We got 518 nominations! Thanks to everyone who put in a nomination.

Here are the finalists in alphabetical order:

Authors on Show
Beyond the Margins
Cats Eye Writer
Courage 2 Create
Creative Copy Challenge
Fuel Your Writing
Ladyscribes
Make a Living Writing
Men With Pens
Nail Your Novel
Ruby Slippered Sisterhood
Storyfix
The Creative Penn
The Renegade Writer
The Urban Muse
Tribal Writer
Victoria Mixon
Wordplay
Write in Color
Writer Unboxed

How will the winners be selected?

1. Initial qualification: A site must have been nominated more than once by multiple individuals, and be a blog satisfying the contest’s criteria. If someone nominated more than one blog, only the first nomination was counted.
2. Final winner selection:
   Quality of posts- A qualitative analysis of the content of posts will be examined. Educational, useful, engaging, and discussion-creating posts are more valuable than self-promotional posts. (55% of decision)
   Blog-based analysis- Factors to be taken into account will include: Frequency of posts: Blogs that publish regular posts on a weekly basis will score higher; Reader involvement: Blogs that have regular comments from readers on its posts is another sign of a healthy blog. In addition, the number of nominations for a specific blog plays a part in this. (45% of decision)

The panel of  judges:

• Leo Babauta is the creator of Zen Habits and mnmlist, the author of Focus and co-creator of Write to Done.
• Brian Clark is the creator of CopyBlogger, as well as co-founder of Teaching Sells and Third Tribe.
• Michael Stelzner is the author of “Writing White Papers” and Founder of Social Media Examiner
• Deb Ng is the founder and former owner of the Freelance Writing Jobs. She now blogs about blogging and social media at Kommein and works as Conference Director for the BlogWorld and New Media Expo.

We will announce the winners of the Top 10 Blogs for Writers before Christmas.

Mary Jaksch – Chief Editor WTD

Note: I’m sure you can imagine what a big task it is to work out the finalists and winners of this contest. I would like to acknowledge Scott McIntyre of Vivid Ways for his generous help with this contest.

Update: Click here to find the winners

A guest post by Alison Kerr of Loving Nature’s Garden

Do you consider yourself a risk taker? What about a risky writer? Whether you think taking risks is in your job description or not, get informed, use protection, bad things can happen to writers.

Picture this, you write and publish a scathing review of some books you were sent, or maybe you’ve heard tell of some dubious business practices behind the success of a gaming company. You feel people need to know and you mention it at your blog. Do those sound risky? What about if you had a bad case of customer service from a printing company and you mention it at your blog? All of these are real life scenarios where the bloggers received letters informing them that they were involved in libel.

Who are these bloggers and what does their experience mean for you?

John Pozadzides, who writes at One Man’s Blog, is an American, an early contributor to the development of HTML and CSS, and an all-around-intelligent-sounding guy. He wrote about his experience with a print service at his blog back in 2007. There have since been many comments left on John’s post. In September of 2010 John received an email which he considers a threat to sue. The email related to what someone else wrote in the comments on John’s post, a comment written by another writer.

Bruce Everiss is a British gaming blogger who received notice that he was being sued in Australia by an American-registered company over his online accusations of dubious business practices.

And Paul Z Myers is an American associate professor at the University of Minnesota and professional reviewer who published an overwhelmingly negative review of two books by Stuart Pivar at ScienceBlogs.com.

I don’t know about you, but when I learned of these I was rather aghast, and just a bit worried. I’m not getting rich any time soon from blogging; taking risks is not my gig. The thing is, anyone can be sued for pretty much anything. The important thing to look at is real consequences. Were these writers doing anything wrong and what happened to them? What freedoms of speech do we have as professional writers, what exactly is libel, and if you should be covering your ass what kind of protection should you use?

Free speech

Democratic nations, including English-speaking America, have established legal protections for those who disseminate information through the written word:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press… The Bill of Rights — the first 10 amendments to the Constitution — Dec. 15, 1791.

There’s no legal protection against stupidity

There are plenty of cases where damages have been awarded to individuals who were libeled when a writer threw caution to the wind.

You don’t even have to be a professional writer to be sued. Take a look at the case of the £10,000 awarded to the UK law student who’s former friend ranted about him on Facebook. Or there’s the first blogger in the USA to lose a libel suit back in January 2006; David Milum was ordered to pay $50,000 to the lawyer he libeled.

Now, writing defamatory stuff online about a lawyer or law student… well, let’s just say it’s not too smart. But John Pozadzides didn’t even write the words he’s being sued for. I’m not calling him stupid.

So, what is libel anyway and what about comments at a blog?

“Libel and slander are legal claims for false statements of fact about a person that are printed, broadcast, spoken or otherwise communicated to others. Libel generally refers to statements or visual depictions in written or other permanent form…” – Media Law Resource Center. It’s not only individuals who can bring a libel case though, businesses can too.

Is John Pozadzides liable for a comment at his blog? Under American law Section 230 “No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.” – Electronic Frontier Foundation. It’s unlikely that John is legally responsible for the comment in question at his blog, though he may have to pay some legal costs just to check.

John Pozadzides is lucky he’s in America

It turns out, at least for the moment, that if you’re an American you’re ahead. Laws related to libel vary depending on where you live, where you publish, whom you write about, and where your readers are. Earlier this year British gaming blogger Bruce Everiss was sued in Australia by an American-registered company adding to growing concerns of tourist libel.

Where will it end? For American writers the good news is that President Obama recently signed into law the Speech Act, which aims to curb libel tourism, protecting the freedoms of speech for Americans provided by the First Amendment.

London – libel capital to the unlucky

British writers and non-Americans who’s writing can be read in England, are not so lucky. According to the BBC Outdated Libel Laws Need Reform. Libel laws which are too strict ‘are used by wealthy foreign individuals to “bully people who try to hold them to account”’ and are a magnet for tourist libel cases, leading to London being named “a town named sue”.

But the fun doesn’t stop there: under English law “If you don’t pre-moderate your blog’s comments you can be held responsible…” What to do? Taking down your content and offering a written apology might be sufficient to solve your problem if you receive a libel letter. Alternatively, your ISP might just take down your content for you over fears of their own liability. And being in America is no protection if you don’t know your rights, as demonstrated recently by the 70,000 Blogs Shut Down by U.S. Law Enforcement.

What kind of protection works?

Just like in other areas of life, protection is advised.

1. Start with exercising morals and ethics in your writing. You’re a professional. Despite the traffic it might bring, not all sensational content is advisable. Here are a couple of starting places: The Responsible Blogger’s Guide to Dealing With Big Brother at CopyBlogger.com; also, read these defamation avoidance tips from Australia.
2. Keep up to date with your rights and responsibilities as a blogger, freelance writer, or publisher. Unfortunately claims against professional writers are more often than not an attack on free speech. Find out how defamation laws apply to you at home and abroad. Consider this part of your professional training. American bloggers can consult the Electronic Frontier Foundation for a comprehensive guide to bloggers rights. The organization International Pen defends freedom of expression for writers across the globe and English Pen is working to reform English libel law.
3. Have the name of a good lawyer handy – someone you trust to answer your questions without charging you a fortune. Organizations which may be able to advise you and who represent some writers for free in cases which champion free speech include the already mentioned Electronic Frontier Foundation and English Pen.
4. When you write for others freelance, pay attention to your liability under the contract you are given. The American Society of Journalists and Authors has a guide to dealing with indemnification clauses in contracts. You can request wording changes on contracts rather than just signing what you are given.
5. When you conduct interviews, archive your source audio recordings and keep your written notes. Professional freelance journalists told me that they archive these for five years. Consider it part of covering your ass on topics where your sources could be called into question.
6. Look into liability insurance coverage for your business or blog. Commercial general business insurance can cover advertising injury (related to what you write about your products and those of your competitors). If you are consulting, for example providing software services, as part of your blogging you may want professional liability coverage. And media insurance is available to American writers and online publishers through Author’s Guild (annual cost is $1,500 and up).

So, what happened to Bruce Everiss, the gaming blogger with the libel lawsuit brought against him in Australia? And did Paul Z Myers have to eat his words over the laughable science books he reviewed? Bruce was required to hire legal services – he was taken to court. However, the game company Evony dramatically dropped the case against Bruce Everiss after just two days in Australian court. These days Bruce is writing more about English libel law reform and less about games. As for the case against scientist and book reviewer Paul Z Myers, Pivar voluntarily withdrew the libel claim against him eleven days after filing the complaint.

I’m a writer, not a lawyer. Please do not consider this information a substitute for legal advice.

How do you feel after reading this, are you surprised? What free speech protections do you think bloggers should be due? Do you feel the need to know more about this? Please share your response in the comments.

Alison Kerr is a down-to-earth gardener, naturalist, self-confessed bookworm, writer, cook, and homeschooling mom to two teens who blogs at Loving Nature’s Garden. You can follow Alison Kerr on Twitter.

By James Chartrand of Men with Pens

What type of writer are you? Are you the type who glows with pleasure when a client compliments a piece you’ve done or when readers go crazy over a post you wrote? Or are you the type who enjoys praise and thanks people for compliments but who doesn’t really need that to know the work was awesome?

It’s about where you get that sense of validation and approval – from the outside or from within? Some people are externally validated, and they feel they’ve reached approval when others have a positive reaction to their work. Internally validated people tend to find that approval from within, and they give themselves their own approval.

You should know which type of validation you seek, if you’re a writer. (I’ll tell you why in just a little bit, so keep reading.) Who or what gives you that golden stamp of approval? What tells you that you’ve done a good job? How do you know when the work you’ve done was great?

Here are a few clues to help you determine whether you’re externally or internally validate:

If you’re externally validated, you might:

• Wait for comments to come in before you feel you can heave a sigh of relief
• Think a good post is one that has many comments, not just a few
• Hope for a client’s positive feedback and relax only when you receive it

If you’re internally validated, you might:

• Feel like you know the work is good
• Deliver to clients and move on to the next job without thinking twice
• Think that comments are nice but that they don’t really matter

So why should you know where you fit in? Because I’ve noticed that internally validated writers tend to have more confidence about their work, stress less over writing and feel more relaxed in general.

There’s nothing wrong with being more externally validated than internally validated, of course (or vice versa). You are who you are, and if it’s working for you, that’s great. There are also exceptions to the rules – aren’t there always?

But I’ve noticed that, predominantly, writers who just know their work is good and who don’t really care if clients rave or not (though it is nice), tend to be more self-assured about their work and have lower levels of anxiety.

They also suffer less writer’s block, it seems. They know what they have to do, they know what makes their writing solid, they know how to write well, and most importantly, they don’t get jammed when client or readers didn’t have the response they desired.

I see people suffer writer’s block all the time. It’s painful to observe. In almost every single case, I’ve noticed clues that these anxiety-ridden writers are externally validated people.

Think I’m wrong? Imagine this:

You worked hard on a post for an idea you had – a good idea, one that made you feel exicted. You spent hours writing and sweated to get the post just right. And when you finished, you liked the piece. You thought it was pretty damned good.

But then your readers started commenting. First one didn’t like it. Then another. In fact, most people really didn’t like your post at all. Some told you bluntly that it was a terrible piece and others said they just didn’t get the point. They wished you’d written something else. A few readers even unsubscribed from your blog.

Alright, that’s not a fun situation for either type of writer, internally or externally validated. The point is that each type of writer will react very, very differently to this scenario. Can you imagine how?

The internally validated writer might be a little stung. Probably more indignant than anything. He might shrug the criticism off, argue with readers or point out the nuances that make the work special. He might even think he should’ve kept this post and idea to himself.

The externally validated writer? He’d be crushed.

This doesn’t mean internally validated writers are better at handling feedback. But they wouldn’t be crushed by negative criticism. And they’d be able to write again.

The externally validated writer would be able to write again too, but how do you think he’s feeling about it? He’s probably feeling nervous, maybe even a little scared. Maybe he doesn’t think he’s a good writer after all anymore. Or that he shouldn’t be blogging.

Maybe he starts to doubt his ability to write in the first place, because now he can’t seem to write at all. Every sentence comes out sounding awkward. The work is slow going. It’s getting harder and harder to write. Nothing comes out properly. Some days there are blank pages. And eventually more of them, until writing becomes a dreaded struggle.

It makes sense, doesn’t it? If an externally validated writer gets his approval from others, and those others have resoundingly told him his work didn’t pass muster… well.

What will it take to bring the spark back to life? One of two things:

• Someone to bring approval back to that writer’s life
• The ability to find that approval again – from within

When you learn how to stop seeking external validation and start getting that sense of approval from within, I believe you can seriously smash through writer’s block and even move forward to create a mental environment where you can perform easily, well and with full self-confidence.

But moving from being externally validated to enjoying more of a balance with internal validation takes time. And it also takes some proactive thought patterns to help you direct validation back where it works best for you. Here are some tips to help:

• Each time you have a negative thought such as, “I’m no good at this. I can’t write. This sucks,” firmly tell yourself that you can write (you’ve done it before), you are good at this (after all, you’ve succeeded in the past), and that it doesn’t suck (it’s just a situation you can learn from). Believe yourself, too. Be tough on yourself and tell yourself to stop thinking you’re a failure – you’re not.
• Get the event behind you in the past, and don’t wallow in it. You’re a writer who had a rough patch and it’s over. Don’t let yourself stay there in yesterday, and live in today. Put the situation in the past where it belongs and tell yourself that today, you’re working on moving forward.
• When you get a bit of confidence back, put yourself to the text. Prepare some writing that you’re going to show someone else. Also (most importantly), prepare affirmations that you’ll tell yourself no matter what that person says about your work. Preparing before the moment of feedback in this way conditions you to always have strong, self-confident words to tell yourself at the slightest hint of criticism – eventually the criticism won’t bother you at all, and you’ll be able to listen objectively without feeling hurt.
• By waiting for someone else to give you approval, you’re actually giving away control (and your ability to write with self-confidence). You’re giving other people the power to decide if your work is worthy or not – shouldn’t you be the judge of that? Sure, feedback is helpful and you should listen to see where you could improve, but remind yourself that whoever is giving the feedback isn’t the Almighty Ruler of Approval and doesn’t get to decide where you measure up.
• Remember that you’re in control of your thoughts and therefore, your results. If the result you want is to never have to depend on anyone’s approval and never be crushed by negative feedback? Then control your thoughts and tell yourself you don’t need anyone’s approval and that feedback doesn’t bother you – you’ll achieve your desired result.

Like I said, it may not be easy and it will take time, but I nearly guarantee that the more you bring validation back to yourself so that you get it from within, the more control you’ll have over your ability to write, write well, and write often.

Without needing anyone’s approval.

To learn more great writing tips that help you be a confident writer rocking out your words, visit James Chartrand’s internally validated blog over at Men with Pens. You’ll get all the advice you need.

Everyone wants to be Batman.

He’s cool and edgy, but has benevolent intentions—and the man gets results.

Luckily for you, it’s easy to adopt Batman’s intriguing qualities to perfect your writing and make others believe that you rock as hard as the Caped Crusader.

Whether you’re writing for yourself (a blog, a novel, a business document, etc.) or a client, mistakes aren’t going to cut it. Your text has to be poignant, useful, and error-free.

Here are three aspects of the Batman persona that you can apply to your proofreading habits.

Costume – The importance of writing drafts

When speaking in front of an audience, it is said that the crowd forms 70% of their opinions on how you look, 20% on how you sound, and only 10% on what you say. When you apply the theory to written text, the 70% of “how you look” reflects the content and structure of your writing.

How your writing “looks” involves its appeal to the reader, and proofreading enhances appeal. Text that a writer initially believes to be straightforward may actually be vague, unclear, or forgettable.

While the design of your document can certainly play a role in your visual presentation, you perfect your composition’s “look” by not only fixing typos, spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes, but also checking for consistency, clarity, and cohesiveness (among other factors, which may or may not be words that begin with the letter “c”). Readers are more receptive to your ideas when they can easily comprehend your writing. A document full of blemishes will not hold the reader’s interest.

You often know what you want to say, but your concept is not always translated to the reader. It’s essential to review your document as if you were not the person who wrote it. If you casually proofread your own text, you may skip reading every word in a sentence, but it will likely still make sense—it won’t necessarily to someone else.

Schedule an editing session after you take a break from writing. Spending time away from your ideas and the words on the page helps you decipher how can you improve the quality of your work.

No one gets it right on the first try. Take advantage of drafts.

Writing is as much a process as drawing, painting, or sculpting. A project needs to be carefully crafted. Each step contributes to the next action, whether it’s cleaning your paintbrushes, sketching a mock-up of your vision, or writing the seedlings of your ideas down in a rough draft.

Each draft is a costume. Batman had to experiment with different versions of the “bat suit” until it was the ideal combination of aesthetics and functionality—an outfit that communicates that you don’t want to mess with Batman.

Change costumes by proofreading until you get it right. When complete, you’ll have a suit that tells a powerful story.

Gadgets – When to use resources to improve your weaknesses

Crime fighting is Batman’s goal. Communicating a clear message is yours. Stay as focused on your goal as Batman by genuinely connecting with your audience. Work with what you know, and do the appropriate research when you discuss unfamiliar topics.

Seems impossible to swiftly travel from the ground to the top of a tall building? Didn’t stop Batman. He uses resources to overcome obstacles, invent complementary gadgets, and enhance his ability to stifle bad guys.

If you forgot a punctuation rule, look it up. If a sentence is incomplete, elaborate. If a paragraph is convoluted, simplify. Thorough proofreading examines each word and kicks it to the curb if it can be replaced with a more effective option.

Don’t take any aspect of your text for granted. Everyone knows that grammar mistakes make your writing look sloppy, but fixing them isn’t always a writer’s priority.

It reminds me of a Chinese story about the monk, Birdsnest, who lived in a tree and gave the most profound advice in China. When the governor of the land visited Birdsnest, the guidance that the monk told the officer was simple, “Don’t do bad things. Always do good things.”

Feeling cheated by this obvious statement, the governor exclaimed, “I knew that when I was three years old!”

“Ah, yes,” Birdsnest replied. “The three-year-old knows it, but the eighty-year-old still finds it difficult to do.”

Tone – The benefits of writing and editing with confidence

The sound of Bruce Wayne’s voice changes when he becomes Batman. The deeper, firm tone of the winged vigilante is not a frivolous characteristic; it is an intentional display of confidence.

Batman doesn’t worry about pleasing everyone. Unapologetically write from your point of view, but don’t be sloppy or careless.

After writing a draft, confidently make changes to weak sections. To proofread meticulously, you don’t merely spot glaring errors, you recognize the message that the text intends to convey and ensure that each word in the document contributes to that purpose.

Batman doesn’t ask for permission; he’s in a class of his own.

No matter what you do, be Batman. It’s about doing what no one else does.

It wasn’t a radioactive spider bite, non-Earthling birth status, or mutated genetics that bestowed Bruce Wayne with the talent to be a superhero. He’s a guy that decided to kick ass no matter what.

Batman reminds us:

Don’t quit your night job.

Bruce Wayne may be a necessary part of life, but listen to your Batman-calling to be something extraordinary.

Stefanie Flaxman is the founder of Revision Fairy. Check out a free sample of her grammar ebook, and follow Stefanie on Twitter.

By Mary Jaksch

Yes, I’m declaring open season on adverbs. What is an adverb exactly? Erm… it’s the word I just used: exactly. So I’ll cull it and write instead ‘What is an adverb?’

An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective or a phrase. It answers questions such as ‘how’, ‘when’, ‘where’, or ‘how much’. Such details may be important, but we need to understand the dynamics of information versus pace.

Information versus pace

‘Pace’ identifies the speed at which readers can devour your text. Long sentences and detailed descriptions slow down the pace. Lean sentences and short paragraphs speed it up.

The more detailed information you give, the slower the pace. If you use words that are redundant, the reader may start to skip and even leave.

What does redundancy mean in terms of writing? Test the two definitions I found on the Internet. Which one slows your reading down?

1. Redundancy means words that are superfluous.
2. Redundancy means the superfluity of a linguistic feature due to its predictability within the overall structure.

Just imagine reading a whole article in the style of the second example. I bet you couldn’t click away fast enough!

Now that we’ve got that redundancy thing cleared up, let’s take a look at the implications.

The redundancy test

How do you know when a word is superfluous? It’s simple. If the meaning stays the same without the word, then you’re faced with a ‘superfluity of a linguistic feature’.

He hurriedly scribbled the number down on a pad

In this case the adverb ‘hurriedly’ is superfluous because the word scribbling already implies writing fast. The sentence ‘He scribbled the number down on a pad’ is leaner and stronger.

John got up and walked restlessly to the window.

Here, the word ‘restlessly’ is redundant because the restlessness is already shown in the action.

Some writers like to use not only one, but two adverbs. For example: She really, truly cared for him. In this case, consider culling one of the adverbs, or even both. Here, you would end up with: She cared for him.

In a recent guest post pitch I found this sentence: As writers it’s normal to jump both mentally and actually from one project to another.

That’s a very athletic sentence … which would benefit from some brutal editing.

Should we let some adverbs live?

According to Master Editor Sol Stein in his book Stein on Writing there are two rules for letting adverbs live:

1. Keep an adverb that supplies necessary information. Example: He tried running faster and fell. If he’s already running, you must keep ‘faster’. If you remove the adverb the sentence means that he fell as soon as he started running.
2. Keep and adverb that helps the reader visualize the precise image you want to project. Example: She drove crazily, frightening the oncoming traffic.

Pace is better than pretty

Many writers try to improve their writing by making it ‘pretty’. They try to stuff their text full of colorful adverbs and adjectives. Wrong! Lean sentences that heighten the pace keep readers from falling off the page.

Improve your writing now

A simple way to improve your writing is to take a piece you’ve written and highlight all adverbs. Then try to delete as many as possible. Your readers will thank you.

Have YOU got examples of how killing an adverb strengthens writing? Please share them with us in the comments.

Mary Jaksch is the Chief Editor of Write to Done. Enjoy more of her stuff on Goodlife Zen. And check out the A-List Blogger Club that Leo Babauta and Mary run jointly.