Why You Should Write The Way You Talk

It’s a contentious issue…

But something that does need discussing, as it could really help improve your ability to communicate to your own readers, improve your copywriting or better engage your potential customers.

You see, sometimes I do make a grammatical faux-pas in my email to you.

Heck, I’m not too snobby to admit; sometimes it’s a genuine mistake…

I seem to have a weakness for homophones – words that sound the same but have different meaning – ‘four’ and ‘fore’ was a recent one.

But truth is, most of the time, I mean to make mistakes.

Well, not ‘mean’, exactly. But I do let them pass.

And even if the thought of ignoring a grammatical or vocabulary error might make your skin crawl, sometimes you should let them fly too.

You see, when I first began writing the Bulletin, I had to essentially ‘unlearn’ a lot of pretention I’d picked up in writing over the years.

Read most stuff in the mainstream media these days and you’ll notice a ton of massive words that rather than helping to communicate an idea are actually there to communicate the idea that the writer behind them is super-intelligent.

Maybe, I’m crazy. But for me, the more intelligent writer is the one who uses simple writing to get a complicated idea across.

With a blank page in front of you – and a dictionary to your side – it’s easy, even tempting to throw in some wordy wonders that in day to day speech you wouldn’t usually use.

But that’s the point.

To best communicate an idea in the written word, be it an educational concept, a PPC advert or a full sales promotion – it’s much more effective to write how you talk day to day.

I get a lot of very nice emails from Shortcut readers, not just about the ideas and opportunities I talk about, but about the style in which I do it:

“I find your emails so honest and refreshing, like a normal man just saying about things as he sees it rather than reading the usual BS from so called gurus…” – PS

“I think you are a great writer! I love writing personally and I just love the way you write your articles.”- HG

It’s great to hear such kind words about my delivery and it’s much appreciated.

But I’ve only learnt to do this like anyone else can. And today, I’d like to give you the top techniques and tips that have helped me…

So, here’s how you can keep your writing readable…

A good excuse to go to your local bar

- If you can, read aloud what you write. Chances are, now and again, you’ll stumble on the wording of something. It might look right on the page, but it doesn’t read right.

Anywhere in your message that you do stumble, reword it so that it reads more naturally.

Though this might be a strain for shorter pieces, it’s worth investing the time for any long pieces you might write.

- Another tip I tell all new people who work with me editorially: keep your sentences and paragraphs light. Short, two or three line paragraphs are much easier to read. And they keep a piece going at a good pace.

On top of that I always advise to break up longer stretches of writing with short, sharp two or three word exclamations…

Like this!

Again, it complements the pace of the piece, keeps it snappy and easy to read. Plus, visually it signals that the piece isn’t going to be a dry, boring slog.

I tell you; sometimes I look at a piece and even though I know it might well be interesting, I can already see that it’s going to be unreadable.

And there’s simply no point being interesting if you can’t be read.

- Now, I could tell you to cut the first word off your sentences. I could tell you to include slang. I have told you to include natural exclamations…

But, all these ideas come from the same old idea that good, exciting writing – be it a daily message or a sales promotion – should be written like you were talking to a friend in a bar.

It’s an old favourite, this piece of advice. But it’s true. So it’s worth doing a field trip…

Next time you go to a bar with a friend, agree to record the conversation. Of course, you’ll start out self- conscious and your conversation will be stunted. But after a time, you’ll start to ease up and forget about the recorder.

When you’re done, transcribe the recording. Write it down word for word. (I know this sounds mad but, trust me, it will help.) Copy out that transcript a few times.

You’ll soon start to notice that certain phrases are always clipped. You miss (out) certain words. You say some things that aren’t grammatically correct, but do sound right.

It’s these nuances that give you your own style. And if you can replicate that in your writing, you’ll be on to a winner.

- Finally, another little tip… this is hard to pull off. But when it works, it really works.

One of my favourite e-letters is written by copywriting expert John Forde…

What John does so well, apart from being very interesting and very funny, is that he seems to be one of the few writers who can effectively ‘digress’.

I’ve told you many times. To be effective a message must stick to one idea. It must work toward a ‘takeaway’ idea and not go in loops to get there.

But what John seems to be able to do so well is put in a very small digression – sometimes a quick bracket or a passing thought – yet not lose the thread of his piece.

It’s a particularly endearing style (for me it’s like you’re getting to hear the writer’s inner monologue) that will really help you engage with the person reading your message.

But as I say, it’s a difficult one to pull off. So do practice.

And do put into practice the other tips I’ve given you today – they will help you improve your writing and communication enormously.

Category: Copywriting