Skip links

Sprinting Herald

Bold, Creative Writing for Your Small Business

Main navigation

Branding

The Fear of Writing is Like Trapping Yourself in a Soundproof Room. Open the Door.

by Leave a Comment

 

Don't trap yourself in a soundproof room. Get brave. Write about your business. // sprintingherald.com

Let’s talk about sharing the words you put on the page. A lot of people don’t share what they write because they’re scared. They say stuff like:

  • I’m too busy to write.
  • I can’t seem to get my ideas on paper.
  • I know what I wanna say, but I just don’t know how to say it.
  • Spellcheck was invented just for me!
  • It’s just not my thing.I hate writing. (And reading. And words. And the alphabet.)

Some of this is true. But, really, most people are afraid of sounding stupid. They’re afraid a typo, a misplaced comma or a run-on sentence will prevent their idea from being communicated clearly.

It’s okay to be afraid. And it’s okay to decide not to hone a particular skill set. But, it’s not okay to let a fear of communication keep you from running your business. Don’t let it keep you from sharing or doing that awesome thing only you can do. Most importantly, don’t let fear keep you boxed into a soundproof room.

Communicate with your folks. Approach it with whimsy. Write love letters to your customers. Hire someone to write for you–it doesn’t have to be me–so you can get your ideas out there in the universe. Start a podcast. Shoot a photo. Send a tweet.

Get brave. Tell your your business story.

The Rules for Writing for Business.

by Leave a Comment

Sprinting Herald Rules for Writing. Stop writing meaningless business copy. // SprintingHerald.com

You write a lot of soulless prose in business. It comes in the form of bland ‘How To’ articles. Copied + pasted product descriptions. Passive voice in an effort not to offend anyone. Three, boring #StruggleSentences on your About Us page. (Because it’s what you think you should say, rather than what your readers want you to say).

Meaningless copy is easy. It doesn’t take much effort. It’s corporate-speak, full of industry jargon. You don’t share any of the you in the spirit of your company. People don’t want that. They want to connect with you.

In an effort to make the Articles + Blogs section of Sprinting Herald more effective, I’ve come up with some rules for writing. You’ll get some ‘How To’ articles here for your DIY needs, but you’ll also get ideas on how to approach your business writing. If you want, you can follow these too.

Here are my new rules for writing*:

  1. Don’t be safe. Being safe isn’t being brave.
  2. If it embarrasses you, write it. Write it because someone else can relate.
  3. Edit until the manuscript bleeds. Use the sword. Stab it. Kill it. Burn the corpse. Then, allow the phoenix to rise from the ashes.
  4. Don’t hide. Bare it on the page.
  5. Feed yourself. Fill the well often, so you can empty it by filling others.
  6. Go to the edge of the page–whatever that means at the moment you’re writing. Don’t over think it. Just do it. Your intuition will tell you how.
  7. If all else fails, write. “Not like a girl. Not like a boy. Write like a motherfucker.”

 

 

 

*This article first appeared on my personal blog.