Can you pare the essence of a whole article to 140 words in Twitter? Or, do you rise to the challenge of listing 22 distinct tips to assist your readers to overcome daily stress? No matter your topic, writing's like serving a banquet to readers. And the way you set your table makes a difference. For instance...
If the same dishes appear on a banquet table, day after day, people tire of them. So one way to overcome that -- write though the lens of your eight intelligences. Ellen Weber, first taught me about multiple intelligences and captured my mind about ways all eight can improve my day. Not only do I work to use most of them in a day, but I also frame many blogs through intelligences. A writer might choose to focus on numbers, playing with words to get best active verbs, choosing an image to express an idea and relying on that more than words, challenging readers to ask good questions on the brain, writing through a work problem to gain understanding, discussing ways nature impacts job performance, sharing tips on physical activity to boost brainpower, and using music as it connects to the brain. Using different intelligences for blogs is like serving unique dishes for each banquet. Thanks to Ellen, I've gained greater skill.
Brad Shorr, Gavin Heaton and GL Hoffman visited my blog first and encouraged me. From Brad I learned to consider humor as I wrote. He introduced me to Scrambled Toast his blog that focuses mainly on topics that roused laughter. Twitter through History gives you a taste of what produces a great belly laugh. Often I thought of ways to write belly laughs, too. With a great writing model like Brad, who could fail, even for a belly laugh?
Gavin's a person who loves culture. He often shares perceptions the average person would not think about. Just to give you an idea, here's how Gavin pictured me and my work in a post he titled, It's All in the Mind. Now if you don't think that's a lift for a fledgling writer and blogger!
GL's another blogger who uses the lighter side to express the serious side of work life. I loved his approach and his goodwill to me, which spread a taste of fresh honey to many days.
Because of encouragement early on, I became more aware of people who visited Brain Based Biz. Lisa Gates of 360 Alliance swaggered in with very fresh approaches to writing, much like Natalie Goldberg, author of Writing the Bare Bones. She was short, to the point and had intriguing angles for every article she posted. For example, How to Launch a Revolution in Your Evolution.
Having the right tools makes or breaks your message since they set it apart from the crowd. Drew McLellan launched a New Blogger's Toolkit challenge and invited readers to share the tools they use to construct their work. I began to use these as part of message construction and often go to Drew's Marketing Minute to get more insights. In addition, Drew led the initiative for Age of Conversation 2, a book with many bloggers' contributions including mine.
If the same dishes appear on a banquet table, day after day, people tire of them. So one way to overcome that -- write though the lens of your eight intelligences. Ellen Weber, first taught me about multiple intelligences and captured my mind about ways all eight can improve my day. Not only do I work to use most of them in a day, but I also frame many blogs through intelligences. A writer might choose to focus on numbers, playing with words to get best active verbs, choosing an image to express an idea and relying on that more than words, challenging readers to ask good questions on the brain, writing through a work problem to gain understanding, discussing ways nature impacts job performance, sharing tips on physical activity to boost brainpower, and using music as it connects to the brain. Using different intelligences for blogs is like serving unique dishes for each banquet. Thanks to Ellen, I've gained greater skill.
Brad Shorr, Gavin Heaton and GL Hoffman visited my blog first and encouraged me. From Brad I learned to consider humor as I wrote. He introduced me to Scrambled Toast his blog that focuses mainly on topics that roused laughter. Twitter through History gives you a taste of what produces a great belly laugh. Often I thought of ways to write belly laughs, too. With a great writing model like Brad, who could fail, even for a belly laugh?
Gavin's a person who loves culture. He often shares perceptions the average person would not think about. Just to give you an idea, here's how Gavin pictured me and my work in a post he titled, It's All in the Mind. Now if you don't think that's a lift for a fledgling writer and blogger!
GL's another blogger who uses the lighter side to express the serious side of work life. I loved his approach and his goodwill to me, which spread a taste of fresh honey to many days.
Because of encouragement early on, I became more aware of people who visited Brain Based Biz. Lisa Gates of 360 Alliance swaggered in with very fresh approaches to writing, much like Natalie Goldberg, author of Writing the Bare Bones. She was short, to the point and had intriguing angles for every article she posted. For example, How to Launch a Revolution in Your Evolution.
Having the right tools makes or breaks your message since they set it apart from the crowd. Drew McLellan launched a New Blogger's Toolkit challenge and invited readers to share the tools they use to construct their work. I began to use these as part of message construction and often go to Drew's Marketing Minute to get more insights. In addition, Drew led the initiative for Age of Conversation 2, a book with many bloggers' contributions including mine.
To value and encourage readers, I've learned much from Karen Swim at Words for Hire. She has a very generous approach to other bloggers. Generosity and courtesy go hand-in-hand with content. Is this a winning formula for you?
I never cease to be amazed at the writing challenges Robert Hruzek posts monthly, which he titles, "What I Learned from..." One challenge that really led me to dig deep was, What I Learned from a Government Deportation Notice. This helped me get launched in memoir writing... a way to start building a little book that shows more about my life.
Joanna Young, Confident Writing, lifted my writing skills in oh, so many ways. She often challenges me through tips, since her in-depth strategies rouse my curiosity. Joanna builds blogs from readers' comments. As I watched the process, I began to do likewise and played around with zoning out and readers' solutions for times this happened to them. It's something like trying out different spices in a casserole you're making. You have to have some grounding in the spices and so that you try the ones that will enhance the dish.
Joanna, I keep asking how I might enhance the banquet for readers. You presented a tempting Group Writing Project by focusing on Writing Lessons. There are oh, so many things to think about in preparing a banquet table: the menu, arrangement of foods, choice of serving dishes, color, including plates, napkins and even tablecloth. Plus, on the tip of your mind you zero in on how you'll spice foods, and even the kinds of drinks that work well with a focus on Irish cooking, for instance.
Joanna introduced me to Rosa Say at Joyful Jubilant Learning. This gave me an opportunity to participate with others who are part of this community. Rosa offers different learning themes each month as a focus for guest bloggers. I rose to the challenge to write about life experiences as well as a book review for her blog. Guest posting helped me grow more confident as a writer, too.
Friends from social media, thanks. Thanks not only for raising writing skills but, spreading a whole banquet of happiness, too. Is that your experience? Happiness is contagious through social media friends, according to Harvard and University of California researchers. Sure spreads serotonin my way. Interestingly, I never imagined that I would learn so much from readers as well as new research on the brain as I write blogs. Though I expected to pick up tips, I didn't realize how many would come. What a bonus!
What blogger assisted you to spice your writing most and in what way?
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