What can content writers learn from novelists?
In the digital marketing world, there’s an overused phrase, “content is king”. Overused, yes — but as true as ever. There’s no effective mask for bad writing, and treating content’s success formulaically can take away from the quality. What valuable content writing lessons can you learn from novelists?
1 | Is it awkward to read aloud? Rewrite it.
“It’s much better to do good in a way that no one knows anything about it.” — Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
This might seem like an awkward one to do in the office or the coffee shop, but it’s one of the most effective ways to hear loudly and clearly where you need to edit.
All too often as writers, we get stuck in our own heads and lose perspective. Because of this, we lose sight of how our tone comes across. You might end up writing a sentence that isn’t anywhere close to how you would speak. This can be detrimental to blog writing, which is conversational and informal in tone.
One of the worst things about being at school was the immediate hit of anxiety when asked to read something aloud. God, especially when it was a whole class taking it in turns to read. I could literally hear my heartbeat hammering in my ears by the time the person before me was reading. The anticipation of my occasional nervous stutter...
Typically, I would try to get my go over with as quickly as possible, reading a whole paragraph of Stoker in one breath.
Does this resonate with your reading experiences? Can you feel the anxiety? I’m sorry. The good news is, everything was actually okay when you read, wasn’t it? And now that you’re reading your own work and not Stoker, you don’t have to say awkward phrases like “voluptuous wantonness”.
If you need to, go find a quiet corner, and give this a try. If you get a bit tongue-tied on a sentence and it doesn’t sound natural, you’re going to need to edit that.
2 | Short sentences are small but mighty
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” — J R R Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
I’m not saying long sentences are bad. At all. As a lover of literature, I know the power a variety of sentence lengths can have. But in marketing and writing online content, long sentences can be meandering.
People are in a hurry. People in this industry in particular probably skim-read at least 10 blog posts a day when they can catch a moment. Plus, our attention spans have decreased. If you have too many long and meandering sentences, you’re going to lose your reader, sadly.
To give your content a readability boost, take advantage of a generous amount of short, punchy sentences. Their conciseness will have a big impact. You’ll save your own time. You’ll save your reader’s time. Everybody wins.
Another good rule to live by when writing blog posts is “one topic per sentence”. This way, your points will run more logically and clearly from one point to the next.
3 | Writing is about connecting
“It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” — E B White, Charlotte’s Web
When you close your eyes and think about your audience, do you imagine a faceless mass? Be honest. It’s something we’ve all fallen prey to at some point. If reading aloud is difficult because we imagine a class from hell, writing to connect is difficult because you don’t know them all personally.
But knowing a few things about your readers is enough to solidify them in your mind.
In addition, addressing your audience as a whole is a fruitless exercise and it will make your content look inauthentic. Because not all your readers are the same. They all have their own histories, interests, problems and dreams.
To make your tone more personal, focus on a few people in the crowd. Don’t try to make it relevant to everyone. Reaching a wide audience is great for content impressions, but how many people will really connect to it, relate to it and convert?
Having a general idea about the kind of person who would like your content and your product or service is a cornerstone of marketing.
4 | Beware of perfectionism
“And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good.” — John Steinbeck, East of Eden
We are our own worst critics. Having high standards is a good thing; but, after a certain point, it quickly becomes self-sabotage.
You’re human, and humans aren’t perfect. You don’t want to put all that effort into a piece of content only for your reader to think it was written by a bot.
Human-written content still very much has its place in the digital marketing landscape. Your audience prefers you to be human, and imperfection is honest.
The general consensus among novelists is that a finished novel that is imperfect is better than a novel that never gets done. Perhaps the exception to this rule is Donna Tartt, who takes years to write a novel, but the resulting prose is layered and awe-inspiring. But most of us aren’t Donna Tartt and most of us can’t afford to be that precious.
But that’s not to say editing isn’t important. Firstly, do a check for spelling and grammar, as anyone will tell you to do. After this, though, focus on editing based on readability rather than perfection. A few small tweaks to sentence length, word length and tone will make a huge difference to how you come across. The resulting redraft will be easier to read and more human.
5 | Never stop learning
“After all, tomorrow is another day.” — Margaret Mitchell, Gone With The Wind
Every amazing writer you admire started somewhere. They’re all just people, like you. Too many view inspiration as a divine experience that only happens for some. The reality is that it takes consistent practice and hard work.
Editing your content for readability can be difficult at first, but do it a few times and it will soon become second-nature.
It’s not a wasted effort, either. Research shows that even highly literate people appreciate plain language more than convoluted prose.
They’ll also appreciate the effort you made to make their lives just a little bit easier. Hopefully with this in mind, you’ll see editing as less of a gruelling task — approach it like it’s the golden opportunity that it is. An opportunity to approach it like a novelist. To cut out the fluff, write more impactfully, and connect with your reader.
