I’ve come across so many people who are self-conscious of their writing skills on some type of level. Either they think they’re writing could use some work or that it completely sucks. The thing is there are folks out there with the poorest writing skills who are currently slaying in the blogging and freelance writing world.
The truth is, you don’t have to be a kick ass writer in order to make a real impression and make waves. You do however, need to have a message and know who you’re talking to. Are you speaking your audience’s language? Can they relate to you? Its aspects such as these that actually matter when writing. Not how “academic” you sound.
You have to have a message that resonates.
When I see blog posts, articles or even books that have been published and been well-received, I look at the actual work just amazed for a couple of reasons. The quality of the writing isn’t great and the content just seems a bit weird. But the main thing I noticed is that the writer never stops writing. They never stopped blogging and they never stopped developing that book. They kept going. This makes them better than any established or “good” writer for the simple fact that they choose to be consistent with what they’re doing, no matter if it makes no sense to certain people. They have a message to get out there and they’re going to make sure it gets done!
How does one reach this point? There are several things you need to zone in on.
Who are you talking to?
You’ll hear and read this time and time again because at the end of the day, that is what really matters. For example, if you have a headline that says “How to Write Well”, it won’t be anywhere near as powerful as a title that says “How Small Business Owners Can Write Well and Talk to Their Clients” or something along those lines. Be considerate of how you write and title your posts or articles. It’s the only way your content will get somewhere.
Be Yourself
That’s the point of this particular post. You don’t have to be some knowledgeable writer to make waves or to bring certain points across. Be yourself in your writing voice. I’ve seen some awesome blogs where the writer is cursing up a storm and talking as if they’re yacking on the phone with their best friend. Does this stop their blog from being successful? Absolutely not! In fact, their blog slays! They have a specific group of people who can identify with the way they talk/write. The worst thing you can do to yourself is try to be so perfect in your writing. If that’s the case then you’ve turned the whole blogging experience into a burdensome chore. So it pays to be yourself, and properly wrap that around your blog or whatever product you’re trying to sell.
Practice, practice practice.
There are a few ways to do this and it doesn’t include writing endless dissertations on human evolution (you could do that if you want, not sure how many readers you would get though). I’ve always recommended keeping a journal to express thoughts, admirations, frustrations and so forth. If you’re not the journal keeping type, it helps tremendously to post comments and thoughts in groups that are of interest to you. From Reddit, to LinkedIn to Google+, to Facebook Groups are endless outlets for you to start practicing your writing voice. As you become more comfortable, develop a pattern for your blog and take it from there. At some point you have to put the shyness or self-consciousness aside and jump in. You don’t know who you may be helping by taking that step.
Be consistent
The level of your writing voice does not matter especially when it comes to consistency. If you sound human and have something to say, then the consistency will do so much. This is especially necessary in the beginning of your writing or blogging. Don’t let weeks or months pass by before you come up with a new post. People have short attention spans, so you will be easily forgotten. Stay in those online groups and try to post at least 2 times a week in the beginning stages. I typically post once a week, but in the beginning I made it a goal to post 3 times a week or more.
Know how to share
This is where networking groups, practice and target audience come in. What outlets are you using to promote your writing? It will definitely be slow at first, but learning where to post and doing it consistently will definitely bring folks your way. This takes dedication on your part in terms of time, research and development of habit. Join those Facebook and LinkedIn groups and start sharing your content with them!