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How to Write With Energy

by Dina Giolitto

Do you want to stir people to action with your words?

The majority of web articles and blog posts come across in that sing-song drone. "I like cats because they are cute and furry. My cat is so funny he is always eating my socks."

Okay, this is gross exaggeration – but I'm trying to make a point here! Low-energy articles bore people to tears. High-energy writing inspires action. Web surfers lack patience. If they don't care for what they find on your site, all it takes is a click and they're gone, gone, gone.

If you have a business website, and you'd like to avoid publishing the "I like cats" type of article, then you must find a way to maintain high energy in your writing voice. A few quick tricks:

Warm up by reading articles from someone "magnetic." There's likely a website owner out there whose content you just can't seem to tear your eyes away from. Before you sit down with that blank Word document, dash over to this person's website and let the magical writey goodness sink into your brain.

Let your emotions fuel you. My best work always seems to flow out of me after I've been sufficiently riled. Maybe a new client has gotten your goat with some over-the-top demands, and you feel a rant coming on. Maybe you're steamed because your website doesn't convert as often as you'd hoped. I'm not saying you should write with anger. Simply channel this feistiness into something positive to help your business grow.

Master the active voice. Refer back to the "I like cats" article, above. I've managed to include passive voice 3 times in those 2 short sentences (they are, my cat is, he is). Nothing will put your reader to sleep faster. Active voice includes active verbs: "Cats make ideal pets due to their loving yet low-maintenance ways. My cat cracks me up with his zany antics." You don't have to remove every passive verb. Just try to mostly write in the active voice.

Engage the reader. Essentially, you're starting a conversation. "Have I ever told you about my cat? Man... what a hilarious little sock-eating spaz this guy is." Granted, what I just wrote would be appropriate for a personal blog post but not an informational piece. I'm trying to show how "talking" in your articles makes them so much more lively and readable.

Take creative license. A reader-friendly article isn't always written in the Queen's English. People use colloquialisms (i.e. gonna) and "street grammar" when they talk, so feel free to be informal as you would in everyday conversation. Use your judgment with this one based on the type of reader you're targeting. Business communication allows for some, but not too much, colloquial writing.

Watch out for run-ons. I purposely included one in that first example. "My cat is so funny he is always eating my socks." Not only are run-on sentences grammatically incorrect, but they confuse the reader. Where does one thought end, and the next begin? Good writing pauses frequently. The period, the comma, the ellipse, the colon and the semicolon all give us a mental break to help us absorb what we just read. Try it and see for yourself.

Employ energizing verbs. After I wrote this article, I ran through the text again and inserted a few, punchier verbs such as tear, dash, fuel, master, flow, engage. I don't remember what was there before; but those words, along with the active voice, will help deliver the missing punch in my writing.

Here's to stirring up energy with your own words!

For a quote on copywriting, copy editing and web marketing service, email dina@wordfeeder.com.

Wordfeeder.com is the home of Dina Giolitto's Copywriting, Copy Editing, Web and Print Marketing Services. Interesting in learning how to market your business successfully using the latest online and offline methods? Eager to master the art of writing copy that gets you more clients and sales? Then keep following along! We publish articles regularly and post them on our home page. Write to dina@wordfeeder.com with comments or for a project quote today.

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