Persuasive Writing

The internet gives us more information to hand than any local library. Whatever we search, there are a myriad pages relevant to our subject. When I search a topic, I take the first couple of pages of Google then dip in to one or two sentences only. Those opening sentences make a huge difference. Do I stay with this writer or move on? Factors in my decision are simple:

Direct impact of writing
The ability to write professionally
Size and readability of font
Information given directly

Things that cause me to move on:

Empty promises in a rambling letter - a sales technique widely used!
Small grey fonts with long sentences and big paragraphs
Poor English and bad spelling.

What are the write tips then? There are no hard and fast rules, but check the guidelines. What we don't want New Squids to do is fall foul of spam blockers and etiquette. Keep your lenses civil and suitable for children and you will do better on Squidoo. The cardinal rule is to choose a subject you are comfortable with. If you can talk about it for hours, then you can write about it too! If you are bored with your subject you audience will not stay very long!



Bored writer by deemac1

Here I mean balance on your page, although I could equally well mean balance in your lifestyle! Have a break, come back to it, don't feel you have to do it all in one. (Unless, like me, you think about it for weeks before you start!) The trick to this is lots of pictures. Hopefully you know a little about cool writing styles already, but b> benefit from a page that is visually exciting too. One picture is worth a thousand words! You can get public domain images from various sources on the web. I choose to use my own 99% of the time, and I break it up by inserting Zazzle links too. If you are new, check these out later. Using Zazzle links is a great way to find good illustrations that might even make you a few cents if people really like them!

Talking about balance, I think it is time to stretch my legs, take a breather and enjoy a little Writer's Block....


Writer's Block Mug by LaVellaK

I remember how awed I felt that very first time I started to write on line. Typing in the box, finding my way around the dashboard, remembering to Save Draft so I wouldn't lose it all and have to start again. The first lens or two are the toughest. Once you get going you will probably write too much, but for now -

Just Do It!


Writers Block Excuses by Writersfort

This for me is by far the most important thing. It is what I came here to tell you today. You are not in school, you are writing for an AUDIENCE. Those of us old enough to remember formal English lessons where Jane Austen and Charles Dickens were toted as the greatest writers ever had better remember we are writing in the 21st century, not the 18th or even the 19th.

Long descriptive passages will not keep an audience on Squidoo. Using clauses, sub clauses and Oxford commas will not increase your hold on a fickle crowd in a busy world. Using words of five syllables will scare your readers away for good.

My media training taught me to aim my political leaflets at an audience with a reading age of 8 or 9. Sounds insulting doesn't it? It is not meant to be.

To be a mass communicator, we need to aim at the whole fabric of society which includes people with learning difficulties including dyslexia, older readers and others with visual problems, attention deficit, low boredom thresholds, all economic and social groups and all age groups. More vitally in a world where nearly everyone works hard just to keep up - we are writing for those who have little time to read and appreciate good grammar!


William Shakespeare has Writer's Block by fur_persons2

If you are writing a lens on how to write a Shakespeare play of course, that may not apply, but for most purposes here are my tips:

Sentences should be short - less than twelve words is desirable.
Font sizes should be big - not everyone knows how to increase screen size.
Paragraphs should be SMALL, people with visual problems don't like vast fields of grey.
Little known words embarass people and make you sound like a High School student.
Conversational language is not at all a bad thing.
Talk to your readers through the keyboard!
Imagine the questions your readers have, then answer them.
Break the text up with lively pictures.
Be economical with sales modules.
Add a guestbook.
Leave them in suspense on occasion....