Simple tips for beautiful writing

As I research this product and method, I am often amazed at how many people take the time to blog and write articles and yet the perspective of the review seems totally alien to them. You know who they are … they misspell the words, misuse them, and generally ignore the red wavy lines under some of the words. Nothing turns me off faster than a poorly edited post. It makes me think that the writer is not very bright, although I know that probably is not true.

Now please understand … I am fully aware that some people just have a little spelling difficulty and I sympathize. However, if you know that there may be mistakes in your work, be sure to read it carefully and then read it again. A lot of. One trick I use to make sure my posts are error-free is to read the copy multiple times. Read it as a draft. Then read the preview, so you can see what the reader will look like on your website. Then print it out and read the printout. Sometimes mistakes hide from you on screen and then jump onto paper. Then once you’ve published it, navigate to it on your site and look at it again. Then do it the next day. You’d be surprised how often I’ll have to open my blog and fix a problem that I missed 15 or 20 times.

Another thing to watch out for is the misuse of words or inappropriate homonyms: “That’s the car ‘there’ (wrong) next to ‘your’ house (right).” “‘Airing’ is human (wrong) but learning not to ‘err’ (correct) is divine.” Points are never “mute” … they are “moot.” If you are not sure, Google it. And if that doesn’t work, rewrite the sentence with a different word. Just make sure you get it right. These errors are difficult to detect, because they bypass spell checkers: none of those words were misspelled. Worst of all, improper homonyms are even more evil than misspelled words. Misspelled words only make one look a bit lazy. The wrong word, well written, makes one look, well, silly.

Lastly, check again for “correctly spelled errors”. Most people make the same mistakes over and over again. I am always writing “coat” when I wanted to write “cost”. “Please” sometimes becomes “lease.” Again, the spell checker won’t help here. You just have to look it in the eye! And it is also a good idea to let someone else see it. We all tend to lose our own mistakes. Oh, and if someone else looks at you, and she immediately finds a couple of mistakes that you missed, don’t look at her and mutter “smart-a% $” under your breath. That is not as productive as it sounds. Trust me on that!

Why am I picky about this? Because this is a business. Companies spend a lot of time and money making sure everything is okay. None of these tips will cost you a hundred, but losing one of them could cost you a customer. So spend a little more time making sure your offering, whatever it is, looks as professional as possible.