The Style Files
My thoughts on design, writing and entrepreneurship.
Photo credit (background): www.pexels.com
Photo credit (background): www.pexels.com
Last month, I added a new page to my website where I can share some of my latest inspirations with you. (Please refer to my 'Monthly Inspiration' page for the latest version.) November was my first edition but I wasn't thrilled with the idea of throwing away something that's brought me so much of a mental boost. That's why I've decided to repost past editions here. Evy Poumpouras I recently learned about Evy Poumpouras and it's safe to say I'm obsessed. Let me tell you more about my pick for November 2020.
Evy: •paved the way for other women in a male-dominated industry •wrote a book to share her wealth of knowledge as a former secret service agent •combines straight talk, empathy, respect and power •emphasizes the importance of creating habits and bettering yourself in small ways over time •talks about moments of chaos as opportunity •is ALL ABOUT foreign language (speaks Greek and English natively and learned Italian, Spanish, French and Arabic) according to this interview: www.chicagotribune.com/travel/travel-news/sns-celebtrvctnct-go-away-with-evy-poumpouras-20200428-5fyok5cx45bdfgspnvo3uuy2t4-story.html Evy Poumpouras is my monthly inspiration for November 2020 based on her relevant and timely advice during the Covid pandemic. If that's not enough, her talents are never-ending! I'd encourage you to learn more about her at https://www.evypoumpouras.com/about. Please be advised I'm not a paid spokesperson though I'd gladly sing her praises any day.
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Writing as a means to an end makes my entire industry look bad. So here's the deal: I'm new to the business but not to writing. I understand intellectually that writing has a variety of needs and audiences whose styles, formats and lengths vary. That's all fine and good from a distance. My problem is that copywriting is meant to attract a general audience which is to say the writing should be easily understood. Not only are full paragraphs discouraged, I've often seen advice to lower writing standards to meet middle school reading levels. While I understand the concept, I'm a little pissed we should strip our words of their beauty, strength and character for the sake of generic likeability. My other beef with this stems from my experience as a translator. I know it's important to keep writing concise and impactful. It's just I know there's a way to do that while stylistically standing your ground. In essence, I'm irritated that writing by trained, experienced writers vs. new hop-ons is somewhat discouraged in the industry. Here's another way to put it: many copywriters and copywriting agents are actually subpar writers. Sure, it's subjective to a certain extent. You could also say I'm snubbing my nose for no reason. Not so! I'm talking minimal editing requirements. I mean spelling mistakes, poor punctuation and a lack of knowledge in English grammar. It's the basics they aren't even getting. While I do certainly appreciate writers who have honed their craft, that's not what I mean, either. I just finished reading a post by a writer complaining he wasn't accepted by certain agencies while exercising the skills of a 13-year-old. Unfortunately, that's not super rare. The best part is when sites like these advertise their expert copywriting know-how while peppering their sentences with obvious mistakes. Here's an example: "I've taken out all the hype and scam tactics that gurus use, and explained the concepts of how I make money on the internet through my websites (I own several now)" Let's break it down.
First things first: writing an extensive post with a less than subtle sales pitch at the bottom can hardly be described as unassuming. Scam tactics may be slightly different than advertising strategies in theory, but it's not as if the author happened upon the idea of creating a course by accident. If that's the case, don't paint the picture like you did. I don't believe gurus are usually known for scamming people so let's get our facts straight there, too. It's also worth mentioning that having a website or two isn't much of a feat in and of itself. In fact, any of you familiar with websites like weebly or wix know that they're often completely free to set up and require next to zero tech skills. I would tend to think that having the skills to earn money or be a professional are more important than flexing the number of websites you own. Now let's get into the writing. For one thing, this sample sentence is somewhat long which is basically a no-go in copywriting. If you're going to adhere to the most commonly used practices, having long sentences or complex syntax might be enough to drive a reader away. Next, there's the issue of an unnecessary comma. This gets a little stickier since it airs on a stylistic vs. substantive error. However, my experience in the field as well as familiarity with modern writing would have me nix that. Optional commas tend to disrupt flow albeit slightly and are less and less common in recently published American English. I'd also say that this sentence should have been broken down into two for the sake of brevity and clarity. 'I own several now' clearly refers to websites from earlier in the sentence. However, having a separate clause in a parenthetical aside makes the ideas seem linked in an awkward and unintentional way. This is the kind of writing I'd expect to see from someone who is still learning the ins and outs of basic grammar lessons, not a self-proclaimed professional charging money for said expertise. Girl, please. Last but not least, this sentence and many others in the same post ended without punctuation. That's about as simple as simple can be. Other errors elsewhere from the post like incorrect quotation use within a sentence, missing hyphens, inconsistent subject/verb agreement and writing for money over substance drive me absolutely crazy. That, I suppose, is the crux of my main gripe: writing for money vs. quality. I could go on for days about the ills of how money is corrupting the translation industry and why technology can't replace the nuance and accuracy of human writing. Unfortunately, I'm running into the same things as a copywriter. The only difference is copywriting is thronging with people who are here for the Benjamins. Not cools, guys. Start caring about your day job. What copywriters and copywriting agents NEED to know is that even if they think it's all the same, readers can tell the difference between fluff and the good shit. They're not falling for it. If you're writing because you love it, enjoy the practice or are actively strengthening your skills, WE SEE THAT. We feel that. We get it. It makes all the difference in the world and matters nearly as much as experience as a writer or your ability to meet deadlines. What agents should also recognize is that we're totally judging you for being in the biz just for the dollars. It oozes out of your words and comes off in your attitude towards us as interchangeable, disposable vendors. I happen to believe I'm not the only one around here who got into this because of language itself so please know what we're about. Beyond that, If you don't take the time to proofread for obvious errors, know that we're catching them and holding them against you. What you put out into the writing funnel is received with no filter and directly represents how seriously you treat us and our profession. We're happy to do our best work and build long-term relationships but only if the respect is mutual. That's my two cents for the day. If you're cutting corners in copywriting, throwing caution to the wind or typing on autopilot for dreams of a pay check, think again. It's up to us as professionals to provide compelling prose to our audience and raise the bar instead of kicking it to the curb. Let's step it up. We're better than that. |
AuthorHi, my name is Martha Oschwald and I'm a content writer focused on design. This page is meant to give you a taste of my writing style and latest musings. Archives
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