by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

There's a myth out there that content writing is easy. Yes, when you start writing online, you can write about whatever you want. But,don’t think that online writing doesn't need lots of thought or effort put into it. You can’t just type whatever comes to you and hit 'publish' and expect it to be good web writing.

Content Writing is NOT Easy

Technically, you can write whatever you want online. But as with anything, the more thought and effort you put into your web writing, the better results you’ll get out of it. So, while you can write content on any topic, you need to be sure that you write it in a way that people can find it

You don’t have to write the perfect post every time, though. Yes, there are those of us that can whip out a blog post in 15-20 minutes, slap a Creative Commons or public domain photo on it, give it a snazzy title, and publish it with an immediate audience.

But, is that true of most online writers? Certainly not.

Write Fast, Fix Later

There are writers who can write 1000 words in 20 minutes. But don't feel bad if you can't write that fast right now. It takes LOTS of practice to be able to write so quickly. For me, it was years of journal writing that started back in junior high. But, what helped me the most over the years was retyping my journals into the computer. It helped me practice typing. Also, it also made me rethink how I worded things.

Obviously, when you’re writing in your own journal, you're not going to be as cognizant of how you're wording things. You're just going to write whatever comes to you. It seems that a lot of people think that writing perfect prose just comes naturally to web writers. That’s not true. For every post I whip out in 15-30 minutes, there are five more on my back burner. Of these five, three or four of those will likely end up scrapped.

There are also plenty of articles I whip out, then go back and revise. Online writers are always tweaking. After all, what you write is live to the world. If you’re not happy with it, you’re going to change it. You want to always show something that is strong work. Even if it’s not your best, you want it to be something you’re fine with having your name associated with when it comes to web writing.

Write Ahead, Always Be Ahead

To make up for those times where the writing flow isn’t working, many online writers write ahead. This is why you see so many web writers hammer out a lot of posts at once. That way, you can go back and decide if something is ready to publish or not.

It’s easy to have an idea that you’re not sure how to optimize for search. That’s fine. Write it first, then figure out your keywords. It’s easier to SEO a post after getting it completely written. While many people write to keywords, I usually write first, then keyword later. It sounds backwards, but it helps me to just get words out and not sound like an article spinning machine.

Still, everyone's writing process is different. Some of us take a lot of time to craft the best blog post that we can. When I have a post that I really want to come out the right way, it can be a long process. That post can take days or even weeks to get published online.

What Makes a Good Article or Blog Post?

There is plenty of thought that goes into articles and blog posts. A lot of it is research. Not only are you fact-checking or looking for additional info, but you have to know if that post is going to actually get interest. Will this topic resonate with your intended audience? Is it a subject people will even care about? There's so much going on behind the writing that most people never think about.

Sure, you can just sit there and use a blog as your journal. That's perfectly fine. I used to do web writing that way. That’s when I just wanted to connect with others through online writing without really thinking about it as a career. Web writers should just do whatever works for them. But, if you want to take your web writing to another level, that’s when you have to start treating it with far more care.

Yes, it's absolutely a myth that web writing doesn't require a lot of time and effort. It really does, especially when you're trying to grow it. Just starting a blog and writing anything takes time and effort. Even if you’re just writing for fun, it's never as easy as it looks! After all you're putting something out to the general worldwide public. That’s nothing to sneeze at!

So, the old saying “if you blog, they will come” isn't exactly true. You have to put in a lot of time and effort for a blog or website to live on. For those that can do it consistently, be proud of them for doing something they love! If you have the passion to put extra thought into effort into everything you publish online, there will be a pay-off in the end.

by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

Like any good copy writing, articles and blog posts should be written in a conversational style. As an article writer or blogger, you want to be personal and treat your reader as if they are a close friend. Of course, that doesn’t mean you should overlook grammar errors in your writing.

One of the worst mistakes that bloggers and article writers make is to allow for common grammar errors to damage their credibility. Some common grammar mistakes in web writing include:

• Ending sentences with prepositions
  
• Improper use of punctuation marks
• Inappropriate, missing, or excessive use of modifiers
• Misusing pronouns and contractions

If you are looking for more backlinks and subscribers to your blog or website, here are five common grammar errors to fix in your writing. Fixing these mistakes will improve your overall writing, as well as your credibility as a professional web writer.

‘Your’ and ‘You’re’

One of the most common grammar errors online is misusing ‘your’ and ‘you’re.’ ‘Your’ is always meant to be used as a possessive pronoun. ‘You’re’ is simply the contraction of ‘you are.’ Yet, you often see things written online like ‘Your a beautiful person,’ or ‘I want to see you’re house.’ Why is it that so many bloggers overlook this obvious grammar error?

Unfortunately, many free grammar check programs won’t catch this mistake. Because of this, many web writers leave this mistake in many of their articles and posts. To many readers, this will make a post look sloppy and hurt the writer’s credibility. Don’t lose respect over such a simple usage mistake, especially one that pops up so constantly.

‘It’s’ and ‘Its’

Another common grammar error is misusing the contraction ‘it’s’ and the possessive pronoun ‘its.’ This is perhaps more common than mixing up ‘your’ and ‘you’re.’ Sometimes, this mistake is not quite as noticeable. That doesn’t mean it should be overlooked, though.

‘It’s’ is a contraction used in place of ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ while ‘its’ is a third-person possessive pronoun. To avoid mixing up these things, read your copy aloud and be aware of how you use ‘its’ or ‘it’s.’ If you can replace an ‘its’ with ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ and it makes sense, you’ll need to fix that usage. Be sure that when you write ‘it’s’ that you are using it as a possessive pronoun. That is a common mistake, but don’t let it hurt your credibility as a writer by showing up too often in your articles.

‘There’ and ‘Their’

While ‘there’ and ‘their’ are both pronouns, their uses are quite different. ‘There’ is used to refer to a place or thing. ‘Their’ is a plural possessive pronoun. Yet, you will often read things that say ‘There business has been very successful…’ or ‘Their is a clear difference between…’ in articles, which simply reads wrong. This simple mistake is committed more frequently than you’d think, too. Don’t be one of the article writers or bloggers who overlooks this mistake.

‘Affect’ and ‘Effect’

These two words are often confused. While misusing these words aren’t as glaring an error as some of the above, it’s still something that should be checked for any time you write an article or blog post. ‘Affect’ is used as a verb, while ‘effect’ is used as a noun. They do mean about the same thing, so it’s easily to switch them up. But you don’t want to have a sentence that reads “Millions of people were effected by the power outage last week’ or ‘The bill could have a negative affect on the education budget.’ This error can lose you some respect with readers.

Misplaced and ‘Dangling’ Modifiers

The other major grammar problem that web writers make is misplaced and ‘dangling’ modifiers. Modifying phrases can change the entire meaning of sentences, and if they are put in the wrong place, they leave sentences to be easily misread.

Misplaced modifiers are phrases or clauses that are meant to modify one word or words, but are placed next to other words, which confuses the entire meaning of the sentence. Dangling modifiers are phrases or clauses not clearly or logically related to the words they are placed next to, or modifies. They are usually at the beginning of a sentence.

After writing your copy, be sure to read it through and make sure that each sentence flows properly, especially those with modifying phrases separated by commas. If it’s not clear what exactly the sentence is saying, then you should rewrite that sentence.

Each time you’re ready to hit submit on your latest article or publish on your latest blog post, be sure to read it over aloud. You don’t want to commit any of these five common grammar mistakes, or accidentally leave something that reads unclear or flat out wrong. Your readers will may never thank you for it out loud, but they will respect you more for correct grammar. If you have been making any of these errors on a regular basis, though, and you make an effort to fix them, people will definitely notice. Tighten up your copy and you’ll reap the rewards.

Need to make sure that your article or blog post is properly copy edited for grammar mistakes and free of typos? Check out the Editing services from Brand Shamans & Intent-sive Nature!

by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

There are many schools of thought when it comes to the best article length for SEO. The good news is that there isn’t a perfect article length that ranks best for SEO. Both short articles and long articles can perform well in SEO. The best length for an article really depends on the topic itself and how in depth you’re looking to write about it.

Are Short Articles Good for SEO?

A common piece of advice is that articles between 200 and 500 words are best for SEO. While that may not be completely true, many content marketers argue that this is a good length for readers. There’s this common belief that many internet readers won’t read more than 500 words at a time. Another common thought is that short articles are best because otherwise readers will just skim or think that your content is too wordy.

What is true is that many internet readers are looking for quick answers to their questions. They’re not sitting down to read a book, after all. Sometimes, if a topic can be split into several articles, it’s probably a good idea, as long as each article answers a reader’s question.

One suggestion is to create a short series of articles with a keyword phrase as part of the title. Then, break it into several different articles that are accessible from one another. That way, you can list them so readers can pick and choose the specific topic they’re looking for. The advantage of this for you is that if someone is truly interested in everything you’ve written on the topic, they’ll read the entire short series.

Can Long Articles be Good for SEO?

While short articles, and series of short articles, are a good idea, long articles can be good for SEO, too. Just as there are those that preach that short articles are best for SEO, there are others that preach that long articles are even better for SEO. The argument for long articles is that search engines consider longer articles to be more valuable resources. So, they tend to rank better.

But, just as is true for those that say shorter articles are better for SEO, this isn’t the complete truth. If a topic deserves an article that’s 1000 words or even 2000 words or more, then it’s probably worth doing. If your article is really long, one really good idea is to use subheadings that separate your longer article into shorter chunks. You may even consider a short table of contents at the beginning of your article that links to the different sections of the article. That way, readers who may otherwise just skim will click on that specific section.


The Best Articles for SEO Are Targeted and Relevant

If you’re looking to write the best articles for SEO, just be sure to stay on topic. It’s fine to write about multiple ideas in an article. But, for the web, it can be best to split it into multiple articles, or use the subheader tactic mentioned above.

Basically, see what articles that keep visitors on your own sites. Watch for the lengths of those articles. If your audience likes shorter articles, write shorter articles and break up longer ones. If they favor longer articles, see if you can combine some shorter pieces into longer ones, and create more long-form articles. If it’s somewhere in between, just keep up what you’re doing already! Essentially, the best article length for your content is whatever your audience likes best.

What do you find is the best article length for your own web writing?


Need to make sure that your article or blog post is properly copy edited for grammar mistakes, free of typos, and optimized for SEO? Check out the Editing services from Brand Shamans & Intent-sive Nature!

by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

Online writing is just a hobby, they said. It will never be a real job, they said. Well, that online writing myth can be busted right now.

Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Online writing is “big business.” There is so much competition out there in starting your online writing career now. Yes, it can be extremely difficult to gain traction online. But it’s not impossible. You CAN still start web writing and have it be more than a hobby.

When Can a Online Writing Hobby Become a Business?

If you’re looking to start writing online as a business, you just have to find the right niche. That’s the most common advice you’ll find. Then again, you can just write whatever you want and not care about turning it into a business. That’s how I was for years.

Yes, there are web writers who write online just as a hobby. There’s nothing wrong with starting a blog as a hobby. But most online writers do want to earn something from their online writing. Even if you don’t want your writing itself to be a job, some sort of monetization is a good idea.

Like any other business, it’s hard to get to the point of actually making your online writing profitable. But there’s good news. While finding a niche is important, you don’t have to do something that's completely different from what's out there. You actually can write about what you want, even if it’s a competitive field. You just see what’s out there, and find a way to do it better. Doing that can be hard, but it’s very rewarding when you find success with it.

Writing online as a business is the same thing as starting any other small business. It’s just like an author has to treat his or her craft as a business. It’s all about differentiating yourself and offering value to your audience. Sure, your hobby blog could turn into a business success unintentionally. But, that’s highly unlikely.

Really, all you need to do to turn a writing hobby into a business is just finding ways to monetize your content. That’s really all there is to it. As long as you have an audience, you can do it. It doesn’t matter what you decide to write about. As long as you’re consistent and offer the best content that you can, there’s decent profit to be made. At the very least, you can make your website pay for itself.

So, Should I Really Make My Online Writing Hobby a Business?

With all the websites you can buy today to take over, it’s pretty obvious that you can make any blog or any other web writing venture into a business if that’s your intention. Starting businesses is extremely hard. Web writing is just another business. Still, don't have feel forced to make your web writing or blog into a profitable business if you don't want to.

But, whether you like it or not, web writing can make a lot of money. So, why not at least look into some sort of monetization if you can? There’s affiliate programs such as Amazon Associates, Google AdSense, ShareASale, and many others that can help you at least grind pennies and occasionally even dollars if your content becomes extremely popular.

But, the best way to get revenue for your blog is always going to be sponsors. All you need for that is a way to prove your content gets seen and that you have an engaged audience. Just be sure that your sponsors are on board with what you’re doing. Don’t let them dictate what you can and can’t do. Just like with any business, you have to stick to your plan. Make little changes if you have to do, but if sponsors or ads don’t fit with your vision, it’s fine to let them go.


Do I Have to Devote My Whole Life to Writing Online to Make It Into a Business?

If you started a blog as just a hobby, you don’t have to devote your whole life to it. But, taking steps for it to bring you passive income is always a good idea whether you see web writing as a hobby or not. There’s little point to leaving money on the table, even if it’s just a few extra dollars each month.

But, yes, if you want to scale it up to a business, you are going to have to make web writing a full-time job. Most of the time, web writing becomes a second job in addition to your existing job that pays the bills. There’s just no getting around that.

Yes, writing online is fine as a hobby. But, it’s better for you financially to look into its potential as a business. Web writing isn’t only a hobby anymore. People can make a real living with their blogs and websites, after all. But, it can still be a hobby if that’s what you want. Just like anything, it’s all about what you put into it.

Still, don’t let anyone tell you that online writing is only a hobby and try to mock you for it. It’s a real job for a lot of people, and it’s much a harder job that what non-bloggers think. Between consistently creating quality content, promotion, keeping up your online presence, and more, there’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes.

But really, just relax. If you want to write online, even with just a free blog, just do it. Do it on your own terms. Write about whatever you’re passionate about. Share it where you can. But most importantly, build your audience and network by bringing other web writers up. That’s the key to becoming successful, not just in writing online, but in life.

Who knows, you may inspire someone to turn their own online writing hobby into a business. Just remember, there’s real money to be made. Find what you love and do it better, whether writing online is “just” a hobby for you or not.


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by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

Sometimes, I don't consider myself a very good writer. At times, I won't publish an article for even a month or two. Honestly, even though the common advice is to write every day, sometimes you do just need a break. If you feel like your writing is getting stale or is losing direction, it's actually a good idea to go and do something else completely different for a while.

There are times you need a break from writing in order to get yourself refocused. While your writing muscles do need the exercise, it doesn't make any sense to burn yourself out when you're not really producing anything worthy. So, if you're asking yourself should I take a break from writing then the answer is most likely you should. The question then becomes for how long?

How Long is Too Long to Stay Away from Writing?

The answer really depends on how you feel. If you really are not feeling like writing anymore, then there's probably a good reason for it. If writing is how you make a living, however, then you obviously don't want to stay away from it too long. But, breaks are important to take.

The idea is to not let yourself go forever without writing. If you find that you're staying away from writing for days or weeks at a time, then you probably need the break. But when you find yourself not writing anything after months, even little notes in your journal, that's when you probably should reconsider if you're really even that interested in writing at all anymore.

I've actually been at that point in my life several times. There actually have been times where I haven't even written a single word for maybe even a month at a time, maybe even more. Why did this happen?

I can tell you straight up the main reason that I have gone long stretches without writing. It’s feeling forced to write things that I didn't feel like writing. For example, college papers were often a major struggle for me, as I just couldn’t get involved with the subject material. The other major thing is articles that weren't really paying a lot of money, but I needed the cash. So, when the writing started feeling forced like slave labor, it really was just no fun anymore. I didn't want to do it anymore.

Should Writing Feel More Like Work or Feel More Like Fun?

With anything that you do, it’s probably not going to be fun all the time. But should it be? Sometimes, if you get a lucrative opportunity you're going to take it, even if it's not for that much money. You may just need the cash. But, if you find yourself getting to the point where you hate writing, then obviously you need to take a step back and really reconsider your goals.

It's funny because for so much of my life I actually didn't really write with much of a goal in mind. But I will tell you this right now. If your only goal with writing is simply to make money, then you're probably really needing to find a deeper meaning and purpose to what you want to write.

For example, I really wanted to be a novelist for a long time. At other points in my life, I wanted to be a sports writer. So, at some point, there were actually times where I felt it was important to practice and polish my writing skills so that I could get a job later with writing. The practice alone was a good goal and it kept me focused. But as I became less interested in those jobs, my writing really lost focus for awhile. That’s why I turned to poetry and journal writing, and eventually articles.

Sometimes, you just have to find a different kind of writing to get going again. If it’s getting to feel too much like work, find something else that’s more fun. Sometimes you’re going to have to take assignments that feel like work, so be sure to balance it out with writing something fun. That way, you never have to take too long a break.


When Should Writing be More than Just a Job?

Even when you do something you enjoy, the sad truth is that you may end up feeling burnt out at one point or another. That's only natural. You may be overwhelmed with how much writing you're trying to do at once. If that’s what it is, you should probably scale back. Also, you might find that you don't have a good enough goal and motivation to keep yourself with the proper energy and focus that you need to write.

So, when should writing be more than a job? For a long time, writing for me was simply a hobby. It was something to take my mind off of other things. When I did try to turn writing into my regular job, it honestly didn't really feel that great. While I was making some money doing it, I started feeling like my skills were not being properly compensated. I kept asking myself: why am I even doing this anymore?

When you're writing purely for yourself, sometimes you find yourself saying: “Oh, well, I'll just write some more tomorrow.” Then, tomorrow becomes next week, and next week becomes next month. So what I suggest, if you're going to take a break from writing, is to switch gears. Take a break from writing, per se, as far as trying to write complete articles and the like. What you should keep doing instead, however, is to keep your mind coming up with ideas.

Take notes, whether that's in your phone, or a diary, or a little notebook. If you really are serious about writing, you need to keep putting things down. What I’ve found is that if you go too long, even a week, without just putting your thoughts down, it becomes very very difficult to get the momentum again. When you try to write again, you may find your writing is very sloppy for a while. But as long as you keep the ideas flowing one way or another, even if you just have to doodle in the margins of something, that's important.

Just need to keep the free flow of ideas going. If you’re continuously generating ideas, you'll find the other parts of your life improve, as well. If you sit there and let your mind stagnate, you're going to end up being pretty miserable. Even if you find that you’re not really writing for awhile, you can always use ideas.

Taking a Break from Writing Doesn’t Mean You Should Take a Break from Ideas

Even if you’re not writing, don’t ever take a break from ideas. If you continue to take down ideas, even when you're not actively writing something, you may find that you're able to start writing again all of a sudden. I know that I found this to be the case when I write poetry sometimes. If I haven't written for a while, it's great to try to force myself to rhyme a few phrases or even just keep track of syllables in a simple pattern. That way, I can sort of create a little framework to write around. Even if I only write 4 or 8 lines, I find that I've at least produced something. Producing something, even if it's only a little bit and even if it's not good, at least makes me force myself to put words together.

Trying to then force yourself to write a thousand word article is not always the best way to get going again. The trick that I found with writing  is to not burn yourself out. Simply keep your thoughts flowing and note them somehow. The ideas don’t even have to be good. After all, to get good ideas, you have to have a lot of bad ones, too.

I can tell you right now that when I'm not doing very well with writing I'll still open up a whole bunch of documents and stick ideas in each one. Sure, probably 9 out of 10 of them never go anywhere. But, that's okay. Eventually I will find some way to connect those thoughts, even if they don't become articles on their own.

I've even found Speech-to-Text, even the simple kind that's on a lot of Google and Apple phones, is very helpful in getting your ideas out. Even when you don't actually feel like writing, using Speech-to-Text is different. That’s because when you talk, you're using a different part of your brain. You actually want to exercise this part of your brain, as well. By vocalizing your thoughts, all you're doing is expanding how you can express yourself. Heck, if you’d rather express yourself through art or other creative activities, that's good, too. The idea is to not let your mind stagnate. If you're not going to write, find some other way to express yourself.


How Long Your Break is From Writing is Up to You

So, how long should you take a break from writing it all is up to you. However long feels right to you is how long you should take. But, whatever you do don't keep the ideas from flowing. That's the most important part that is why I love writing so much. It’s a way for me to get my ideas out of my head so that they're not zooming around at a million miles an hour.

At times, I feel extremely unorganized, and that's when I feel like I need to take a break and refocus. If you can't focus with your writing, you're going to find yourself writing a lot of crap or things that you just can't do anything with. In fact, you end up confusing yourself. So, only write when you feel like you can have a clear path to what you're doing.

But even if you're not feeling clear, make sure you get the ideas down. The more ideas you get down, the more you have to come back to later. The worst thing you can ever do as a writer is to come in with a blank page with no direction. Make sure that you always come back to writing with some sort of direction. Even if you end up changing direction midstream, that's okay.

The idea is to make sure that you stay focused as a writer. Once you lose that focus, go do something else for a while. If you don't want to come back to writing maybe you never will. But that's okay. You can't worry about that. If you're meant to be a writer, you will come back to it. Even when I’ve felt like I was done with writing forever, I obviously still came back. That's what I've always found.

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by Richard Rowell; Co-owner of Brand Shamans & Write W.A.V.E. Media

It doesn’t matter what kind of writer you are. You don’t even have to be a writer right now. You can become a winning writer. Aimed at writers who want to become published authors, Joan Gelfand’s book “You Can Be a Winning Writer” takes a holistic approach to becoming a successful writer. While many writing advice books focus on one aspect of writing success, Gelfand’s book covers four main areas that need to be done all at the same time. She calls these the 4 C’s of Successful Authors: Craft, Commitment, Community, & Confidence.

While there have been entire books written about aspects of the four C’s, there hasn’t really been a book that focuses entirely on balancing all four of the C’s to become a successful author. That is exactly what Gelfand set out to do with “You Can Be a Winning Writer” and she does this well. She pulls together lots of great advice and anecdotes from many successful authors, many of them Pulitzer Prize winning. It’s well-researched and put together, whereas a lot of writing advice books seem like they’re all saying the same thing. As Gelfand breaks down the 4 C’s, any writers are bound to pick up some helpful hints in all areas of their writing lives.

“You Can Be a Winning Writer” is definitely worth a read. I’d suggest taking notes whenever something strikes you that you can apply to your own writing. There’s just so much good advice packed into every section of this book. It’s the kind of book you may read multiple times just to absorb all the lessons within, from Gelfand’s own personal experience and from all of the other writers’ stories she shares.

You may not even consider yourself a writer right now. But if you’ve even ever dreamed or even just thought of being a writer, go ahead and just do it. This book will help you not only get started, but also put you on the right path towards success. No, it’s not going to be easy. Gelfand doesn’t sugarcoat how difficult becoming a successful author is, but constantly reminds you that it’s possible with great dedication and discipline to sticking to a good plan. It’s a great writer’s manual and it should be on your bookshelf, no doubt about it.

by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

Some of the best advice I've ever read on outlining came from the book “How to Write a Book for Beginners" by Ryan Stephens. This advice had to do outlining a nonfiction book, but it’s applicable to any kind of nonfiction writing.

Ryan asked his friend about how he outlines his books. He told him it's as simple as this: answer two types of questions. There are the questions people actually ask and the questions they should be asking. In the case of a nonfiction book, you want your chapter titles to be the questions people ask. Then, the subheadings are made from the questions you find people should be asking.

The best part about this advice is that it works for article writing, too. As someone who used to be rather allergic to traditional outlining, I find this simple approach refreshing. But while it looks simple on the surface, how easy is it to know what questions to ask?

What Questions Do People Actually Ask?

Fortunately, good old Google Autocomplete can give us a treasure trove of what people actually search around a given word or phrase. This is a helpful place to begin your research. Or is it?

The funny thing that came to my head as I set to writing on this topic is this: what if the best questions people want to ask aren't even being typed into Google? This is a good thought that I don't think I've ever thought before. It's funny how when you start asking yourself questions how you come up with more questions.

This is how I knew that Ryan's friend was really onto something when he said you should outline using questions. For so long I've often used dry subheaders and even really dry titles just to get the keywords in there. Before reading that Ryan Stephens book I didn't even really consider writing nonfiction books. But the idea dawned on me that I should seriously look into it.

But did I Google it? Nope. I searched Amazon for free Kindle books on writing. That's right. People still look for answers in books. Who would've thought? Believe it or not, though, there isn't a book readily available for every topic. Even if people write a hundred thousand articles on a topic, it doesn't mean there's a good book on it. So, why does it matter if you can't find a book on Amazon for a question you have? To me, it screams opportunity. As a writer, this smells like fresh blood does to a shark.

So, now we've established that people search Amazon sometimes before they even think about Google. That's not a tip you see everyday. But there are a lot of places to look for answers to your questions. You can't possibly check them all.


So, How Do I Find the Right Questions to Ask?

The best way I've been finding questions to ask is not doing keyword research. I certainly still do some initial keyword research, because you can find some good opportunities to target your content that way. But when you set yourself to answer a question, you should never limit yourself. The best way to know what questions to ask is to ask yourself what questions you would ask.

If you have a topic or question in mind, write it down. Then, ask yourself the questions you would ask in order to be satisfied that your question has been sufficiently answered. But, how do you know I'm asking the right questions when outlining my article or book?

I'm loath to say it, but I'll say it anyway because it will help illustrate a point. There's no such thing as a stupid question. Some will rebut that with: until you ask it. Others will follow up with: only if you don't ask it. I'm inclined to agree with the latter rebuttal.

So, What’s the Best Way to Find the Questions People Actually Ask?

It turns out we are not all brilliant masterminds who have billions of unique thoughts everyday. But I do have good news. The genius is in making the connections between thoughts and ideas. Anyone can do this if you work at it. So, yeah, if you're thinking something, it's highly likely someone else has thought the same thing. But, if you're acting on it, then you're doing something creative. That's important.

As someone who usually skips outlining entirely, why do I suddenly seem keen on taking a step back and really ask some hard questions? Because by asking questions, I find myself asking even more of them. Eventually, I'll recognize which ones seem the most important to answer. Then, I set to work.

What people actually ask is what you'd probably be asking yourself anyway. Yes, seeing what people actually ask is important through some research, too. But when you are trying to write something, you turn the idea faucet on and let it flow for a bit. Then, when you’ve come to a point where you need to turn to answers, this is when you know you have a whole bunch of good questions.

So, how do people even look for answers in the first place?

Should I Google It?

Or, in place of Google, insert your favorite search engine. Keep in mind people use Amazon and YouTube to look for answers, too. Google can be a great tool, but that is all that it is. Finding the answer your seeking may in fact be a click away. But it may not be. And even if there are results, will they satisfy you?

In my experience, if it's not a simple question, most of the time you'll find irrelevant results or feel underwhelmed. Don't blame Google. No one has answered it well enough yet anywhere the Google spiders can find. For writers, this is fresh blood!

But not everyone asks Google their burning questions. And  not too many people actually type into Google “should I Google it?” when they’re figuring out how best to find answers. Choosing to use Google is an internal decision. There are so many other search engines out there and while Google is the most-used, not every good question people ask will be easily revealed to you that way.

Should I Look for Answers in a Book?

Turning to books to seek an answer to your question may seem quaint to some people. Actually, if you are even considering this, though,I applaud you. There’s solid reasoning to this decision making process.

By no means is the Google searcher is being lazy or anything. But there are some questions that would seem to require some digging. You can do this through Google, too, of course, but hitting the books means you want more than online articles can give you - no matter how good they are..

And, I hate to break it to you. What you read online is not always accurate. I also hate to break it to you that what you read in a book isn't always accurate. However, books seem to be much more trusted. Why is that?

Yes, it's true that books tend to be more robustly researched, edited, and scrutinized. But, online articles can be too. And since pretty much anyone can self publish not only e-books, but print books too, there isn't too much difference between what you find online or in books, right?

Actually, here's the key difference. Books are longer. Even short ebooks are longer than most articles published on the web. Books require more effort on the part of the writer, and a lot more research. If you’re turning to books to answer your questions, you're no longer just a searcher, but a researcher. Likely, you’ll have visit your local library or buy books to seek answers. If anyone goes to that much effort, it must be important..

This is where we must bridge the gap to what people should be asking.

What Questions SHOULD We Be Asking?

Many questions people are probably only asking internally, but not actually searching. Others have questions that may require more research than many people actually want to do. So, because we writers are wonderful human beings, we go do the hard work so others may benefit.

Or we're self absorbed jerks who want to get paid the big bucks for becoming the top expert on subject X. Either way, same result.

The questions that require digging, the ones not answered well or at all through the results of a Google search, are the ones we should be asking. Those are the ones we should be writing about and answering. Yes, it can be hard work, but the end result is going to be something pretty cool that probably hasn’t been done before.

How Does Listing a Bunch of Questions Help You Outline an Article?

It's quite ironic that when I first began writing this very article that I neglected to even outline it. But as I went along, I realized that I had something pretty profound here. At first, I began to ramble and lose focus. Fortunately, I righted the ship. I started taking a step back and just asking the questions before I just took off being the rambling fool I often am.

Or am I?

Turning the more common questions into chapter titles helps you get into the mindset of your audience. If you’re writing an article, this is how people are going to discover it in search. If you’re writing a book, people will find these in your table of contents, if you choose to make that part of a free book preview (which you should). You also show your audience (and potential publishers) that you have your finger on the pulse of your audience for a certain given topic.

People also like it when you’re asking questions that echo the ones they themselves have been asking. You position yourself as an authority by asking the right questions.

While turning your article or book into an FAQ of sorts isn’t a terrible way to go, you want to get down to creating something more. That’s where the subheaders come in. They’re quite useful in keeping your audience’s attention and allow skimmers to  get some value from your work without reading closely. By turning your subheadings into questions, you force yourself to really answer them.

While asking these questions are really helpful in outlining and focusing yourself on the questions you need to answer, they’re good to keep in the final version as well. Many people, myself included, have long had many subheadings that read as statements or more like commands. While there isn’t anything wrong with this, asking questions instead adds a new dimension to your writing. Not only do people appreciate that you’re asking good questions, but you make your readers ask more questions of themselves.

By asking the right questions that people really ask and those that we should be asking, your writing will be a lot more focused and you’ll find yourself driven towards writing good answers more quickly and more often. The questions people ask and the questions they should be asking can serve as the backbone to any piece of nonfiction writing that you’re doing. Once I started writing this way, I can say I write more quickly and more effectively than ever before.

Plus, I started asking a lot more questions. Is that ever a bad thing?


If you're looking for a way take your article writing to the next level, consult the professional copyediting services of the Brand Shamans!

by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

If you’re a first-time writer, you may be reading a lot of different writing advice about how to get started. There’s plenty of writing advice out there, some good and some bad. Here, we’ll ask some questions about common advice that’s given to first-time writers. But, we’ll expand on these ideas a bit more and give you some actionable advice for your writing. Even if you’re not a first-time writer, these are questions you probably still should be asking yourself.

Before we get started, keep this in mind: You can be the most talented and skilled writer there is, but neither talent nor skill is a guarantee for writing success.  What you’ll find is that passion is the most important thing when it comes to writing. We’ll get to why this is later.

Now, here are six key questions first-time writers should ask, or any writers, really.

Question #1: Why Must Writers Must First Be Readers?

A writer must be a reader, first and foremost. Whether you are a writer of nonfiction, novels, songs, poems, or even technical manuals, writers must read. While we each develop our favoritism for certain genres or topics, we must each always look to broaden our knowledge.

Why is diversifying your knowledge so important? True genius lies in making connections that others simply haven’t made yet. By diversifying your reading material and spheres of knowledge, you expand your mind and allow it to make connections with seemingly unrelated ideas.

If you limit yourself to a single genre or a handful of topics, you will limit your ability to discover new ideas. Also, by opening yourself to other genres and topics, even if on a whim, you expand your ability to learn. In a world that becomes seemingly more specialized everyday, the writer must learn to do the opposite.

First-time writers often struggle finding their writing niche, and that’s OK. Even experienced writers feel the need to branch out and find something new to write from time to time. The best way to find new ideas to write about? It’s reading.


Question #2: How Should You Choose a Topic to Write About?

You’re probably sick of hearing the same old advice of “write what you know.” First-time writers hear that a lot. As with a lot of common advice, though, there is a lot of truth to it. However, there’s more to choosing a topic than that. You might know a lot of things. Of course, there are always going to be more things that you don’t know than you do.

Yes, to be a successful writer you have to know what you’re writing about. But just because you know a lot about something doesn’t mean that’s the topic you should choose. Whatever you write about, it should either be something you love or something you hate. The truth is that you need to write about something that you’re passionate about, because that will show in your writing and make it better!

Can I Write Something I Don’t Know? This is when the common  “write what you know” advice seems limiting. If you’re interested in some topic that you don’t really know a lot about, then, by all means learn about it. As you research this topic, if you find you’re actually rather passionate about it, then keep learning about it! You can eventually turn what you don’t know into something that you do know a lot about! Just make sure that you really love it before you dive into writing about it.

Question #3: Can You Ever Stop Learning?

No writer is ever going to be perfect. It doesn’t matter how skilled or knowledgeable you become. There is always room to grow, both as a writer and as a person. If you don’t continue to expand your mind, you will find your writing suffer as a result. There’s so much pressure to keep writing the same thing and sharpening your focus. As a writer, you should write what you love, but keep learning other things. Even if you focus on writing nonfiction, you should never stop yourself from reading fiction or poetry. You just never know where your next good idea will come from.

A mind that becomes too focused on just one kind of writing, one way to tell a story, or one anything will eventually become complacent. This can cause your writing to become stale. Much of your audience will grow bored with the same thing after a while. This is why you must keep expanding your mind. For example, even if you’re an established horror writer, you may draw inspiration from science fiction and romance. If you focus too much on what’s already been done without introducing new combinations of ideas and new perspectives, you and your writing will suffer for it.

Also, your writing will never be perfect. So, there’s always room to learn from other writers, whether it be through their style, their storytelling, or just their ideas in general. First-time writers certainly have the most to learn about the writing craft, but even the best writers still learn all the time; that’s how they stay the best!


Question #4: Why Should You Keep Building Your Vocabulary?

If you’re a writer, you should know as many words as you can, right? This seems obvious at first. But, one common piece of writing advice is to actually use the simplest words you can. Of course, Ernest Hemingway is quite famous for his poignant use of simple words in the narration of his stories. But we’re not all Ernest Hemingway, are we?

Yes, using uncommon words, often called “big words,” “college words,” or “SAT words” can be daunting for a lot of readers. So, yes, when a simple word is fine to use, just use that. It can be very tempting for writers to show off their vocabularies. But just because you don’t use them every day in your writing doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know them. It’s actually good for your readers to have to look up a word in the dictionary once in awhile, after all. But, then, why use them at all?

Words are surprisingly complex when you actually study them. Etymology is the study of the origin of words and how they have changed in usage or form over time. The etymology of even common words is pretty fascinating. In fact, the study of individual words alone can actually help you develop writing ideas.  

And, of course, building your vocabulary will allow you to reduce the chances of not being able to find just the right word for an idea. After all, words are little encapsulations of ideas, and the more of them you know, the more ideas you can easily express.


Question #5: Should I Write Down Every Idea I Get?

Here’s a question that many first-time writers ask: should I be writing down every writing idea that I get? Yes, the most important thing about ideas is to not let them get away. Ideas often occur to us at the most inopportune times. Writing an idea down on the back of a napkin might sound cliche, but it does actually turn out that doing that has saved some great ideas. Always be prepared to capture ideas when you least expect them.

The beauty of the human mind is its ability to come up with pretty amazing ideas unexpectedly. The idea for the next great novel of all time could occur you to just about anywhere. Even a piece of character dialogue could hit you as you’re walking down the street. If an idea sparks your interest, write it down in whatever way you can. Yes, even carry around napkins if you have to!

Don’t fool yourself that you might simply remember the idea later. Yes, sometimes you may remember it perfectly. But another beautiful, and often tragic, thing about the human mind is that it can be at time impossible to remember something you came up with just five minutes ago. Ideas are always racing around and can bury one another. We’re all brilliant in a way, and we all have ideas. Most aren’t going to be good, and some will be OK. But all it takes is one great idea to get you writing. That one idea could take you further than you could ever now imagine.

Question #6: What’s the Best Writing Advice of All?

Every writer can ask this question, and the answer is actually quite simple.

Write Because You Love to Write!

A lot of writers make publication the end goal for their writing. While wanting to be a published author is definitely an excellent goal, it shouldn’t be the only one. Your main goal in writing should always be writing what you love to write. You may not always love what you write, but you should love the very act of writing itself. No, not everything you write is going to be published. Even Stephen King has unpublished manuscripts.

You should only publish when you feel you’ve written something that you actually feel is worthy of publishing. So many writers spend so much time on trying to write something to be published and are frustrated when no one wants to publish it. Lots of times, there’s going to be nothing wrong with what you’ve written.

The truth is that publishers have to make money. If they don’t think an idea will make money, no matter how good it is, then they will likely pass. This isn’t your fault and you shouldn’t let it discourage you. If you’re looking to publish, you can always self-publish to get it out there. Then, just write something else. You can always follow the money with your writing, but it shouldn’t be ever be your only end goal.

As a writer, following your passion is all you should be doing. Your writing is going to be better when you’re not writing just to publish. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t have publishing as a writing goal. What it means is that when you sit down to write, don’t worry about the publishing being the end goal. Passion is everything with any art, and it especially shows in writing. Writing what you know and love is what drives a writer to create. If you’re not driven to create, then you’re going to have a hard time writing. It’s as simple as that.

So, with these six important questions answered, get out there and just write!

by R.A. Rowell; Co-Owner of Intent-sive Nature & the Brand Shamans network

Ever feel like that your writing just isn't coming out quite perfect? You may feel like there's something missing. Do you feel like what you're saying doesn't sound right? That's okay. Sometimes, you simply have to take a step back and leave your writing aside for a while. It might only be for a few hours. Sometimes, it can be a day. If you have the time to do so, it could even be a week.

But if you feel like you're on to something, but you haven't quite figured out where you're going yet, it is actually okay to let your piece of writing sit. That way, you can come back to it with a fresh perspective. The idea should be to not rush a piece of writing if you don’t have to.

Why is Sitting on a Piece of Writing for a While Actually a Good Thing?

The most important part of writing is getting the ideas out. Once you get the ideas out, the hard work really begins. How do I actually turn this piece of writing into something that people can relate to and get some value out of it? Most important of all, you want it to be something to be happy with, especially if it’s going to be published somewhere.

Unfortunately, a large percentage of what we write finds its way into the recycle bin. Even the greatest writers struggle at one point or another. What's important to keep in mind is that not everything you write is going to be good, especially on the first draft. Don't ever feel like every word that you write has to see print, even if it's on a computer screen. If you feel bad about a piece of writing, taking time away from it is probably best so that you can detach yourself emotionally from it.

When Should I Set a Piece of Writing Aside?

Trust your instincts if you really think a writing piece has potential, even it's just not going anywhere right now. Save it and set it aside. Don't hit delete until you’ve given it a second chance. You may find later that you regret hitting delete on a piece that might have had some good ideas, but just needed better organization or more work.

Yes, sometimes a piece is destined to go nowhere, and that's okay. But if you're working on something like an assignment that you really absolutely have to do, then setting it aside for a while is actually the best way to go. In fact, you know how a lot of web writers purposely hold off completing assignments until the last minute? Sometimes, this is to help motivate the writing to get done, but for some writers procrastinating actually helps it get it done better.

Even if you’re a procrastinator, you actually still want to put something down. It may just be listing subheadings or questions that you need to answer in the article. Even sticking in keyword phrases and thoughts related to the writing work gives you a place to start if you really need to set it aside for a bit.


When Should You Just Get Writing Started to Work On Later?

The most important part of writing, or doing anything in general, is to get started. As long as you're able to put something down, you’re already getting somewhere. If you really get stuck, then leave it for a while. If you’re able to come back before it's due, you're probably okay. In fact, you're probably a lot better off than when you started.

But even if you put random thoughts down, why are you able to then write better. This is because your mind has actually been able to think through what you’ve written subconsciously.Never underestimate the power of the subconscious. Even though it does sound cliche to let ideas sit around in your mind for awhile, it really does help.

Some people may wonder why writers will rush to writing assignments and try to get something out right away. Doing this gains you momentum. Once you have that momentum, even if you stop and think about it for a while, you got it started. You're not always going to be able to produce your best writing work in one sitting. You shouldn't feel like you have to do that. If you do feel overwhelmed, it’s time to step back, and reconsider what you’re doing with your writing.

Is It Possible to Sit On My Writing for Too Long?

Contemplation and reflection is very important with writing. But it is possible to let writing sit too long. It’s important to get the ideas out of your head and let it sit for a bit if you have to. But, make sure you come back to it. Then, finish it or decide what else to do with it. If you find yourself taking writing work that you’re sitting on too long and it's due, it's perfectly okay to reach out for help. Writers do it all the time.

It’s important to find your place where you feel comfortable with writing. Sure, it's fine to put yourself out of your comfort zone once in awhile. This can help expand your skills and build discipline with your writing. But, don't ever feel like you have to get your writing done in one sitting if you really can't get it done.

Sure, you can try and write fifty articles in a day, but that’s rarely possible. If you feel fine trying to do a whole bunch in a day, then go ahead. Each of us has a different limit. But, once you reach your limit, don't push yourself past that limit. Otherwise, you're going to end up hating writing.

If you do find some writing is sitting too long and you can't finish it, you then have to make a decision. Don't feel obligated to finish, if it’s not vital that you do. You don't want to burn yourself out. Sometimes, you have to just let it go and move onto something else.

But, if a writing assignment is very important to get done, get help with it if you need to. Always give yourself a break before you feel like you have to finish something. Know when you need to let it go to someone else to be done in time. If you don't do these things, you're probably not going to be happy with your writing. Letting your writing sit for awhile is important to let yourself reflect and produce the best work you can. But you also need to get back to writing in a timely manner. Finding that balance is the key to being a successful writer.