Attention content writers, creative writers, English majors and newer copywriters...

You've been had.
Tricked. Had one weird, albeit effective, move made on your wallet. Skunked.

Psyched. Faked out. But there still may be hope.

I can best explain via a story borrowed. This from Doberman Dan, and if you ain't readin D-Dan's stuff, well you're just a buckwheat pancake without any butter or syrup...

Dan relates his time with Gary Halbert and right after Gary got a hot and juicy assignment for his little hamburger stand (the one in the middle of a starving crowd)...

An assignment that would keep even Wimpy in cheeseburgers forever.

And Dan was hot to trot. Eager beaver Dan was he. Full of ideas, energy, ready to write and then Gary rolled out of bed and wanted to spend the day on the boat. Next day, the "goof off" named Gary wanted some beach time, and the next day and the next much to poor Dan's chagrin.

Then one day Gary gets up and is ready to work on the assignment, and he overwhelmed Dan with writing and editing and tweaking until they had, in pretty short order, a promotion ready to turn in.

Dan learned that Gary was NOT goofing off, he was simmering his stew.

Everyone who wants to write copy for a living should have read Gary's newsletters and learned about the 6x4 cards, the knowing about the target's wants and needs and all of that.

See, the great fake out made upon you is...

YOU have been misled. YOU mistakenly believe that copywriting is about WRITING, and you can do that, eh? So all you have to do is learn a little formatting, a little technique, a little salesmanship and you're ready to hang out your shingle (as many of you have done).

BUT the trick, the real secret to being a copywriter who can actually make her living at it vs one who barely scrapes by (but continues to post advice here for the less informed) is this:

It is really about copyTHINKING.

The writing comes AFTER the thinking. YOU SERVE THE STEW AFTER IT HAS COOKED ALL THE WAY.

And that is what separates the wannabees and the winners in this game.

THINKING. And knowing what to think about. HOW to think.

HOW to research. How to uncover the little nuances which will make a difference between a winning piece of copy and one that fails.

YES, you can write. YES, you have a command of the language. YES, you can read swipe files.

But most of the copy posted here for review shows for a fact, that most of the writers who can write...don't know how to THINK.

PUT the time in to learn, study and meditate (in whatever way you do, including oogling beautiful women in bikinis on South Beach)...and then pick up the pen

AFTER

you have given enough thought to what you are doing.

Try thinking before you write, you may actually find I might be on to something.

gjabiz