How do I become a better writer?

59 replies
I am looking for online courses, or something I can do daily to be the best writer in the world.

At least a professional writer. I do not really have any money to invest, so I can't go to college and take some courses.

Is there an alternative, where they have online exercises I can do, and then get quizzed?
#writer
  • Profile picture of the author ryanmilligan
    Banned
    I suppose you could just take a sort of free course online - not 100% sure but I'm sure you will be able to find a basic one.

    Just test yourself, study writing, read whole lot of 'sophisticated stuff'.

    Its gonna' take a lot of work but I'm sure you're capable.
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  • Profile picture of the author Premier Plugins
    I'm sure there are some around online, but I don't know any off the top of my head.

    I recently just bought a few books to help me out with the same thing. One was a course book which goes over all aspects of proper grammar and things like that. It's called Easy Grammar Plus and it includes courses, quizzes and such. I haven't had a chance to go through it yet, so I can't comment on the quality.

    The other was recommended to me by a Warrior here; it's called Elements of Style by Strunk & White. My research of the second book lead me to believe that this is a pretty well known work among writers and, so far, seems to be well worth the cheap price of the book. I recommend it as well.

    Best of luck.
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    • Profile picture of the author tantivy
      Originally Posted by Premier Plugins View Post

      The other was recommended to me by a Warrior here; it's called Elements of Style by Strunk & White.
      Read this book.... then do a lot of readings more, read anything that your hands can lay on. Then practice writing every morning to flex your writing tongue. You can do a thing they call Morning Page, here you just yak sort of talkfest anything goes. Then as you go along, find a writer whose style you can copy. Usually the traditional way of writing use this formula - Intro... Body... Closing...

      Online courses, or even traditional writing courses are helpful... but if you really want to learn how to write, you can only learn it by practice.
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  • Profile picture of the author Joseph Robinson
    Banned
    A Google search for "Free Writing Critique" seemed to bring up a lot of communities that you could join. You'll have to check for yourself which ones are actually active though. Having a live person point out the pros and cons of your craft is the best way to build your skills in my opinion.

    I'm sorry I don't have more to offer than that, I lucked out. Both my mother and step-father taught English, and many of my friends are writers so I had that support system already set up. I'm sure it will be a bit tougher on you. Like we said in your last thread though you have the willingness to learn and that will get you far.
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  • Profile picture of the author Paul Hancox
    What do you mean, "the best writer in the world"?

    What do you mean, "a professional writer"?

    Ask yourself what clients REALLY want. They don't want "the best writer".
    "Professional writer"? They already expect that!

    They want traffic... sales... subscriptions... to be seen as an authority
    and expert in their niche.

    Yes, they want a great writer... but ultimately they want a writer who
    can give them traffic, subscriptions, sales, authority in their niche, etc.

    Study the "gurus" in their niches. Read their writing. See how it differs
    from the $5 article writers... and figure out what makes them different.

    Also, this might help.
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  • Profile picture of the author absoluteallen
    Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

    I am looking for online courses, or something I can do daily to be the best writer in the world.

    At least a professional writer. I do not really have any money to invest, so I can't go to college and take some courses.

    Is there an alternative, where they have online exercises I can do, and then get quizzed?
    Being a professional and or "best writer in the world" is subjective to opinion on your clients behalf.

    Not everyone is going to like your work no matter who you are. You will find clients who feel your work isn't worth your price, others will gladly hand over their money for your service.

    My writing style has always been - write how you would tell a friend.

    Don't "try" to be a writer, be yourself. There are plenty of programs out there to correct punctuation and so forth.
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  • Profile picture of the author Freelancing10
    This is what I want to reach according to Textbroker.com
    "Five-star authors have proven to our editorial staff that they invariably provide professional-grade writing. Each article will be nearly flawless, and five-star authors will consistently provide content that meets our stringent five-star standards. At the five-star level, we do not tolerate spelling mistakes, typos, capitalization errors or punctuation errors that are not mandated by the client instructions. The argument will be extremely strong and will be presented in a style that is insightful and compelling, all while being impeccably and thoroughly researched. Additionally, five-star authors will interact with clients and Textbroker staff in a manner befitting their status as professionals. Our 5-star authors are hand-picked by our editorial staff and represent the best that Textbroker has to offer. "
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    • Profile picture of the author absoluteallen
      Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

      This is what I want to reach according to Textbroker.com
      "Five-star authors have proven to our editorial staff that they invariably provide professional-grade writing. Each article will be nearly flawless, and five-star authors will consistently provide content that meets our stringent five-star standards. At the five-star level, we do not tolerate spelling mistakes, typos, capitalization errors or punctuation errors that are not mandated by the client instructions. The argument will be extremely strong and will be presented in a style that is insightful and compelling, all while being impeccably and thoroughly researched. Additionally, five-star authors will interact with clients and Textbroker staff in a manner befitting their status as professionals. Our 5-star authors are hand-picked by our editorial staff and represent the best that Textbroker has to offer. "
      If you want to show your guns and prove yourself to a writing service such as Textbroker, try your hand at Constant Content.

      If you can get past their anal editors, you're on the right path
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    • Profile picture of the author Emily B
      Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

      This is what I want to reach according to Textbroker.com
      "Five-star authors have proven to our editorial staff that they invariably provide professional-grade writing. Each article will be nearly flawless, and five-star authors will consistently provide content that meets our stringent five-star standards. At the five-star level, we do not tolerate spelling mistakes, typos, capitalization errors or punctuation errors that are not mandated by the client instructions. The argument will be extremely strong and will be presented in a style that is insightful and compelling, all while being impeccably and thoroughly researched. Additionally, five-star authors will interact with clients and Textbroker staff in a manner befitting their status as professionals. Our 5-star authors are hand-picked by our editorial staff and represent the best that Textbroker has to offer. "
      What rating has Textbroker given you? I know that 5 star rates are higher, but there's a lot more work to choose from in the 4 star catagory. Just looking right now, there's over 1800 in 4 star compared to the ~200 in 5 star. I personally find it easier to turn out articles quickly if I enjoy the subject, or I know a lot about it, and it's easier to find subjects like that with more options.
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      • Profile picture of the author Freelancing10
        Originally Posted by Emily B View Post

        What rating has Textbroker given you? I know that 5 star rates are higher, but there's a lot more work to choose from in the 4 star catagory. Just looking right now, there's over 1800 in 4 star compared to the ~200 in 5 star. I personally find it easier to turn out articles quickly if I enjoy the subject, or I know a lot about it, and it's easier to find subjects like that with more options.
        I have a 3 star rating.
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        • Profile picture of the author Emily B
          Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

          I have a 3 star rating.
          Ah, I see. Getting up to a 4 star rating will be helpful.

          I agree with the people who are saying that practice will help. But in my opinion, it's not enough to practice. You have to understand what mistakes you are making with your writing. Just memorizing the rules for grammar doesn't help you; you need to know how to apply them.

          Come up with some topics to practice writing with, and when you're finished, set the writing aside for awhile. Come back to it later to edit it with a fresh mind. Make sure that you understand what you've written, because if you find that you can't follow your own words, others won't be able to either.

          Try to take out all unnecessary words. For example, if you wanted to say "I have had dental work done in the past", you should take out the "have". Have and had are the same word, they're just different tenses.

          Read your words out loud. If you have trouble and start tripping all over your sentances or can't figure out where you should take a breath, then you have a problem.

          Read books. I'm not really talking about grammar books, but any books. See how other writers (and their editors) structure sentances. Ask yourself why they do things this way or that way. For example, if you find that you don't use commas very often, examine how others use commas and learn how to apply it to your own writing.
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          • Profile picture of the author catcat
            Hi Freelancing 10,

            Here are a few suggestions.

            1. Find out what people are expecting in a good writer. Browse through the warriors for hire section and look for writers that are charging higher prices and look at their samples.

            2. Let people see your name. At least your first name. I had to address you as Freelancing 10. That's not professional.

            3. Change your profile picture. Find a clear picture of yourself that shows people who you are.



            I looked through your samples and it looks like you have a lot of potential!

            Cathy
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        • Profile picture of the author absoluteallen
          Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

          I have a 3 star rating.
          If you research Textbroker on Google, 3-4 star rankings are common after your first submit.

          Getting to a 5 star ranking requires certain attributes.

          But...

          Might not be everyone, you will notice how the system works according to other reviewers that have been 4-5 star writers that... all of the sudden lose their ratings for NO reason.

          This, is the reason why writers here will tell you to use those services as a substitute while finding "clients" or if client work is slow.

          Slow client work I feel has a lot to do with how you market yourself
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      • Profile picture of the author Christopher Fox
        The 'ol adage of writers write is as simple as it gets. The more you write, the better you get, even if you are only writing for yourself in Word and nobody else will ever see it. You can scour the various writers forums on the net that do not pertain to IMing and certainly find advice there. Suggestions for exercises, etc. You can also find plenty of examples of folks posting their creative/fiction writing on these forums and try to see what they do.

        To improve on the cheap, a trip to your local library will certainly yield books written by professionals handing out advice on how to make your writing more compelling. Depending upon where you live, most major library systems have their catalogues online, so you can search the library for what you are looking for from your home.

        And definitely spend some hours perusing and posting to writing specific forums. Plenty of tips, tricks and helpful insights there. There are certainly some top notch writers here on this forum, but there is always the main subject of IMing going on here.

        Compelling writing is an art, even if it is merely a 500 word article about how to change a light bulb. Read what others post at various writing forums and see if you can make distinctions, in your own mind, about who writes better than whom - and then try to figure out why that is.

        Aside from the writing forums and a potential trip to the library, write some short story fiction. Just for yourself. Keep a thesaurus next to you (or an online one open in a tab) and try to write a 10 page short story. Focus on creativity. Read your work back to yourself, out loud in your mind, an then open that thesaurus and try replacing a word or two in a sentence here and there, and reread it in order to see if it sounds better or more completely defines your intentions.

        It is a double edged sword on da net, but having a large vocabulary is incredibly important. You have to be careful with the three dollar words online, but the more options you have for saying something, the better chance you have to say it compellingly. Same thing goes for sentence structure and length. Practice writing ridiculously long sentences that are grammatically correct and still make sense.

        For an example on that sorta stuff, turn to one of my favorite authors, Edgar Allan Poe. That dude still sends me scurrying to my dictionary on occasion. An incredible vocabulary and the ability to compose very complex sentences.

        It is a craft. An art. Keep that in the forefront of your mind as you work to progress and improve your skills. And I ain't proofreading this post, so start there and see if I made any mistakes. :p

        Best of luck. READ, WRITE, PRACTICE.
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  • Profile picture of the author macker2298
    A lot of my friends studied writing, they're these liberal artsy smartsy type of people (the company i used to marketing manager at needed this type of professionals to answer client requests via email), i'm a business guy so i can't write like they can BUT i noticed that its not so much as the courses they took or which uni they went to. It's more like what kind of people they are that makes them good writers, they write well because they like it. So in short if you have an inclination towards writing already then all you need is construtive criticism and you can for sure find that in writing forums.
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  • Profile picture of the author Always-A-Warrior
    Only one name comes to mind - JOHN CARLTON

    John is the man when it comes to writing anything and succeeding.
    He is the Go-To Guy.
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    • Profile picture of the author cashp0wer
      You can become better by practicing each and every day. In my opinion however not everyone can be a good writer. You have to have the skills to be able to do it. If you are a good writer you can become better though.
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    • Profile picture of the author smokey58
      Originally Posted by Always-A-Warrior View Post

      Only one name comes to mind - JOHN CARLTON

      John is the man when it comes to writing anything and succeeding.
      He is the Go-To Guy.
      I agree with you. John Carlton has the recommendation of people like Gary Halbert, Lorrie Ferrero, and several others. I recently purchased his Simple Writing System on Ebay. John is accepting applicants for his Simple Writing System express course.

      I just wanted to get started now.
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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    PM me and i'll send you a great book on how to become a better writer.
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  • Profile picture of the author travlinguy
    Courses are okay for the technical part of writing. See if you can find Stephen King's book, On Writing. It's excellent. In that book he explains what you need to do to become really good. I'll boil it down to just six words for you: Read a lot. Write a lot.

    Your time is much better spend doing that than studying some stuffy courses.
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  • Profile picture of the author Tadresources
    I don't think you need to take some lengthy class. The key to becoming a better writer is to practice every day and write about what you know and love.
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    • Profile picture of the author AnniePot
      When I was still at school, the English teacher who had a great influence on my life told me to read, read, and then read some more. She said anyone who reads and learns to absorb and appreciate the various styles of a multitude of writers, cannot fail to become an accomplished writer themselves.
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  • Profile picture of the author Paul Hancox
    I agree with Emily, in terms of becoming COMPETENT.

    What distinguishes a GREAT writer from a COMPETENT writer is the CONTENT of the writing.

    I just finished reading "Day Of The Triffids", by John Wyndam. He doesn't use particularly "flowery" or sophisticated writing, but he knew how to tell a great story that kept me hooked until the end.

    I didn't notice his grammar because it did the job. All I remembered is he told a great story.

    Run with Steven King's advice, as quoted by travlinguy: "Read a lot. Write a lot"...

    ...but I'd add one thing. Pay attention to writing that CAPTIVATES you, that is truly able to hold your attention and interest - and ask yourself WHY it had that affect on you.

    It might be an article, or a book. You'll find the key in the CONTENT of the material, and also perhaps in the way that author presents that information to you, maybe teases you by holding some things back, and so on.

    In other words, read things that truly captivated you AGAIN... this time with a deliberate effort to understand WHY it captivated you.

    Then understand, absorb and apply what they're doing.

    Do this every day.

    For the rest of your life.

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  • Profile picture of the author Ruth P
    I agree with the advice above: read and write every day.

    Of course certain types of writing require different skills. For example, when you're writing for the web you get used to writing with shorter paragraphs, subheadings, bullet points etc. that make it easier for people to skim.

    As long as you keep reading, I am sure you'll subconsciously pick up many of the elements that'll make your writing great. And writing every day is a fantastic way to get better, especially if you are conscious of your writing, thinking about whether you're using too many words, you're writing in a way that's easy to read and so on.

    When I first started ghostwriting I wrote every day, and I read some books about writing. It didn't seem like I was taking it in, but my writing improved rapidly. And it continues to improve as long as I continue to write!
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    • Profile picture of the author Skywriter
      Lots of good advice here.

      In addition, you would be welcome to join my free forum at My Writers Circle. This can be a great place to get feedback on your work, ask questions, and so on. Admittedly, members are mainly interested in fiction writing, but there are quite a few non-fiction writers and copywriters around also.

      I've also used the forum on occasion when I've been struggling with a bit of copy, just to get some different ideas and perspectives. It's amazing how generous people are with their time and creativity if you ask for help. Just like at The Warrior Forum, of course!

      Good luck.

      Nick
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      • Profile picture of the author Yogini
        I am not sure if you'd want to use the textbroker requirements as the measure for your writing since it may depend on your client. If you ran your own warrior for hire ad you'd probably receive different types of emphasis. For instance, some people want a strong pre-sell. I hate getting back strong call to action articles from writers but prefer to get a lot of good research. If the grammar and punctuation isn't perfect, that is much faster for me to fix than insufficient research.

        In terms of textbroker, perhaps you can write support and ask them to send a few samples of 4 star articles to you so you can analyze them.

        Debbie
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  • Profile picture of the author StevenJones
    Why not hop over to the copywriting section? Great tips inside, also for writing alone and not solely copywriting.
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  • Profile picture of the author Paul Barrs
    Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

    I am looking for online courses, or something I can do daily to be the best writer in the world.

    At least a professional writer. I do not really have any money to invest, so I can't go to college and take some courses.

    Is there an alternative, where they have online exercises I can do, and then get quizzed?
    Hello Freelancing10 -

    I recently dropped my Article Writing Tips afternoon seminar into the War Room.

    You can pick it up free here - http://www.warriorforum.com/war-room...e-writing.html

    Paul Barrs
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    It's Simple... I don't "sell" IM anymore, but still do lots of YouTube Videos
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  • Profile picture of the author sundown16
    I agree with Always-A-Warrior
    John Carlton is the da man
    the best at writing copy ..period
    get into his world, he does give away some free stuff
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  • Profile picture of the author Max Hardy
    There are many such facilities available online to improve your writing skills and enhance them further.
    Just by google-ing it you would come across thousands of such stuffs, but I personally6 would recommend you to check " writingenglish.wordpress.com"
    thanks.
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    • Profile picture of the author fin
      I spend hours editing all my articles otherwise they would look like a pile of mush.
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  • Profile picture of the author rooze
    As others have said, to become a better writer, become a better reader.

    Buy books written by well known authors who inspire you. Then just read. Their style will rub-off on you and empower your own improved writing style/standard.

    And congratulations for wanting to improve. Many 'professional' article writers think they can get away with it and it never occurs to them that they need to improve.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rose Anderson
    I can only agree with the previous posters who suggested you read a lot of good books. Reading well-written fiction can help you more than reading writing manuals. I admit to owning tons writing manuals, though, I can't resist.

    Ruth makes a good point regarding writing for the web. You won't be following the same rules regarding paragraph length when writing for online markets. Different types of writing require different styles and skills.

    Marianne's advice about becoming a good story-teller is priceless.

    Listen to Fin, as well. Don't worry if what you write at first is terrible. Get something written and then go back in a day or two and make changes. Great writing is usually great editing.

    Rose
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  • Profile picture of the author drmani
    Originally Posted by Freelancing10 View Post

    Is there an alternative,
    "I was in a blue funk!

    This was it. End of the line. Nowhere to go. Nothing to look forward to.

    I was burned out. Badly.

    With a deep sense of longing, I thought back to that lovely, bright Sunday morning a few months ago, when I decided it was going to kick-off my future as a highly paid writer.

    For hours every day, I studied and practiced. Wrote and re-wrote. Edited and deleted.

    And slowly, I got better. Even very good. At least, that's what I thought.

    How wrong I was!

    When I tried to find clients to write for, and was asked for samples, I sent mine in with a sense of pride and superciliousness - and was surprised when not even one prospect asked me to write a special report or ebook or even an article.

    Thinking my prices were too high, I dropped them. No luck. I slashed them to the bone. Still nothing.

    Here I am, haunted by my broken dreams, wondering where to turn next... and then, all of a sudden, out of the blue, I remembered something!

    A place. Somewhere I could go and ask other writers who started out just like me. Writers who had gone on to crack the code, and find that elusive wraith named "Success".

    I logged on to the Warrior Forum.

    And I started this thread.

    Now, my heart is singing. My hopes are up and soaring. My outlook is bright and joyous.

    My dream is alive once more.

    I WILL be a writer, I promised myself... and now, I know what to do.

    I set out to put what they told me to work - starting RIGHT NOW!"


    - Sign YOUR Name To This
    (and then get to work writing!)

    = = = = = =

    This is MY writing practice for today!

    It's one (of many) reasons I've totted up over 1,400 posts here. And an equal number, if not more, on other online resources.

    Writers write.

    YES!

    That, and INTENTIONAL practice, will make you "the best writer".

    This may also help

    How To Be The Best At Everything You Do

    All success
    Dr.Mani
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  • Profile picture of the author LetsGoViral
    The best writer in the world?

    What constitutes such status?

    Is it the copies sold by the author?

    If so, you will have problems topping J.K. Rowling.
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    Time of thinking is over.
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    • Decent writing can inform, educate and entertain. Good writing can change minds. Great writing can change the world...

      Once you cover the fundamentals, such as grammar, title and outline development, coherence/flow and writing tone/style:

      Specialize. Write about subject areas where you have specialized expertise in. Write for an audience that can relate to you...

      Your work should reflect your personality. Your audience should think and feel you're a friendly, expert source of beneficial info and advice...
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  • Profile picture of the author kolled
    I also agree, that writing more often will help sharpen your skills. There's a resource I've used in the past to learn and test myself. It is not so packed but it's helpful in a way.

    There are pretty simple lessons you can go through. After learning, you can do the tests and see how well you are doing. The site is www.chompchomp.com and it's free.

    Persistence is what will make you succeed in this field.
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  • Profile picture of the author marketwarrior06
    Banned
    I believe that Writing is an inherent thing. you can polish it but you can't get it. If you have something inside you then you can nurture it to make it better and for this you just have to do one thing .... Reading. Read popular articles. follow their techniques. that's all.
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    • Profile picture of the author Joseph Robinson
      Banned
      Originally Posted by marketwarrior06 View Post

      I believe that Writing is an inherent thing. you can polish it but you can't get it. If you have something inside you then you can nurture it to make it better and for this you just have to do one thing .... Reading. Read popular articles. follow their techniques. that's all.
      Well, I'm going to have to completely disagree with this one. Some writers are born with natural talent; but all are made in some form or fashion. I didn't pop out of the womb understanding sentence structure and when/where to employ certain types of syntax.

      I've watched students who couldn't string together more than a few sentences previously grow into some of my old high school's top writers. Writing isn't like athletic ability. As long as you have the drive to learn (and the right teacher), you can "get it".
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    • Profile picture of the author Elluminati
      Originally Posted by marketwarrior06 View Post

      I believe that Writing is an inherent thing. you can polish it but you can't get it. If you have something inside you then you can nurture it to make it better and for this you just have to do one thing .... Reading. Read popular articles. follow their techniques. that's all.

      I have to disagree as well. Writing isn't some innate ability that can't be learned. It took me a minute to learn scriptwriting, but with a lot of self-study I learned...
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  • Profile picture of the author erichammer
    I'll just echo what has been said already: read and write. The best writers are also voracious readers who happily sit up all night reading a novel and prefer this to watching television. They also feel a need to get their words into tangible form and are constantly compelled to write (as the old saying goes, a writer writes).

    Now, that said, what you want to do is to decide what kind of writing you want to focus on and then focus on reading more writing in that area. If your focus is on short stories, read lots of short story anthologies. If your focus is on content writing (and I'm sorry to tell you that Text Broker is NOT the place to make a career out of writing. I gave up on them years ago because the rates are so low, even for four and five star writers), read lots of high quality blogs in the area you are most interested in. You'll find that the more you read and the more you write, the better your work gets.

    Personally, I read five different newspapers each day and ten different magazines each month. Why? Because I am by my nature both a writer and a reader. I love reading well crafted articles and I love writing them as well. I consider the time I spend becoming informed to be time well spent. Never mind that I often find inspiration for my own articles through some side comment made in one of the newspapers or magazines I read regularly....

    Oh, I also forgot to mention that I typically read around 15-20 books per month and have some favorites I've read dozens of times...

    Eric
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    • Profile picture of the author drmani
      Originally Posted by erichammer View Post

      Oh, I also forgot to mention that I typically read around 15-20 books per month and have some favorites I've read dozens of times...

      Eric
      YES!

      I'm impressed, Eric. I've averaged 5 to 10 books a month for years, and
      attribute a lot of my writing skill to the volume and quality of material I
      read and learn from.

      All success
      Dr.Mani
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      • Profile picture of the author deejones
        Originally Posted by erichammer View Post

        I'll just echo what has been said already: read and write. The best writers are also voracious readers who happily sit up all night reading a novel and prefer this to watching television. They also feel a need to get their words into tangible form and are constantly compelled to write (as the old saying goes, a writer writes).
        Agreed. I love to write because I'm such an avid reader. When I'm enjoying a great article, my subconscious is taking notes on the structure, word choice, imagery, etc. And those "subconscious notes" inform my writing.

        I also read a lot of books on writing. I'm always in the middle of one writing book or another. And have been since I discovered writing books existed.

        Reading things out loud can improve your writing. Find a good article, read it out loud, then try to write a summary (a paragraph or two) of the article that's in the same style.
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  • Profile picture of the author gasman
    "A former education will make you a living, Self education will make you a fortune." Jim Rohn... All the information you need to become a better writer is right at your fingertips. No need to go back to college, or buy an expensive online coarse. Everything you need to know can be found with a simple search engine search for free. Just learn proper grammar and you will be golden.
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  • Profile picture of the author ishuvonet
    Rather than taking courses its more about practice,More you write more you will get the mistakes,more you will learn and get the skill.And for getting skill in any niche you have to read a lot,since without knowledge you cant put the proper thoughts in your article for your client.
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  • Profile picture of the author celente
    There are two ways to do this for us.

    1) hire someone better than you and pay them to write for you.

    or

    2) Be different and un-boring. The best person I see do this is frank kern. He is a master of being different and going against the grain of all the other suit and tie monkeys.
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  • Profile picture of the author getzbuzy
    Fine tuning your ability to write well definitely takes time. Here are a few tips though. First, know the demographics of your readers because 25 to 35 year old men think very differently than 45 to 65 year old women. Secondly, learn as much as possible about the subject in which you are writing about. Be descriptive. Another great tip is to simply the thesaurus mode on dictionary.com...just to stand out (ie attract attention, be distinct, be highlighted, be striking, beetle, bulge, bulk, catch the eye, emerge, jut, loom, overhang, poke, pouch, project, protrude, stick out) See?
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  • Profile picture of the author blackbarbie
    Make the AP Stylebook your bible.
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  • Profile picture of the author makemoneywizz
    The best way to become a better writer is to READ!!!

    Reading increases your vocabulary and will make your writing more fluid. Start reading a few good books every month, and I can almost guarantee that your writing will improve.

    --Wizz--
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    • Profile picture of the author azmanar
      Hi,

      Lots of great tips in here. Thanks for sharing.

      Really motivating.

      I should be able to write better, if I heed all the advice.
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      === >>> Tomorrow Should Be Better Than Today

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  • Profile picture of the author fiberoptic
    Thanks for the tips, I wish I was a better writer. I've been using iWriter to do a lot of my websites content and spin it... :\
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  • Profile picture of the author Victoralexon
    Here is a small tip: Look up every word that you do not know in a dictionary. You can find great dictionaries online.
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  • Profile picture of the author lossman29
    Read some of the old school copywriting books, if you really want to develop writing as a skill. Some of Dan Dennett and John Carlton's stuff is just gold.

    I might have some lying around in my hard drive. PM me, if you're up for it.
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    "There is light at the end of the tunnel. Have some faith and work hard. ALWAYS."

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  • Profile picture of the author Gerald Arno
    Banned
    If you have no money to invest you will need to use free sources. Use Google or Forums for your research.

    I don't know how you can become the best in the world with no budget.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ido
    Whether you're currently writing professionally or still looking to break into the field, formal writing courses can help you hone your skills. If you don't have the money or the time for campus-based courses, there are plenty of universities that offer free writing courses online.
    check this link hope it could help
    10 Universities Offering Free Writing Courses Online
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  • Profile picture of the author debml
    There's another thread in the copywriting forum that talks about this.

    Does 100% honest copy work?

    Originally Posted by RickDuris
    You have a couple of options:

    There are a number of quality copywriters on this forum who mentor others, including in no particular order Ray Edwards, Malcolm Lambe, Mike Humphreys, Vin Montello, Marcia Yudkin, Paul Hancox and Mark Andrews. You might consider approaching them.

    2) David Garfinkel & Brian Mcleod are conducting a pretty intimate copywriting training event May 5th & 6th in San Francisco.

    High-Speed Copywriting Live Workshop - May 5-6, 2012 - San Francisco | Fast Effective Copy
    - Rick Duris
    Kindest regards,
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