QUICK QUIDE

How to Be a
Better Writer

Good writing—effective writing—has nuance and subtlety. Doing it takes practice and a deep
understanding. But, the very first thing you need to tackle on your way to becoming a better
writer is the why. As in, why should you care about being a better writer in the first place?

Answer: it’s persuasion in the most scalable way.

To communicate persuasively is to wield a powerful tool. It can influence minds, change opinions,
and drive action. Whether you’re trying to nail your business pitch, or write a viral-worthy blog
post, the written word holds an abundance of power to help you get the results you want.

In the most simple terms, there are 3 areas of focus to improve your writing.

01 Pre-Writing 02 Drafting 03 Editing

We could leave it at that—but, of course, we won’t.

The following pages will take you deep into each of these phases. We’ll dig into habit-building
pre-work, key concepts for good drafting, and expert tips on editing sessions that make magic.

Let’s dive in.

Table of Contents

Pre-Writing 3

Writing 6

Editing 8
Pre-Writing
90% of the work in copywriting is done before you pen your first word. Effective
copy doesn’t just flow. It’s deeply rooted in clear thinking and inspiration.

These are the 3 things you can do in your pre-work that will absolutely change
the game for your copywriting efforts.

01 Think Better
People usually believe that writing is their bottleneck. They’ll say “oh I’m not a good
writer,” but actually—the actual problem probably isn’t your ability to write, but rather,
your ability to think.

To write clearly, you must think clearly—and the reverse. Bad writing will show bad
thinking. Great writing will show great thinking. As a practice, writing is a forcing
function for you to be able to think better.

If you’re struggling to write, it’s because the idea isn’t clear. Focus on finding clarity
around your idea, and the writing part will come much easier.

How do you fix it?

1. Be Interested: You have to be interested in what you’re thinking about in order to

think clearly about it.
2. Mind Mapping: Use mind mapping techniques to visually organize your thoughts
and ideas. This can help you see connections between different concepts, identify
key points, and develop a coherent structure for your writing.
3. Say it in a Voice Memo: Practice distilling your ideas down into a 60-second (or
less) voice memo. This will help you cut the fluff and get down to the juicy parts
that are actually worth thinking—and, thus, writing—about.
4. Say it in a Tweet: Similar to the voice memo approach, try taking your idea and
explaining it in 280 characters or less.

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02 Build Your Swipe File
You need to be keeping a swipe file. It’s essentially your treasure trove of killer writing
that makes you go, “Man, that’s good!” We’re talking grabby headlines, killer intros,
and landing pages that just nail it.

Why bother, you ask?

These snippets of writing gold aren’t just for show—they’re the key to inspiration. Next
time you hit a creative roadblock, dip into your swipe file and let those brilliant ideas
reignite your inspiration.

Trust me, having a swipe file is like having a secret weapon up your sleeve. It’s your
ticket to understanding what works and why, and transforming those insights into
your own content.

No need to make this anything fancy. It can be a folder in your Google Drive, a label
in your email, or a living note in your phone’s notes app.

03 Make Copywork a Habit

Take writing that you love (a chapter from a book, a movie script, a blog post) and
copy it. Don’t add your own stuff, don’t try to improve it—just copy it word-for-word.
Pen-on-paper is best, but typing is better than nothing.

Sam recommends doing this for 10 minutes or so as a warm-up before starting any
original writing.

It’s like learning to play an instrument and write music, you start out by covering
other people’s work before writing your own songs. Or, cooking—you follow recipes
from other people before you go off on your own. Writing isn’t that different from
any other skill. It can be taught, and copywork is a great way to self-teach using
writers you admire.

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Here are a few pieces of content we love for this practice:

“How To Use Words To Get People To Do What You Want Them To Do”
- The Anti-MBA

“We Don’t Sell Saddles Here” - Stewart Butterfield, CEO of Slack

“Still I Rise” - Maya Angelou

“To be a good copywriter:” - Eddie Shleyner, Very Good Copy

FREE RESOURCE:

22 Copywriting Examples From Businesses with Incredible Copywriters

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Writing
When writing for the digital age, you have to throw out everything you learned
in school. Forget fancy vocabulary or lengthy word count. The Internet rewards
accessible language and concise, clear copy.

Your draft doesn’t need to be perfect. In fact, it’s probably better if it’s not. At this
stage, your attention should be dialed-in on conveying your ideas. You worry about
making it sound pretty later on.

This is what you need to do:

01 Begin with the End in Mind

Other resources in this crash course dive deeper into this concept, but we’re repeating
ourselves for a reason.

There should be a goal attached to whatever you’re writing. That goal should inform
every stroke of your pen—or, of your keyboard.

Before you start a single word, you need to have answers to these three questions:

1. What is the reaction I want the reader to have?

2. What is the action I want the reader to take?
3. What is the key takeaway of this piece of content?

02 Start with a Headline

Remember what we said about throwing out what you learn in school? Brace yourself.

We don’t use outlines.

Instead, we kick things off with a headline that packs a punch and sets the tone for
what’s to come. When it comes to crafting engaging content, it’s all about creating
headlines that hook readers in, pique their curiosity, and leave them hungry for more.

Don’t know where to start? Go back to those pre-writing exercises of distilling your
ideas into voice memos or Tweets. Your headline should hold the juice of your story.

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03 Don’t Bury the Lead
Start with your most important point.

Forget beating around the bush—grab your readers’ attention right off the bat by
leading with the heart of your message.

Whether it’s a shocking statistic, a captivating story, or a thought-provoking question,

make sure your key point takes center stage. Remember, in the world of compelling
content, clarity and impact are key.

So, identify that core message and let it shine bright from the very beginning.

04 Write Like You Talk

Utilize a professional lexicon devoid of colloquialisms and employ specialized
terminologies while steadfastly eschewing informal linguistic expressions—okay, we’re done.

To truly connect with your readers, you have to ditch the formalities and write like you
speak. Ditch the corporate jargon and complicated language. (Seriously, have you ever
actually heard someone say the word “utilize” out loud?)

Keep it real, keep it simple, keep it relatable.

Imagine you’re chatting with a friend over coffee. By using casual, conversational
language, you’ll build a connection with your audience, making your message more
engaging and easier to digest.

05 Draft Fast, Incubate Slow

Write your first draft fast. It will be bad—and that’s okay.

Turn off your inner editor and just write. Give yourself permission to write badly.
Seriously. This is the phase where you’re allowed to sound dumb.

The good stuff happens after your first draft is done and you have time to incubate.
You’ve experienced it.

You know the breakthrough you had while you were brushing your teeth or walking
your dog? It’s called passive thinking. It’s essential to turning your draft into
something worth reading.

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Editing
Let’s be perfectly clear: great writing is great editing. This is where the real magic
unfolds and your words come alive.

This is your chance to make your writing truly sing, so have fun with it and let your
creativity run wild.

David Ogilvy, the “Father of Advertising”, says it best: “I am a lousy copywriter, but
I am a good editor.”

Here’s your roadmap:

01 Take a Break Before Editing.

The mistake a lot of people make is trying to power through drafting and editing in
the same session. Shaan’s suggestion is to take at least 90 minutes between drafting
and editing—but longer is okay.

That incubation period is essential to editing with clarity. It lets you load the idea into
your brain, take time to chew on it, and then show up to a high-energy editing session
ready to turn a draft into something good.

02 Create a Curiosity Gap

We call it “the slippery slope”. Each sentence should be crafted with the goal of
getting the reader to the next sentence.

You hook them in at the start, by not burying the lead, and keep them engaged by
sparking interest with every word.

A simple test is to cover up all of the text, except for the first two sentences. Are they
engaging enough to make you want to keep going? Now uncover the third sentence.
Then, the fourth, then the fifth, and so on. Every word should be purposeful.

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03 Focus on Clarity and Conciseness
The name of the game here is clarity and simplicity. Think short sentences, easy
language, and good structure.

You want your writing to be crystal clear and easy to grasp. Aim for a reading level of
6th to 8th-grade. The Hemingway App can help you with that.

Ultimately, your content should be valuable for the reader and easy to consume—like
a nutrient-packed strawberry smoothie.

04 Find the Rhythm

A pleasing rhythm keeps your readers engaged. By varying the length and structure of
your sentences, you can create a cadence that enhances the reading experience.

Short sentences can add impact. They create momentum. While longer sentences
offer depth and complexity. This interplay of sentence length and structure guides the
reader through your writing with ease.

Gary Provost illustrates this idea perfectly:

This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word
sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen
to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it
drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety.

Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music.
The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony.
I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length.
And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage
him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns
with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll
of the drums, the crash of the cymbals–sounds that say listen to this,
it is important.

So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences.

Create a sound that pleases the reader’s ear. Don’t just write words.
Write music.”
Gary Provost

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Sam Parr’s
CopyThat Power Writing
course by Shaan Puri
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daily copywriting lessons you write killer landing pages,
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