Be Bold - How to Steer Clear of Weak Words
Lesson 23 from: From Structure to Style: Master Your CopywritingShani Raja
Be Bold - How to Steer Clear of Weak Words
Lesson 23 from: From Structure to Style: Master Your CopywritingShani Raja
Lesson Info
23. Be Bold - How to Steer Clear of Weak Words
Lessons
Chapter 1: Copywriting Fundamentals
1Class Introduction - Overview of the Course Content
03:50 2The Five Aspirations of a Superior Copywriter
05:28 3The Importance of Defining Your Intention & Audience
06:02 4The “Secret Sauce” of Good Copywriting
04:29 5Quiz - Chapter 1
Chapter 2: Simplicity
6Introduction - The Power of Simplicity
02:06Tight Writing - How to Make Your Writing Snappy
05:43 8Tell it Straight - How to Write Plainly & Straightforwardly
03:36 9Don’t Overcomplicate - How to Avoid Unnecessary Complexity
04:59 10Quiz - Chapter 2
Chapter 3: Clarity
11Introduction - The Power of Clarity
01:33 12Nailing Down Your Ideas - How to Fix Fuzzy Ideas In Your Copy
04:07 13Place Words With Care - How to Avoid Misplacing Words
03:49 14Be Specific - How to Avoid Ambiguity, Jargon & Abstract Writing
09:09 15Quiz - Chapter 3
Chapter 4: Elegance
16Introduction - The Power of Elegance
01:57 17Present Elegantly - How to Make Your Writing Look Good
04:10 18Narrative Flow - How to Structure Your Copy Beautifully
04:09 19Musical Writing - How to Give Your Writing Rhythm
05:31 20Quiz - Chapter 4
Chapter 5: Evocativeness
21Introduction - The Power of Evocativeness
02:28 22Add Variety - How to Reduce Monotony in Your Writing
03:10 23Be Bold - How to Steer Clear of Weak Words
03:34 24Create Pictures - How to Make Your Writing Jump Out
06:23 25Quiz - Chapter 5
Chapter 6: Editing With Style
26Introduction - Get Ready to Edit
01:31 27The Quick-Smart Editing System
16:11 28Quiz - Chapter 6
Chapter 7: The Road Ahead: What’s Next?
29How to Nurture Your New Skills
03:06Final Quiz
30Final Quiz
Lesson Info
Be Bold - How to Steer Clear of Weak Words
in this lesson, you're going to learn how certain words can weaken your writing or lessen its power by the end you'll know how to avoid those particular words so that your writing becomes considerably more arresting and stimulating? You see there is a certain class of weak words that we often default to out of habit or perhaps because we're just so used to seeing them in other people's writing. But when we litter our copy with these low power words, it can take away quite a bit from the evocative nous of our writing. You may have heard them referred to by others as filler or hedging words I'm talking about words like somehow, somewhat a little rather arguably quite and I think there are words that we often use and actually when speaking so they can also sometimes creep into our writing when we first attempt to put our thoughts down. Now, whenever you spot one of these weak words in your writing, I recommend that you at least consider whether it's worth getting rid of. For example, look...
at this sentence. I was somewhat irritated by the way she spoke to me. Now, there's nothing necessarily wrong with using the word somewhat there. In fact, the word may sometimes even help to make your writing more more precise or it might even at times add a touch of elegance or even music to a sentence or it could give you the exact tone you perhaps want to convey. But you should always at least consider whether such a word is strictly necessary or useful after all? What's the difference between somewhat irritated and just irritated if you're somewhat irritated aren't you just simply irritated. Is it a question of degree that you're trying to convey? Maybe so, but if not then you should at least try dropping it and see what happens like this. I was irritated by the way she spoke to me, there was anything lost for having taken the word somewhat out of the sentence. Probably not. In fact, as you can see, the sentence actually sounds a bit more bold and more force, forceful without it. Here's another example to show you how hedging and filler words can sometimes weaken your writing. I would argue that Microsoft new strategy is a bit risky expressions like I would argue I believe I think and a bit can often make your writing feel limp and you can really feel the difference in the impact as soon as you rewrite the sentence without those weak words in it. Microsoft's new strategy is risky. See how much more robust and bold that now sounds so be on the guard for these seemingly innocent phrases that can often slip through the net and take power away from your writing. After all, people will usually assume that this is your thought, your belief, your view or your opinion. So you don't need to take the bite out of your sentences by always spelling it out. Now reducing your use of weak words, can certainly give your writing a big boost, but there's something else you can easily do to make readers sit up and take notice. You can create pictures for them, and in the next lesson I'll be showing you how to do that.