MaeJ09:
What makes you stand out as a writer?

I reviewed over 20 applications from Nairaland in the past one month, and not one stood out.

Not one.

Weak intros. Zero fact-backed statistics. Bad syntax and sentence structure. And the most irksome of all — No images.

I've reached the conclusion that many "self-acclaimed writing experts" are not worth a solid six months of writing experience.

Here's another scenario.

Once I reached out to this guy on LinkedIn with a buffed up bio that read, "SEO expert, content writing maverick, ad-hoc direct response copywriter and all-round tech enthusiast."

Two minutes into the chat and his misuse of "have" for "I've" threw me off like a pungent smell.

Let's take it back home — I don't know what y'all been doing. But clearly, it's not industry standard.

Hear me out. You can do better. You can BE better. You can EARN better.

What to do?

Toss the rewrites in the trash can. No, seriously. That's where they belong. Embrace research with all you have and are.

Get you a mentor. The industry is a tough one; take it from me. And no one is going to mentor you with a half-assed work ethic and commitment.

Don't know how to get one? Cold messages are quite intrusive so you don't want to go ham on that one. Nevertheless, if you must do that — offer value. There must be something you can give in exchange for their guidance.

Next, join a "god-fearing" writing agency!

See ehn, don't shy away from your days of humble beginnings. In my experience, writers with concrete agency experience are gold. They're dynamic. Adaptable and are likely better than self taught writers without diverse experience.

Wondering why I used "God-fearing"? Many writing agencies are content mills. Stay away from those that expect you to hit KPIs that they themselves cannot hit.

Anything above 2k words a day is slavery! It's largely unsustainable and bad for your mental health. You won't even produce great work for starters. So what gives?

Writing agencies have well-thought out guidelines as part of their cohesive writing strategy. These guidelines are what puts you on a tight rope to learn and adapt.

Aim to write like a native-english speaker. That includes learning their nuances and whatnot. Nigerian English is very different from British English. If your audience isn't Nigerian why on earth are you using "have" for "I've"?

Write in active voice. Passive voice is tiring, boring and less impactful to your audience.

E.g: Active: The man killed the dog.
Passive: The dog was killed by the man.

Scrap this kind of writing if you're not in Academia or Reuben Abati's colleague. You won't impress anyone with braggadocios writing.

Kill Fluff. Dive straight into the meat of it. Back up every bold statement with data or statistics. If you can't, then omit it.

USE IMAGES. That's all.

Read other blogs. Learn. Grow. Subscribe to other experienced writers' newsletters. I love Neil Patel, Ryan Robinson and Harry Dry and I've learnt tons from them.

Finally, streamline the industry you want to work in. Copywriting and Content writing are insanely different. You'll know if you've been doing both long enough.

Why this long epistle? I'm not selling a book — it's stressful.

Neither am I actively hiring, though I wouldn't pass up on an awesome, competent writer.

I'm writing this to help you. 'Cos if someone did same for me when I was starting out, my journey would've been way shorter.

Over to You — Go on and smash your career goals.

MaeJ09:
What makes you stand out as a writer?

I reviewed over 20 applications from Nairaland in the past one month, and not one stood out.

Not one.

Weak intros. Zero fact-backed statistics. Bad syntax and sentence structure. And the most irksome of all — No images.

I've reached the conclusion that many "self-acclaimed writing experts" are not worth a solid six months of writing experience.

Here's another scenario.

Once I reached out to this guy on LinkedIn with a buffed up bio that read, "SEO expert, content writing maverick, ad-hoc direct response copywriter and all-round tech enthusiast."

Two minutes into the chat and his misuse of "have" for "I've" threw me off like a pungent smell.

Let's take it back home — I don't know what y'all been doing. But clearly, it's not industry standard.

Hear me out. You can do better. You can BE better. You can EARN better.

What to do?

Toss the rewrites in the trash can. No, seriously. That's where they belong. Embrace research with all you have and are.

Get you a mentor. The industry is a tough one; take it from me. And no one is going to mentor you with a half-assed work ethic and commitment.

Don't know how to get one? Cold messages are quite intrusive so you don't want to go ham on that one. Nevertheless, if you must do that — offer value. There must be something you can give in exchange for their guidance.

Next, join a "god-fearing" writing agency!

See ehn, don't shy away from your days of humble beginnings. In my experience, writers with concrete agency experience are gold. They're dynamic. Adaptable and are likely better than self taught writers without diverse experience.

Wondering why I used "God-fearing"? Many writing agencies are content mills. Stay away from those that expect you to hit KPIs that they themselves cannot hit.

Anything above 2k words a day is slavery! It's largely unsustainable and bad for your mental health. You won't even produce great work for starters. So what gives?

Writing agencies have well-thought out guidelines as part of their cohesive writing strategy. These guidelines are what puts you on a tight rope to learn and adapt.

Aim to write like a native-english speaker. That includes learning their nuances and whatnot. Nigerian English is very different from British English. If your audience isn't Nigerian why on earth are you using "have" for "I've"?

Write in active voice. Passive voice is tiring, boring and less impactful to your audience.

E.g: Active: The man killed the dog.
Passive: The dog was killed by the man.

Scrap this kind of writing if you're not in Academia or Reuben Abati's colleague. You won't impress anyone with braggadocios writing.

Kill Fluff. Dive straight into the meat of it. Back up every bold statement with data or statistics. If you can't, then omit it.

USE IMAGES. That's all.

Read other blogs. Learn. Grow. Subscribe to other experienced writers' newsletters. I love Neil Patel, Ryan Robinson and Harry Dry and I've learnt tons from them.

Finally, streamline the industry you want to work in. Copywriting and Content writing are insanely different. You'll know if you've been doing both long enough.

Why this long epistle? I'm not selling a book — it's stressful.

Neither am I actively hiring, though I wouldn't pass up on an awesome, competent writer.

I'm writing this to help you. 'Cos if someone did same for me when I was starting out, my journey would've been way shorter.

Over to You — Go on and smash your career goals.

Udoboss:



Expatiate on writing lyk the native speakers ...
I lost a gig....They said I sounded lyk a Nigerian...
Though My research and no fluff was commended

MaeJ09:


Learn the nuances of your audience. For instance, "absolutely bonkers" is more of a British colloquial than it is a North American, no?

When you write a sentence, put your self in the shoes of native speakers. Do they talk like that?
For example;
"You will now come and turn", is Nigerian English. We use these things normally here. Dunno why.

"Having said that, he walked away." Another Nigerian English.

Read more foreign blogs in your niche by native English speakers — not Indians — they still bring in their nuances too.

Use Grammarly premium.

Write properly. Our phones have autocorrect for a reason. "Like" is not "lyk", even in casual settings.


Wish you the best.

Udoboss:



Lol....thanks...

Having said that..is my normal line..
Grammarly premium has never faulted me....

Thanks for the eye opener..

MaeJ09:


It might not fault you because it isn't exactly incorrect.

But starting your sentences with gerunds instead of actual nouns or strong verbs depict a poor, or lacking vocabulary.

You want to avoid nominalizations by all means.

MaeJ09:
What makes you stand out as a writer?

I reviewed over 20 applications from Nairaland in the past one month, and not one stood out.

Not one.

Weak intros. Zero fact-backed statistics. Bad syntax and sentence structure. And the most irksome of all — No images.

I've reached the conclusion that many "self-acclaimed writing experts" are not worth a solid six months of writing experience.

Here's another scenario.

Once I reached out to this guy on LinkedIn with a buffed up bio that read, "SEO expert, content writing maverick, ad-hoc direct response copywriter and all-round tech enthusiast."

Two minutes into the chat and his misuse of "have" for "I've" threw me off like a pungent smell.

Let's take it back home — I don't know what y'all been doing. But clearly, it's not industry standard.

Hear me out. You can do better. You can BE better. You can EARN better.

What to do?

Toss the rewrites in the trash can. No, seriously. That's where they belong. Embrace research with all you have and are.

Get you a mentor. The industry is a tough one; take it from me. And no one is going to mentor you with a half-assed work ethic and commitment.

Don't know how to get one? Cold messages are quite intrusive so you don't want to go ham on that one. Nevertheless, if you must do that — offer value. There must be something you can give in exchange for their guidance.

Next, join a "god-fearing" writing agency!

See ehn, don't shy away from your days of humble beginnings. In my experience, writers with concrete agency experience are gold. They're dynamic. Adaptable and are likely better than self taught writers without diverse experience.

Wondering why I used "God-fearing"? Many writing agencies are content mills. Stay away from those that expect you to hit KPIs that they themselves cannot hit.

Anything above 2k words a day is slavery! It's largely unsustainable and bad for your mental health. You won't even produce great work for starters. So what gives?

Writing agencies have well-thought out guidelines as part of their cohesive writing strategy. These guidelines are what puts you on a tight rope to learn and adapt.

Aim to write like a native-english speaker. That includes learning their nuances and whatnot. Nigerian English is very different from British English. If your audience isn't Nigerian why on earth are you using "have" for "I've"?

Write in active voice. Passive voice is tiring, boring and less impactful to your audience.

E.g: Active: The man killed the dog.
Passive: The dog was killed by the man.

Scrap this kind of writing if you're not in Academia or Reuben Abati's colleague. You won't impress anyone with braggadocios writing.

Kill Fluff. Dive straight into the meat of it. Back up every bold statement with data or statistics. If you can't, then omit it.

USE IMAGES. That's all.

Read other blogs. Learn. Grow. Subscribe to other experienced writers' newsletters. I love Neil Patel, Ryan Robinson and Harry Dry and I've learnt tons from them.

Finally, streamline the industry you want to work in. Copywriting and Content writing are insanely different. You'll know if you've been doing both long enough.

Why this long epistle? I'm not selling a book — it's stressful.

Neither am I actively hiring, though I wouldn't pass up on an awesome, competent writer.

I'm writing this to help you. 'Cos if someone did same for me when I was starting out, my journey would've been way shorter.

Over to You — Go on and smash your career goals.