The Art of Writing Copy

The Art of writing copy...

There has been much written about writing copy, much of it very informative and valuable, however, I suspect few have attempted to describe it the way I feel about it, and it is based purely on feeling.

If you could imagine that the letters and grammatical devices are nerve endings on your body and therefore communicate directly to your brain, you may be on the right track.

I believe that when we write, our fingers are caressing the words out of the keyboard. With every touch we free something - a feeling, a feeling that is instantly exciting, a feeling that you want to continue, you can feel your heart beat a little faster. You can feel the burning in your cheeks, you can feel the blood race around your body. And with the next word, and the next we start to generate an awareness of the type of feeling. Sometimes. Yes, sometimes the words keep you slow, slow in order that you can feel everything, if it is too fast, it is not always felt – although there is a time and a place for quick, fast and to the point. However, I firmly believe that writing and the art of writing is a very emotional activity, and so it should be. Consequently, I think it is a slow activity that builds up very slowly, very gradually, ensuring that with every word that you write that the feeling you wish your reader to experience is happening.

It is vital that you understand pace. You encourage the reader to read at your pace, they are reading with you, even although they want to speed up. Remember, it’s not about the climax. It’s about the journey to get there. That’s key to everything. The journey.

And now for something completely different:

There will always be a time for objective writing, but I’m sure you realise that the imagination can be a far more interesting place to be than in reality.