LA Tribune Special Edition for Leadership

March 2023

Just published on page 32 in the Special Leadership Edition link.

Here is the article that was submitted:

The Art of Writing, Creating, and Persuasion

The story draws you in as the writer weaves the words across the page. Planting an image, you can’t shake. Capturing your mind. Compelling you to keep reading. The same overwhelming desire to sit on the edge of your seat straining to hear the punch line at the end of a joke.

My English high school teacher wanted to test our creativity. He put on an instrumental classical record. Don’t recall the name other than the word ‘sunset’ was in the title. The others sat intently listening to the music, I guess with the hopes to capture how to interpret what filled the room. I grabbed my pen and started writing.

Across the ocean strait, from where I lived, was Galiano Island. Part of the cliff was sheer rock reaching several hundred feet from the base. Many times, I watched the sunset dance across the bank.

As the others sat, I wrote the images that flashed in my mind, writing what I felt. The music ended and my article was written. Took it home to correct errors and type out the assignment.

When the teacher graded the assignments, he read mine to the class. At 16, it even impressed me, not to mention the A+ as being mighty awesome. I was a C student.

I learned a couple of valuable lessons from that experience. First, being an ‘A’ student isn’t necessary to write captivating, expressive words that compel people to want to listen. Second, creating is possible when you put your heart and soul into the task.

Those were days of the manual typewriters. And before the pleasure of using liquid paper. The days of carbon paper. Printers that resembled a mini press in the typing room. It was never very conducive to my creative side of writing. Typing was tedious. You prayed for no errors or key malfunctions.

Fast forward to the digital age. It opened up a whole new world for writers. I recall sitting in front of my home computer in awe of a program called ‘Word’.

Possibilities of this new technology were endless. Make a mistake, backspace, and sap. It was gone. Didn’t like the place of a sentence, just copy and paste it elsewhere.

The art of writing today is no longer engulfed with frustration. Gave up digital art, propelling me instead to create with words.

Writing has become an obsession, a passion, and a pursuit of knowledge. To be a writer you have to read, research, and, of course, write.

Creating, designing, and writing for many websites became intriguing. During this time, I took online psychology classes. The education was fascinating. Was putting lots of thoughts in writing, but it lacked luster.

Six years ago, I took writing seriously.

Copywriting became the journey of learning. Interesting to understand what this newfound career meant.

The first-time hearing of copywriting, I conjured up the visions of law. Which is an entirely different word.

Next thought was the ugly word of selling. But top copywriters don’t sell. Although it may appear that way.

Getting past the concept of selling. Yes, the purpose is to make sales of products, services, or ideas. But is best achieved by storytelling. People remember stories.

Copywriting is filling a need. That was a foreign idea to grasp.

The power of persuasion.

Relating to an experience when I was 11 or 12. The Fuller Brush man visited my mom. She was never a pushover for salespeople. It was rare for her to spend a dime on any item deemed unnecessary.

First words he spoke were, “I know you don’t want to buy anything.” He proceeded to tell her of the shampoo he used and how his hair shone in the sunlight. I was amused at his ‘no sales’ approach.

Of course, she was not in the market for his shampoo. But bought a bottle of vanilla extract. He dropped by a few times a year. There were times she parted with a few bucks. Pressuring her may have resulted in the door being slammed in his face.

The fine art of persuasion. He knew his audience and the correct method to make a sale.

My copywriting training taught that knowing your audience was key. If there was no benefit to a potential customer, a sale was virtually impossible. If bullying someone to buy, they may suffer from buyer’s remorse. Not an ethical way to sell.

Throughout our lives, we sell.

The lessons of copywriting have an immense wealth of information.

For example, you create a resume to get that dream job. Being the most qualified candidate doesn’t guarantee being hired. If you can persuade a future employer how beneficial you are to join their team, you could be their next employee.

The answer is to prove the value you bring, even if the requirements far outweigh your skills. This comes full circle back to the art of persuasion. It pertains to everything in life, from family, friends, jobs, store clerks, or any casual meetings with people we meet for the first time.

Copywriting classes have taught me that writing and life is an art of giving and helping. Never expected that from a simple task of tapping on a keyboard. It opened a world of parallel existence of writing and living.

P.S. Do you need some help getting your message to your audience?

Do you need a copywriter for all the writing tasks you hate doing?

Please reach out through my Contact page here and let me help.