Partnership and Expertise
A hired writer asks questions and documents the answers. A thinking partner works entirely differently.
Pillars, Ruins
Before you need a content strategy, you need a) something worth saying over a sustained period and b) a reasonable degree of clarity about where content fits in the decision-making process.
“Jargon” is a Lazy Label
Pointing at something and calling it “jargon” is not a way to add value. It’s a common form of low-value contribution from content psuedo-specialists who know nothing about the subject matter and who have no connection to or understanding of the target audience.
Open and Curious
When I write for other people, a huge part of my job is being open and curious. And prepared. I’m not here to squeeze people into whatever little box my small mind has brought to the conversation.
Falling
Sometimes, a fall is just a fall. People often share business anecdotes as if they contain some sort of object lesson. Or they share oddly declarative proclamations as if they offer some sort of universal truth. It’s performative insight, but it means nothing.
Nine Theses for Ethical Service Providers
Providing a service implies a duty to care. It’s less about the money than what doing something on behalf of someone entails. If you won’t honor that duty, do better or go do something else. Here are nine theses describing what a writer or any service provider owes clients.
Lazy Writers and Other Scribblers
Watch out for writers who want you to “explain it like I’m five years old.” The framing and explanation of an idea should align with the intellectual level of its intended recipient.
Brevity Is the Soul of What Now?
Calls for brevity usually entail a cynical view of one’s audience or readership. You assume people can’t or won’t take the time to care. You want to give people just the takeaways so they can go forward and take them away—without inquiry or reflection.
Stop Making Bad Deals
When you make a deal to distort your writing and thinking for the sake of a platform algorithm, you slowly corrode the quality of your thought.
Escaping Authenticity
The concept of authenticity ultimately only makes sense if you see yourself and others as consumables. It reduces profound human experiences to their visibility and marketability as commodities.