My writing used to really struggle to attract any interest.
Years of writing, tweaking and improving things, as well as working with several coaches, showed me the main issue:
I was trying to do too much.
I'd start with one idea, then chase three more down rabbit holes, cramming everything I knew about a topic into one sprawling piece.
My articles read like shopping lists written by someone having a mild panic attack. No wonder readers bounced after the first paragraph.
I finally figured out that readers are overwhelmed with information and want simplicity.
No matter what I wrote, whether an article, a short post or a book...
Each piece needed one easy-to-understand POINT.
If I couldn't explain the one central point, I wasn't publishing it.
For a book, every chapter would be written in service to that one point. Just as every point in a listicle of mine would serve the main point.
This might sound obvious, but most writers ignore it completely.
We're terrified of leaving things out, and we want to show how much we know, and all the angles we've considered.
This is also an issue with lower-confidence writing by newbies. They want to impress. So, in their minds, the best writing has MORE STUFF IN IT.
But that just makes for terrible, convoluted writing.
Readers don't want your entire brain dumped onto the page.
They want one useful thought they can actually apply so they can soothe one of their problems.
When I started forcing myself to pick one premise per article, my writing got way better.
Instead of confused readers clicking away, people started sharing my work.
Why does this work so well?
Your brain is not good at holding several, often conflicting ideas at once.
When you give readers multiple points to juggle, their attention fractures. They skim instead of absorb. They forget what they read five minutes later.
But when you give them one clear idea, they stay with you.
They feel like you've written exactly what they needed to hear.
Look at any article you've bookmarked or shared recently. I guarantee it had a single, crystal-clear point you could summarise in one sentence.
This is key because it also guides you, the writer, to write with more clarity.
And when you understand what you're writing, it's far easier to emotionally connect with your words.
And readers feel that in their guts.
Here are some examples of single, guiding points for a piece of writing:
'The best conversations happen when you stop trying to be interesting and start being interested.'
'Your biggest creative breakthrough is hiding behind your most boring routine.'
'Every piece of writing needs exactly one clear premise that guides everything else, or it will confuse readers and fail to make an impact.' (The point of this very article)
(And they can be more specific than this).
How do you find your one main point when your head is buzzing with possibilities?
Here's my method:
Before writing anything, grab a piece of paper and brain-dump every possible angle you could take. Focus on problems to solve.
You might need to free-write a while before you start receiving insights.
What are you really trying to say?
What's that one thing your readers need to know? What excites you most about this topic? What would make someone stop scrolling?
You might end up with five, ten, or fifteen different angles or points. Perfect.
Now pick the best one.
When you know exactly what you're trying to say, everything becomes easier. Your examples become more relevant. Your structure reveals itself, and your ending writes itself.
I've tested this with hundreds of articles now. The focused pieces consistently outperform the scattered ones. Not just in views, but in the responses I get.
SO...
Stop trying to say everything.
Start saying one thing well.
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Alex
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Nice! My trick has been similar to yours: I don’t publish until I can explain the entire piece in one short sentence. If I can’t, the draft goes back into the drawer.