Bloggers, one theme per post, please
Blog posts aren’t books. You only have time to make one major point per post.
In support of my thesis, I offer three quotes from The Elements of Story: Field Notes on Nonfiction Writing by Francis Flaherty, an editor at The New York Times.
- “A writer is like a gardener who knows one tree can serve as a focal point in a garden, but that many trees will just muck up the impact of each. Also, a good writer realizes that readers have the mental room to store just one large thought from a story,” pages 32-33.
- “A subject is not a story; it is many possible stories. To write is to choose, which is to exclude,” p. 33.
- “No detail belongs in a story if it doesn’t serve some role therein. As Chekhov said, don’t put a gun on stage in Act I if it doesn’t get used by the end of the play,” p. 37
What do YOU think of Flaherty’s quotes?
By the way, if you’re struggling to crank out a steady stream of readable blog posts, consider enrolling in my five-week class for financial advisors, “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read.”
Related posts
* Five great writing tips: They’re not just for ads
* Financial writers, lead with your message, not your source
* Bloggers’ top two punctuation mistakes
NOTE: On May 25, 2021, I updated the link to my financial blogging class and to my related posts.
