No surprise, we write a lot of articles on Craft Your Content. Usually about writing, editing, and crafting your content.
If you haven’t gotten a chance to dig through our articles yet, we wanted to make it nice and easy for you to find what you are looking for.
Here are some of our most popular posts (and some of our personal favorites that don’t get the love they deserve) broken out into five simple categories.
1. On Writing
- Famous Authors and Their Writing Styles – It’s the epic stories and original writing styles that set famous authors apart from the forgotten. By understanding their styles, you can create your own.
- 70 Gifts for Writers – Craft Your Content’s 2022 Holiday Gift Guide – Our annual gift guide for writers, with lots of goodies and resources to treat yo’self (or send the link to folks who never buy you good gifts!)
- How to Write WAY More Words Per Hour (Without Sacrificing Quality) – Writers’ speeds vary, but there’s lots you can do to write faster. Even if you think you’re naturally a slow writer, you can improve your speed. Just trying out one of these tips could make a big difference.
- A Philosophy of Writing: How To See the Bigger Picture Behind Your Craft – Writing is a much wider and more abstract activity than mere typing or outlining. Understanding this philosophy of writing can liberate writers’ creativity.
2. On Editing
- The Editor’s Creed – Worked with a bad editor before? Did they strip your words to make them perfect? Not all editors do that. Many adhere to The Editor’s Creed. If you are going to work with someone, make sure they do as well.
- 5 Types of Editing That Result in Top Quality Content – Learn 5 types of editing: developmental, content, line, copy, and proofreading – and how to use them in the right order to produce high-quality content.
- Why Does It Take So Damn Long for My Editor to Edit My Article? – Why does it take so damn long for her to edit your article? Surely it doesn’t take several hours, let alone a few days, to catch a few typos.
- What I’ve Learned About My Writing While Working with an Editor – What one freelance writer learned after having the Craft Your Content team edit her writing for a few months.
3. On Creativity and Process
- What to Do If You Hate Journaling – Journaling has become an oft-given piece of advice to writers, both aspiring and professional alike. But what if you hate journaling? We’ll talk about why journaling isn’t for everyone, and what you can do instead.
- What Is Copywork (and How to Use It to Establish a Daily Writing Routine) – Copywork has been practiced for centuries for practical reasons, but it can also be used as a daily writing routine to help writers develop their own craft. Take a page from your favorite book and start copying it down, and soon you’ll be writing like the writers you love to read.
- Improve Your Writing Process by Building a Mind Palace – People ask Elisa all the time about her writing process. And while everyone’s process is different, she happens to think a mind palace is a great place to start.
- The Science Behind What Writing Does to Your Brain – Ever wonder what goes on in that head of yours while you’re writing? The technology is out there, and here is what it tells us about your brain.
4. On The Business of Writing & Publishing
- Lessons Learned From The New York Times Modern Love Column Submission Tips – Top advice from editor Daniel Jones on how to write your New York Times Modern Love column in a way that gets noticed and gets you published. (Relevant if you want to pitch any major publication on any topic — the advice is about Modern Love but applies elsewhere)
- The Six Shapes of All Stories – with Entrepreneurial Tales – There are six story shapes in literature, and as it turns out, they also exist in entrepreneurship. Six shapes for six tales of success and failure.
- Pros and Cons of Using a Pen Name – Using a pen name has both pros and cons that a writer should be aware of. This is an often misunderstood concept that writers don’t fully understand before making their choice.
- How To Choose the Best Font for Your Writing– Font may seem insignificant, but it can make a difference; not only to your writing, but also how you make your readers feel. Find your best font for writing.
5. On The History Behind Words
- A Word Journal May Be the Best-Kept Secret Weapon in Your Vocabulary Arsenal – By the time you get to the end of this post, you will have a word journal system for finding your favorite words and researching their etymologies. This is gonna get geeky!
- Learn Technique from a Greek: Where Modes of Persuasion Meet Content Creation – Rhetoric – the forgotten art of persuasion. If you’ve buried the lessons learned in college English, it’s time to resurrect them. For content creation!
- SEO Started in the 12th Century: Bet You Didn’t Know That – The evolution of language is fascinating, but some things haven’t changed. You can find SEO strategies in some of the most ancient printed text.
- Lincoln Never Said That! (Or Why You Should Research Quotes Before Sharing) – You glance at the quote, and you laugh, get inspired, get motivated, or think. But do you take the time to double-check if the quotes are legit?
6. What We Can Learn From…
- What We Can Learn From the Writing of Anthony Bourdain – Anthony Bourdain was an award-winning chef and a skilled documentary-maker. If that wasn’t enough, his writing was also Michelin Star-standard.
- What I Learned About Writing From Reading James Joyce – James Joyce made literary history, and his works also have made a major impact on writers. Learn how his works have influenced decades of writing and our approach to language as a whole.
- Every Writer Should Do Blackout Poetry… Here’s Why – Blackout poetry is one of the latest art fads, but it’s more than just a trendy leisure activity—it can reduce stress and even help you push through writer’s block.
- Skill with a Quill: The Power of Writing in “Hamilton” – Writing has three faces in the musical Hamilton: a survival tool, as a weapon, and an act of creation. All writers can learn from the hit musical.
Photo credit: sorokopud