Writing Tips from David Ogilvy

How is it going with the promise you’ve given yourself to read more and, as the result, improve your writing? After reading the most fascinating story about how to write the best paper underneath the stars and absorbing all possible pieces of advice from some writing guide of 1000 pages written by home-made writers, here comes some precious and absolutely uncompromising knowledge from the legendary businessman David Ogilvy. The message he sent on September, 7, 1982 to all agency personnel, included priceless recommendations on how to write and do writing professionally.

You’d probably agree on that the better your compose stories, the higher you go. Those people, who think well, definitely write perfectly. David Ogilvy states that narrow-minded people usually produce woolly prose, speeches and memos.

In David Ogilvy’s opinion, it’s impossible to consider good writing to be some sort of a gift that comes naturally. The point is that you must learn to write perfectly!

Here are simple writing hints provided by legendary David Ogilvy long time ago, but still so up-to-date!

1. Get familiar with the Roman-Raphaelson book about writing process peculiarities. Make sure to read this precious guidance at least three times.
2. Do your best to write naturally, just the way you chat with your pal.
3. Produce short paragraphs. Make certain to generate short sentences, words and word combinations.
4. Remember, jargon words are taboo (avoid using words like attitudinally, reconceptualise, etc.) – you do not want to look like a showy ass, do you?
5. Two pages are 100% enough to describe one subject.
6. Make sure to properly check all paper quotations!
7. Never submit the paper your have generated on the very day you finish it. Why? The thing is, you have to read it around the next day (in order to take a fresh look at it!) and only then edit it.
8. If you deal with something of great importance, ask your colleague to check your prose.
9. Before you send your “work of genius”, make certain it 100% IS what you were trying to make clear for the recipient.

And finally, if you are longing for ACTION, then stop writing! Just go and speak openly on the things you want to share!