VIEWPOINT: The Secret To Better Writing, Speaking, Blogging And Tweeting

http://thinkprogress.org/media/2012/08/18/708101/viewpoint-the-secret-to-better-writing-speaking-blogging-and-tweeting/


Use short, simple words.

Repeat, repeat, repeat. Repetition is the essential element of all persuasion.

Master irony and foreshadowing. They are central elements of popular culture, modern politics, and mass media for a reason—they help us make sense of the stories of our lives and other people’s lives.

Use metaphors to paint a picture, to connect what your listeners already know to what you want them to know. Metaphors may be the most important figure as well as the most underused and misused.

Create an extended metaphor when you have a big task at hand, like framing a picture-perfect speech or launching a major campaign.

If you want to avoid being seduced, learn the figures of seduction. If you want to debunk a myth, do not repeat that myth.

These tools can be applied to improve the effectiveness of your writing, speaking, blogging — even your Tweeting.