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How to add rhythm to your writing

12 Nov

Welcome to today’s issue of Efikó, a weekly newsletter by me, Dozie Anyaegbunam, with a focus on content marketing, writing, social strategy, and living your best life. THANK YOU for being here! I appreciate you.

William Peter Blatty Quote: “Good writing is rhythm.”

Hello beautiful people 👋

How’s your week been? My birthday is in a couple of weeks. And I have been thinking about how the past 12 months have unfolded.

I am grateful. But also a tad heartbroken. I feel like I am in a really good moment in my life (great job, great family, and some fantastic friends that have become family). But every now and then, I realize that I haven’t completely overcome the grief of losing my mom three years ago.

But I guess life happens. And we have no option but to go with the flow.

Now to today’s topic.

How to improve the rhythm of your writing

I never get tired of saying this to anyone that cares to listen — good writing is similar to writing poetry.

Think of rhythmic writing like music.

Musicians alternate between long and short notes, tone length, depth, and sometimes silence. When you adopt this to your writing, the following happens:

  • Readers are engaged

  • Your writing isn’t boring

  • Your writing is smoother and easier to read

Capisce?

Here are three techniques you can use to improve the rhythmic flow of your articles:

Tricolons

Tricolons can be a powerful device when used correctly. Think of it as a rhetorical writing device that consists of three parallel phrases, words, or clauses.

Industry experts say these three parallel phrases, words, or whatever should have the same length. But I don’t always follow that rule. And you don’t have to.

I mean, rules are made to be broken, right?

One of the most popular uses of the Tricolon was in Barack Obama’s speech at Nelson Mandela’s memorial speech (December 10, 2013)”After this great liberator is laid to rest, and when we have returned to our cities and villages and rejoined our daily routines, let us search for his strength. Let us search for his largeness of spirit somewhere inside of ourselves. And when the night grows dark, when injustice weighs heavy on our hearts, when our best-laid plans seem beyond our reach, let us think of Madiba and the words that brought him comfort within the four walls of his cell…”

Tricolons leave a powerful impression on your readers. While also allowing you to stress a point or idea.

For example, let’s say you initially wrote, ‘The business folded due to a combination of stubbornness and financial recklessness.’ All you need to do is add a third noun and change it to ‘The business folded due to a combination of stubbornness, financial recklessness, and hubris.’

Alliteration

You’ve often seen alliteration used in advertising. Most of the catchy brand slogans and names we’ve all come to love use alliteration.

  • Don’t dream it. Drive it (Jaguar)

  • Coca Cola

  • PayPal

  • Grey Goose

  • Backstreet Boys

  • Intel Inside (Intel)

To create alliteration, you’ll need to write a sequence of words with the same phonetic sound. It’s excellent for creating rhythm and recall. But remember to use it carefully.

Here are some examples you can swipe or use to get your creative juices going:

  • Picture perfect

  • Money matters

  • Potential power play

  • Cheerful cop

This piece by SmartBlogger has tons of examples.

Repetition

Last but not least is repetition. With repetition, you use a phrase or word two or more times. It’s similar to alliteration and has the same effect. Here are some common examples:

  • Boys will be boys

  • Get ready; get set; go

  • Home sweet home

  • Rain, rain, go away

  • It is what it is

The difference between repetition and alliteration is with alliteration; you are repeating sounds. With repetition, you repeat words.

If you read one thing

This piece by Klueless Marketer on how to get 250+ guests for your next webinar is worth the time.

Content tools

A content tool I discovered this week

Keyword Tool is an excellent replacement for Google Keyword Planner. And it’s FREE.

Not Enough Writers

Some weeks ago, we asked members of NEWville, “what’s one quote or book or article or movie that has impacted your life positively?”Here’s the result 👇🏾

 

Tomorrow, we’ll have the amazing Temitayo Olofinlua talk about ghostwriting and managing your ego.

Know someone who might find Not Enough Writers beneficial? Please get them to sign up here!

Content writing jobs (Remote/Freelance)

And here’s a Google Docs link that also includes high-paying pitching opportunities

All the best, folks. Would you please share with any of your friends/colleagues who might find this helpful? 🙏🏾

My biggest takeaway this week 🚀

The most challenging but most important trait as a B2B marketer (and any other job) is the ability to step back from all the noise.

What I’m thinking about

What others call ‘highly-skilled” is often years of consistent discipline.

If you would love me to review your writing and give you feedback, you can book a time here. Or just hit the reply button.

Thanks for reading this far. I am grateful!

Be good out there. If you can’t be good, be careful.

I’ll be back on 11/19.

Dozie

P.S: If you enjoyed this, please consider sharing it on LinkedIn or with a friend! If this was sent to you by a friend, get the following email by signing up here.