I might be brand new to blog writing, but not so to blog reading. I read A LOT of blogs, and I tend to notice certain trends in language and word choice because I'm interested in that sort of thing. And since everything I've ever read about successful blog writing says that you need to speak in your own voice and set yourself apart from the pack, I thought it might be helpful to share some of the most overused words and phrases I've noted lately.
Now of course, nothing terrible is going to happen to you if you do use catch phrases in your blog writing. You just run the risk of fading into obscurity because you sound like all of the other bloggers out there. And there is always the chance that some potential readers won't bother to look beyond the tired phrases to find something new - they'll just click away.
If you find yourself questioning any of the following, trust me on this one, and don't use them. You'll thank me later.
Now of course, nothing terrible is going to happen to you if you do use catch phrases in your blog writing. You just run the risk of fading into obscurity because you sound like all of the other bloggers out there. And there is always the chance that some potential readers won't bother to look beyond the tired phrases to find something new - they'll just click away.
If you find yourself questioning any of the following, trust me on this one, and don't use them. You'll thank me later.
- "Thanks for stopping by" - An innocuous statement, maybe, but it doesn't really mean anything. Show, don't tell - prove that you're thankful by giving your readers something of value when they click on your site.
- "Welcome to my little corner of the internet" - The internet is infinite, and yet there still isn't room for all of the supposed "little corners" that people inhabit there.
- "Please don't hesitate to (fill in the blank)" - Do you really think that someone would hesitate to do something just because you didn't give them this permission? Doubtful.
- "magical" - I'm not sure how this came to be such an oft-used adjective, but the bar seems to have been set extremely low for what one might consider magical these days.
- "pumpkin" - Seriously. From September through to November, banish the word pumpkin from your blog. Why? Because YOUR trip to the pumpkin patch/pumpkin carving/pie baking/centrepiece crafting/latte spicing looks EXACTLY THE SAME AS EVERYONE ELSE'S. And since when is pumpkin considered a spice?