Become a Better Writer by Honing You Inner Detective

What makes a detective better than the rest? A great detective isn’t satisfied with the obvious, they look into what’s missing. They look for what’s not being said, seen, or heard.

Do a quick google search asking the question: Can staring at the sun for one second make you go blind? You’ll notice that almost every article points to the exact same quote. I wanted more.

Sadly, I gave up my search after running into the same info time after time. Being a detective can make you stand out and avoid making readers give up on your content. When you look for the unseen details in a story, you’ll have the tools to give readers an emotional response.

Where do you start? There are 3 areas of focus that will improve your writing.

A detective isn’t satisfied after interviewing one suspect. Imagine if they tried to present a case with just that. The jury would find the lack of proof laughable.

Your audience isn’t dumb.

They won’t be content with an article based off of the top results of one Google search. In fact they’ll just end up reading the article you used as a source.

So dig, dig, and dig some more. Find the facts that make a topic interesting or useful for your audience. Be honest with yourself. If you wouldn’t be satisfied reading what you’re writing, your audience won’t be either.

For a detective, one of the most used tools are well constructed questions. They are just as important for a writer.

When someone is reading your article questions will come to mind. For example:

If you ask these questions as you write you’ll read your audience’s mind and leave them satisfied.

A great detective doesn’t stop at collecting information and asking questions. They connect the dots so that everything makes sense.

Why do you read an article? You expect to understand the answer once you’re done. Your writing should be logical and connect all the research that you’ve done forming an easy to digest answer.

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