Last weekend I headed to the southwestern tippy-tip of Washington state to hang out with my daughter and granddaughter while my son-in-law competed in a cribbage tournament.
As he was counting “fifteen-two, fifteen-four, nobs is five and that hand sucked,” we were enjoying time in Seaside, OR – checking out the fun shops, playing games in the arcade, and strolling along the sandy coastal beach just like those healthy, happy couples in the TV pharmaceutical ads.
“Talk to your doctor to see if Xdrilxlix is right for you.”
We had a great time and wrapped up the trip with breakfast at a quintessentially quaint local eatery.
Emblazoned on my coffee mug was the saying, “Grandma is just another name for love.”
My wife’s coffee came with Harley Davison.
As we chowed down on eggs, bacon, and a quite-tasty Dungeness Crab omelet, cribbage expert Dave noted that he’d found something strange this morning adorning his car’s windshield.
Curious, we went out to take a look.
There, lurking at the bottom edge of the driver’s side windshield, was a gooey, indistinct, black mass.
My first thought was, “Don’t touch it! We’ve all seen The Blob – and you know what happened next!”
But of course, it couldn’t be that dangerous…. ?
It was strange – about the size of a pack of cards and affixed solidly to the glass.
Even though it presented no immediate threat, I was wary as it seemed at least somewhat Lovecraftian in origin.
“Dave, what do you think it is?” I asked.
“Well, let’s see…”
Lacking a spatula (which I think would’ve been the perfect tool), he grabbed a stick and pried it free.
A single, clear tentacle dangled from the black inchoate glop.
“Just what I thought,” he said, as he chucked it into the weeds, “Jellyfish.”
If you say so… but you have to explain just how a jellyfish fresh from the briny deep winds up on a windshield.
Sure – it could’ve been a clumsy seagull unable to hold tight its catch… but I’d much rather chalk it up to aliens and that guy with too much hair.
Now the powerful lesson of this glop from nether space goes back to one of my favorite sayings from marketing legend Dan Kennedy.
I discovered this gem of writing wisdom buried deep within the transcript of one of his many interviews.
The interviewer asked Dan, “what is it about your copy that makes it so powerful?”
Dan’s response:
“Well… I think it’s because I say interesting things in interesting ways.”
THAT is the only thing your internal editor should be asking when you’re sitting there writing out that sales letter.
Not picking about punctuation.
Not hammering you on splitting infinitives or even starting a sentence with “And”.
And definitely not badgering you for not having the ability to write as well as Dan, John Caples, Gary Halbert, or anyone else.
The only feedback you should allow that editor to provide is that all-powerful question:
“Are you saying interesting things in interesting ways?”
I know you can.
Write Faster. Write Better. Right Now.
– Jack Turk
“World’s Fastest Copywriter”