Everybody writes

Everybody Writes: Your Go-To
Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content by Ann Handley

3 words:
smart, cheerful, encouraging

Remember
that time I binge-ate SunChips while binge-reading The Elements of Style?

Of
course you don’t. 

But of course you also knew I’d remind you. I got your back
that way.

Well, Everybody Writes is similiarly
binge-worthy. 

Handley’s voice is friendly and welcoming, and she’s there
coaching you and cheering you on as you flail away at the keyboard.

Here’s
the cool thing about this book: She tells you all kinds of ways to suck less as
a writer. And while you know it’s gonna be work, she makes you want to do it
anyway. And she breaks it down into friendly little pieces, so it’s manageable.

My
favorite chapter—the one that will forever stay with me: “Embrace the Ugly
First Draft.”

It took
first place, even after its preceding chapter (“Organize. Relax, You’ve Got
This”) had been awarded the gold medal only minutes earlier.

That “Organize”
chapter gives us permission to do the easy thing—just jot ideas down on paper
and then pull them together later. Just spew it out, almost like brainstorming. What a relief! (Seriously.)

Then she
motivates you (oh, so gently; oh, so cheerfully) to become a better writer.

I’m
actually gonna buy a copy of this book. That’s
how good it is.