What Do You Have To Sing About?
By Beth Ann Erickson, FilbertPublishing.com
This past month,
I attended a Middle School Song Fest.
I don’t know what happens between fourth and fifth grade, but I’m continually amazed when I watch the same
kids who at Elementary School almost blew me out of the gym with their enthusiasm are now barely audible over the
drone of the crowd.
Hundreds of kids stood before their audience, all with their mouths moving, with precious little volume
escaping their lips.
Everyone except one kid.
This kid dazzled. This kid shined. He so completely enjoyed the music that
his head bobbed, his shoulders shimmied, and his toes tapped.
Sometimes I swore I could see the veins in his neck as he sang with all his might, eyes closed, seemingly
in ecstasy as his voice caressed each note.
What does this have to do with writing?
A lot, actually.
There’s a marketing term called USP. It stands for “Unique Selling Proposition.”
Your USP is what makes you different from your competition.
Sure, there are lots of people who do the same thing you do, but what makes you different from
them? What makes you special? What do you do better than everybody else?
That kid singing with all his might made him unique. It made him special.
He was having fun… and he wasn’t afraid to show it.
Do you love writing as much as he loved singing? Are you free to throw caution to the wind and live in the
moment, thoroughly enjoying every minute of your writing time?
Do you know what makes your writing special? Why will your readers choose your work over another
writer’s?
Are you like the kids who, in the beginning, sing with all your might but then lose your enthusiasm when
the writing life gets uncomfortable… or worse yet, downright difficult?
Or are you like the kid who sings with all his might, rejoicing in the moment and thoroughly enjoying his
task at hand.
If I had to choose between working with that enthused kid or one of his cohorts, I know who I’d
choose. I’d want the guy who loves what he does. I’d want the guy with
passion. I’d want the guy who obviously wanted to do the best job he could.
Who would you choose to work with?
Today, take a close look at why you’re writing. What message do you have to share with the world? Examine
what makes your writing special. Find out what makes you unique… because you are very unique.
Focus on what makes you different from your competition and then strive to do it even better.
Rejoice in your USP.
Now write down your USP and incorporate it in every query, sales letter, and webpage you use to promote
yourself.
~~~
Beth Ann Erickson is Queen Bee of Filbert Publishing and the only writing ezine that'll make your writing
sparkle, help you write killer queries, and get you on the road to publication fast. Better yet, you'll receive the
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