Nicole Bianchi

Writing, Copywriting, & Marketing Strategies

A Look Back at January 2020

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Notebooks with words "Field Notes" on cover and compass

Hey, friends! Last August, I wrote up a recap of the month and thought it was a fun way to keep you updated on projects I’m working on as well as a way to share books I’ve recently read or movies I’ve watched that I thought you might enjoy.

Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to write any more monthly recaps in 2019, but I thought, “Why not try to revive it this year?” If you like this format and would like to see future posts like this, let me know in the comments.

Without further ado, here are some highlights of what I wrote, what I read, and what I watched this past month: [Read more…]

5 Exercises From Famous Authors That Will Sharpen Your Writing Skills

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Hand gripping sharpened pencil and writing in notebook | 5 Exercises From Famous Authors That Will Improve Your Writing
Photo by Thought Catalog

Pianists practice scales to strengthen their skills like rhythm and timing. Artists might sketch a hundred human hands until they’ve mastered drawing that body part realistically. Dancers will practice a dance move countless times until their footwork and technique are flawless.

Just like those other artists, writers can sharpen specific skills through deliberate practice.

Are you struggling to write vivid descriptions? Or craft concise sentences?

In today’s post, I’m sharing five powerful creative writing exercises from famous authors that will help you practice those essential skills and many more.

Let’s get started. [Read more…]

How to Write Captivating Headlines: A Powerful 5-Step Process

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Person working at computer | How to Write Captivating Headlines
Photo by Austin Distel
Want to connect with other writers? Make sure to get your invitation to my private writing community on Facebook!

You’ve spent hours pouring your heart and soul into a blog post.

You’re writing about an important topic that you’re sure will help readers, and you want to convey your message as effectively as possible.

So you’ve edited each paragraph until your eyes ached from staring at the computer screen. You’ve crafted a compelling introduction that will entice readers to keep reading, and your conclusion is powerful with a memorable final sentence.

Unfortunately, however, all of this time and effort will go to waste if no one reads your article.

Often, there’s only one way to get people to read: you must craft a headline that is so irresistible it draws people like a magnet to click on your piece.

People’s social media feeds are flooded with a constant stream of articles and online content. If you don’t have an attention-grabbing headline, your post won’t reach the potential readers it could help and inspire.

But don’t worry!

In today’s article, I’m sharing my five-step process that will help you write captivating headlines so your target audience reads your valuable blog posts.

Let’s dive in. [Read more…]

5 Powerful Writing Tips from Award-Winning Editor Jack Hart’s “Storycraft”

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Yellow typewrite on table next to vase
Photo by Luke Lung
Want to connect with other writers? Make sure to get your invitation to my private writing community on Facebook!

Several months ago, I wrote an article sharing twelve of my favorite writing craft books. These books focus specifically on teaching you how to strengthen your skills as a writer and storyteller.

They get into the nuts and bolts of how to structure and edit your writing so it will captivate your readers.

Recently, I enjoyed re-reading one of the books on the list: Storycraft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Nonfiction by Jack Hart.

Hart served for many years as managing editor at The Oregonian, the Pacific Northwest’s largest newspaper. He also guided several Pulitzer-prize winning articles to publication.

In this book, he teaches everything that he learned from his many years as a journalist. Using examples from books and newspaper articles, he shows how to tell a captivating story. He covers everything from how to develop characters to choosing point of view to bringing scenes to life.

Even though his book is aimed at writers of nonfiction, I believe there is much that writers of fiction can glean from its pages as well.

In today’s post, I’ve written up my top five takeaways from my most recent read. [Read more…]

Two Essential Journals That Will Help You Achieve Your Goals

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Brown leather journal with compass on cover rests on top of a laptop | Two Essential Journals That Will Help You Achieve Your Goals
Photo by Colton Sturgeon
Want to connect with other writers? Make sure to get your invitation to my private writing community on Facebook!

Have you set a big goal for the year? Maybe you plan to finally write a novel or start an email list or go to the gym each morning or learn a new language.

But maybe you’re also a little worried because you’ve broken New Year’s resolutions in the past.

You made significant progress towards your goals at first, but then your schedule became busier than you expected, your motivation ebbed, and those goals looked further and further out of reach.

Studies by Dr. John Norcross show that 60% of the people who make resolutions in January will no longer be following them by July.

Why are resolutions so difficult to keep?

“It’s human to slip up,” Dr. Norcross says. “Our evidence-based research shows that people who are successful at keeping their New Year’s resolutions slip as many times as people who are unsuccessful.”

It’s just that people who are unsuccessful slip up and give up. But people who are successful have systems in place that ensure they stay positive, pick themselves up, and learn from their slip-ups, tweaking their plan of action so they don’t fail again in the future.

Journaling is one of my favorite systems to use to help me stay accountable to my goals. In today’s post, I’m sharing my two journaling methods that help me track my progress on different projects, learn from my slip-ups, and motivate me to keep working towards my goals and not give up.

These journals have helped me build a successful blog and email list, learn three foreign languages, and finish many writing projects. I can’t wait to hear what they will help you achieve.

Let’s dive in. [Read more…]

How to Write a Memorable Conclusion: 5 Techniques of Famous Writers

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A Mac laptop and a typewriter side by side | How to Write a Memorable Conclusion: 5 Techniques of Famous Writers
Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters

You’ve spent hours pouring your heart and soul into a blog post. You have an important message to share with your audience, and you’ve crafted a piece that you know will help them.

But now you’ve reached the conclusion, and you don’t know what to write. You fear that you’ve said all you have to say, and if you tack on more sentences to your piece, you’ll just be repeating yourself.

But you know you can’t skip the conclusion. If you’re writing a persuasive or inspirational piece, the conclusion is the last place you have to convince the reader of your opinion. A weak conclusion can diminish the effect of your entire piece of writing.

It’s like if you were enjoying a three-course meal at a fancy restaurant. The soup was creamy and delicious, the steak was perfectly cooked, but then the dessert arrived, and the pie tasted funny. That’s the taste that’s going to linger in your mouth after you finish the meal.

Just like the chef needs to wow you with the final course, you need to wow your readers with your conclusion. Otherwise, your piece will feel unfinished and be unsatisfying to your readers.

So how can you wow your readers?

In today’s blog post, let’s look at five different techniques famous writers have used to craft powerful conclusions that made their pieces memorable. [Read more…]

New Mini-Course: Write a Captivating Homepage & About Page

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Mac laptop on desk surrounded by plants
Photo by Nathan Riley on Unsplash

It’s finally here!

My new mini-course on how to write a captivating homepage and about page for your website is officially open for registration.

You can get all the details about the mini-course on this page.

To celebrate launch week, it’s available for just $39 until Wednesday at midnight EST (the price will go up after that).

Keep in mind that…

  1. This is an in-depth online course that will show you step by step exactly how to clarify your homepage’s messaging and how to tell a compelling about page story that resonates with website visitors.
  2. With this course as your guide, you won’t have to worry anymore about what to write or whether you’re missing a crucial element on your website and chasing away potential clients, customers, or email subscribers. I’ve designed this course to get you quick results with fill-in-the-blank templates, worksheets, and lots of examples of the copywriting and storytelling principles in action.
  3. The price goes up Wednesday at midnight EST. So if you want to write effective words for your homepage and about page, be sure to sign up as soon as you can!

If you have any questions at all, feel free to leave a comment or send me an email so I can help you decide if this is right for you.

Or you can go ahead and check out all the details right here.

Don’t put it off though! This offer will be gone in just a few days.

Why I’m Joining NaNoWriMo This Year (And My Top 5 Tips on How to Win)

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Closeup of typewriter keys
Photo by Camille Orgel on Unsplash

This is a post I first wrote in October 2016. Since I’m planning on participating in NaNoWriMo again this year, I decided to update and republish it. Are you joining in NaNoWriMo too? Make sure to get your invitation to my private Facebook group for writers!

November is only a few days away, and that means that National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo!) is nearly upon us.

If you’ve never heard of NaNoWriMo before, it’s a month-long event where writers challenge themselves to pen a 50,000-word novel (about the length of novels like The Great Gatsby or Fahrenheit 451).

The goal is to begin writing on the first of November and finish by midnight of November 30. You can plan and outline your story as much as you like beforehand, but the actual writing of the story can only be done during November.

Now, those are the official rules, but many writers adapt NaNoWriMo to their own goals. [Read more…]