How to Build Trust As A Writer
I think you build trust as a writer the same way you build trust as a person. Do what you say you are going to do. Effective communication by delivering on a promise. The promise is your thesis, your hypothesis. If you do not deliver, you did not make your argument.
The old journalism model of burying the lede doesn’t make much sense. It doesn’t make sense because nobody likes a guessing game. Of course we like when things turn out better than we expect, we like to be excited, and we like to be surprised. But surprise people with how well you make your point. How well you thought it out. Don’t name your article how to, and not outline the steps.
Steps
- What are you trying to say? Present it
- Outline. I think most writers try to write without an outline. I used to be one of them
- Finish the outline by writing.
- Paragraphs should be purposeful
Example of A Great Writer
Robert Greene is a master at this. You can see the entire structure of his argument by reading his books carefully. This is what is meant by a practical read.
Bad Books
Some people award books as “great” when you can’t even tell if there’s an outline, a storyline. Scenes. That’s when the book feels like it dragsssssss.
There was a Dr. Dre quote from an interview that said he listens to the good s**t and the bad s**t. Because the bad s**t tells you what not to do. I think it's the same for books and writers.
