It’s come to my attention after my first stint on ProBlogger that I’m NOT the only writer on the planet that likes to write naked and eat lots of ice cream and chocolate. And by write naked I mean fully clothed but like… totally vulnerable and authentic.
HA!
You thought I really meant naked didn’t you.
Dirty.
Really though, I’ve decided a writers club is in order.
“The Naked Writers Generation N”
Writers who bare it all in their work. Writers who take interesting writing to lofty new levels. Writers who write for the world in all their naked glory with nary a blush of embarrassment pinkening their decidedly wicked cheeks.
Sounds fun right?
In all seriousness (wait did I just say that?!) if you’re not writing with honesty and authenticity in everything you do, you’re wasting your time even writing in the first damn place. Pardonnez mon Frenchie. Yikes, that wasn’t even French was it? Damn again.
Listen, the web has changed. Transparency has become the new buzz word, and if you’re not willing to get naked for your readers then guess what? A huge chunk of them just won’t be back. Au revoir! (THAT was totally French.)
That means everything you write from now until doomsday will just echo forlornly along the hallowed streams of data streaking across the planet. You’ll be writing just to see yourself in print, much like a know it all talks just to hear himself talk… and we all know how we feel about those kinds of people. (Gag)
So it’s vitally important that if you’re not seeing growth on your blog or a response to your writing that you really evaluate where you’re coming from when you write something, and how your readers might be seeing you. Good web content doesn’t come easy friend! That said, here are a few ‘rules of the road’ for all of you writer rednecks that need ‘em.
You Might Be An Ick Writer If…
If you’re writing content simply because that’s what someone ‘told’ you to do to please Google and get some traffic, STOP. You’re probably not writing with any sort of authenticity or honesty. Heck, it’s highly probable you don’t even LIKE writing… in which case you should not be blogging.
Or if you are you should be hiring someone (blatantly obvious hint, hint goes here) who DOES enjoy it if you ever hope to grow a readership. Consider this a little tough love.
Just sayin’.
You Might Be An Ick Writer If…
If you’re writing with the sole purpose of turning a buck, then it’s highly likely you’re not writing with any sort of authenticity or honesty. Sure as a blogger many of us start because we heard somewhere that ‘you can make money with a blog’ and it sounds cool to work from home and live a ‘writers’ life.
But the truth is that most of us continue on and become ‘great’ because we thoroughly enjoy the writing part itself. We thoroughly enjoy writing great content and impacting readers. We thoroughly enjoy helping people find solutions and changing the way someone looks at something.
That’s FUN for us, connecting with readers and building relationships.
BLOGGING is fun for us.
You Might Be An Ick Writer If…
If you’re writing about topics for which you have no passion. Where’s the freakin’ passion man? I mean c’mon, if I’m wasting five minutes of my day to read what you have to say, you better write something pretty freakin’ awesome. And awesomeness only comes with passion my friend. It comes with getting fired up about what you’re saying. It comes with translating that fire to other people. In a word? It’s freakin’
AWESOME!
Moral of that freakin’ awesome story?
You can’t inspire your readers to keep coming back for what you have to say and to share what you have to say with their friends if you can’t even inspire yourself. So while writing all about ducks and migrating might be a hot niche (please be still my beating heart!) if you’re not passionate about those damn ducks, don’t bother.
It will soon become the most dreaded chore of your life and guess who will have a front row seat? Any reader who happens to land on such uninspired duck muck.
Hard truth I know.
You Might Be An Ick Writer If…
If you writing an exact replica of what someone else has already said. I know with blogging giants named CopyBlogger it can get a bit confusing, but you’re totally taking it wrong. This is what happens when you’re originality takes a vacation without notifying you first. You know how it happens. You’re stuck in a rut, so you go skimming around your favorite blogs for some inspiration. GREAT idea.
Then you sit down to write a spectacular post, and what comes out is a regurgitated mishmash of a spectacular post already written. Except yours isn’t nearly as spectacular and it pretty much copies the original verbatim. BAD idea.
Seriously.
There is nothing wrong with surfing around, reading other blogs, and jotting down ideas to get your creative juices flowing. And there is nothing wrong with covering a topic that’s been covered elsewhere because… every blog is different, and may have a different audience.
BUT.
Don’t copy someone else’s work. It’s lame. And boring. And stupid. And sucky. And ICK. Find your friend Mr. Originality and put your own spin on the topic. Your own flava. Write in your own voice with your own thoughts and opinions and unique to you perceptions. I promise you’ll thank me later.
And finally?
You Might Be An Ick Writer If…
If you commit any of these 7 Deadly Sins of Blogging. ‘Nuff said.
Warmest,
{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
(I always feel so cool when I log onto your site-hehe!).
I’m guessing I’m not an ‘ick’ writer all the time since you featured my blog recently Cori!
Love the emphasis on not trying to please Google. I wrote a post this week about depression and I included “kicking ass and taking names” which is not your typical mental health phrasing (much less for the title–my grad school advisor would recoil), and it hasn’t been “too sticky,” much less pleasing. I thought about taming it to be more user friendly, then thought, no, that’s pandering to the PC crowd.
Thanks for the reassurance!
LOL.. thanks hun.. I aim for coolness!
Most definitely not an Ick writer, you! I love the atypical mental health phrasing, I can relate to that a heck of a lot better than medical jargon that your instructor may have wished for. lol But then again, I’m a little bit of a rebel anyway, so I’m always cheering for folks to go against the grain somewhat. In the end you’ve got to find what feels comfortable to both you and your audience. It’s a bit of a give-take situ-mucation!
(sigh of relief) I think I passed the test!
Your French? Pas du tout minable. Encourageant, meme !
I totally agree transparency is key, I don’t see it get any other way. Or if you do, you’ll fail. Fail at fulfilling yourself, fail at engaging your readers, fail at sustaining your contents…
Maryline´s last [type] ..Wordless Whenever – Family Portrait
LOL.. I know, I need practice.
And so agreed, love that.. 3 epic fails! Thanks for dropping by Maryline.. mayhap you can teach me French! 
Hi Cori, not much to add here, apart from petty things like putting an apostrophe in its when it’s not needed, and writing in capitals TOO MUCH. Hehe:)
Annabel Candy, Get In the Hot Spot´s last [type] ..Personal Online Branding To Make You Shine Online
YOU MEAN LIKE THIS?!?! LOL… OK, I’m done shouting now.
Too true, too many caps makes me cringe. Especially when I get Tweets that are all caps. UGG. (Total tangent, but boy that bugs!)
I just randomly found your blog through the Twitter Newspaper site, http://paper.li
I find that sometimes the universe conspires to let you know that someone else is thinking just what you were thinking. I’ve been reclaiming my Writer and honouring her and today I’ve written two posts (which means not only did I post today, but I have one ready in advance for tomorrow) (which is HUGE for me)…
Anyway, as I pressed publish on today’s blog, I felt a frisson of daring because I felt like I was getting the bravery back. I said to myself “I think the best blogging is naked blogging.”
And then I happened upon your great post!
I’m off to explore your blog
Awww.. that is AWESOME! Mayhap fate! lol Congrats on not one but two kick ass and authentic posts.. that really is great, because I’m a pro procrastinator, lol and I KNOW what a struggle it can be sometimes to eek out just one blog post, let alone advanced posts.
And I agree..blogging naked takes the cake..both literally and figuratively! 
Hope you enjoy the blog and that you’re soon converted to an avid BGB’er!
…and I just found a fab blog that reflects my thoughts about naked blogging: You Might be an Ick Writer If… – http://su.pr/1KE1NF #BGB
Cori, I haven’t been back for a while – gosh I have missed your writing and not sure why I didn’t come back sooner. Great fun post. With all due respect, if the idea strikes, I do write naked – as in, dripping wet and out of the shower and on the keyboard but if it comes to me right then and there, I don’t care – I am not offending anyone in my own company and writing naked or “naked” are both important! Because ideas flee, momentum passes, and we may not hear that voice again in our head again. And thank God I abide by these rules – I am no Ick writer, girlie
! And neither are you!
Farnoosh´s last [type] ..The Importance of Being Punctual
LOL.. love it Farnoosh! Naked AND “nekked”! Generation N, here we come! lol And I agree, momentum can pass quickly, ideas can be fleeting..so sometimes a girl’s just gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. Thanks for dropping by again Farnoosh, don’t be a stranger woman!
No way, I’ll be back a lot more often for these great fun and entertaining posts which also serve me so well, Cori
!
Farnoosh´s last [type] ..The Importance of Being Punctual
Hi Cori,
Just got back from holiday and thought I’d drop by for a visit. I’ve been working hard on the ‘book project’ that you know about. Going to print tomorrow.
But, thought I’d just say that losing your voice from time to time is natural. I have and am, a little, going through that right now on the back of trying to get the project finished. Just got to keep it going find my voice again, let it recover, not rush it and practice, practice and practice some more
Speak soon,
Adrian
Adrian Swinscoe´s last [type] ..Lessons about growing your business from a VW camper van
Hi Cori,
I hope I’m not an ‘Ick’ writer. I think I’d know if I was, because I’d bore myself stupid writing it. Not what I aim for!
I aim to make a difference in a positive way, hoping my reader will say,
‘Oh!!! That’s a bit different/amusing/thought provoking/unusual.’
I’m going to write the words ‘Don’t be an Ick Writer!’ and stick them on my screen edge!
LOL..perfect sticky note material!
And yep, you’d likely know it if you were, so I think you’re safe! 
Hey Adrian! Awesome, I bet you’re so excited! Yes, it does happen from time to time, losing your voice, or feeling like you’ve hit a bit of a creative wall. My remedy is to keep writing, just keep writing!
Ick!
Actually, I meant, “Sick!” Writing, that is. Loved the post – don’t love ick writing, and now feeling like I need to tear down my whole blog. It’s all plagiarized.
I just grabbed a ton of PLR articles and…
I’m totally freakin’ lying. Loved your post! Blasting this on my Amplify and OnlyWire.
JamestheJust on Elance´s last [type] ..Make Money Online And Don’t Spend a Dime Part 3
LOL.. thanks James! No tearing down blogs please! I might cry.
So glad you enjoyed the post, and appreciate the sharing!
Blogging has set in a trend and now almost everyone is blogging but we should be first asking ourselves whether there is a writer in us. All of us can scribble something but we need to polish ourselves to at least next to perfection if we want others to read our articles. Also, I don’t think its possible for a writer to write only award winning works or works which turn into a blockbuster movie. Some works of my favorite authors do not interests me and its not because it was not a good piece it’s just that certain topics do not interests me.
Hey Tim.. to true, some folks simply aren’t meant to be writers or bloggers! lol It does take a certain commitment to learning and refining your style and voice to blog successfully and engage readers.
You really inspire me to write Cori. I generate some good thought from you on How not to become “ick” in writing. Good post, Thumbs up.
Aw that’s awesome Andrew!