TOC #193: 5 years of being unprepared & my potential new career
(September 3, 2024) How to make your copy READ like it SOUNDS
(Before you read this newsletter, I need you to know that — after a long ass weekend of unpacking — I said to the boy “we can go to bed right after I finish my newsletter” and then promptly opened my laptop… to start transcribing a chicken and dumplings crockpot recipe from TikTok into my Notion meal planner.
I had no idea he was watching me. I looked up, saw him staring at me, ridiculously confused, asking how I was going to add the recipe to my newsletter. I said I wasn't gonna. But now I feel like I have to, because *he* said “it's your world, it's your rules, I think your audience would really like for you to share it.” LOL so here you go! Ur welcome!)
It took me five years to feel prepared to be a mother.
Until now, I had never ONCE felt prepared for the upcoming era.
I got pregnant at 23 years old — didn't plan for that. No house or husband or cute little nursery or white picket fence. Unprepared.
But I adjusted, and it all ended up fine and dandy.
Got myself the husband. And the house.
…except, the house was in Canada.
So, at 24, I moved to a different country. Unprepared.
But I adjusted, and it all ended up fine and dandy.
…until it was no longer fine, nor dandy, because I got divorced.
So, at 27, I moved back to Massachusetts. Unprepared.
But I adjusted, and it all ended up fine and dandy.
Actually, way more than just fine or dandy, because I grew into a person I love being, deepened my relationships with the people in my life, BTL tripled in revenue, and I built a life I love for myself and for my son.
So, at 29, I'm doing alright.
And, the other day, I realized that — for the first time in five years, aka my child's entire lifetime — I AM FINALLY PREPARED FOR THE UPCOMING ERA.
This has quite literally N E V E R happened in Wesley's entire life.
Sure, I've done a pretty good job at the whole Mom thing, but I've never quite been as ready as I am now.
First of all, I bought us a house. That was a pretty big step in the whole “being prepared to be a fancy official real ass adult with a kid” thing.
Then, WEEKS before kindergarten even started, I had all his school supplies purchased, labeled, and packed — AND overflow for the entire class.
(Yes, obviously, I'm trying to buy Wesley's teacher's love.)
(And I really hope it worked, because I already got an email that he was kicking over chairs in class.)
(On day two.)
(The principal was copied.)
(He has never done that shit at home.)
(Or at preschool. In the entire 3 years he was there.)
(Someone, for the love of all that is holy, please respond to this email with advice. Preferably “I used to be a teacher in my past life” advice. Or “I'm a single mom, too, and this is how I dealt with it” advice. Thx.)
(He did turn his life around for day three, though, and was the first-ever kid in his class to get a voucher for the prize box, according to his teacher. He “went out of his way to clean up someone else's mess” she said. Slay.)
THENNNN I decided that, ya know what, I can get ~involved~ at his school, because I'm in charge, and why the hell not?
So, I did a little research, joined the PTA Facebook groups, and suddenly my business is a mile marker sponsor of the elementary school 5K and I'm a library volunteer every other Friday afternoon.
And, after just one shift reading to those precious little kindergarteners, IT MIGHT BECOME MY DAMN NEW CAREER.
Because the only thing I'm even better at than writing story-based sales copy?
READING STORY BOOKS OUT LOUD.
I don't know if it's because I'm dramatic, or because I value the integrity of the story, or because I know how to entertain little kids, or because I understand the importance of emphasis and tone and text styles and appropriate punctuation, but…
I slay.
(If you were at my Winter 2023 webinar about newsletter storytelling, you likely remember my professional reading of Little Blue Truck Leads The Way. You know what I'm talking about.)
The key to being a great children's book reader — and online storyteller! — is actually quite simple:
Emphasis.
All you need to understand is appropriate emphasis.
How To Make Your Copy “Read” Like It SOUNDS
When people read your copy, you want them to READ it the way you WROTE it, right?
(Right!)
So, you'll want to avoid:
❌ Long blocks of text that make it hard for mobile readers to stay engaged in your newsletter copy
❌ Copy with no elements of visual emphasis or tone (text styles and punctuation) to read in your voice
❌ Flat copy that sounds mundane or low-effort, making the experience less enjoyable to read
MY BEST STRATEGY FOR THIS 👇🏻
Read it out loud to yourself, and notice your natural pauses, the intonation in your voice, and which words you emphasis without even trying — then see if the copy / text styles reflect that.
If it doesn't, you'll need to add “elements of emphasis” to make sure that your words sound like you meant them to.
Example:
If I'm really trying to emphasize how much I want you to try that chicken and dumpling crockpot recipe, I'm not going to write:
→ You should try these chicken and dumplings.
Instead, I'm going to write something like:
→ OMG, you have got to try these chicken and dumplings! 🤤
→ These chicken and dumplings tho…… 👀
→ Ok but seriously you have ✨ GOT ✨ to try these chicken and dumplings.
→ I'm not even kidding, these chicken and dumplings changed my LITERALLLL LIFE.
See the difference?
One is flat, emotionless, and boring.
The others are conversational, and you can read my excitement, and see my personality.
The good Lord above gave us italics, emojis, em dashes, colors, caps lock, exclamation points, parentheses, commas, bold text, and underlines for a reason.
Use them, to get your point across appropriately — so your people can catch your vibe just by reading your words.
But while we're on the subject of using them… there *IS* a right way and a wrong way…
And I just so happen to be teaching the ✨ right ✨ way in a FREE BONUS LESSON waitlist peeps will get access to when they join my LIVE email marketing course, which enrollment opens for THIS WEEK! 👀
Important note! It's your last chance to join^ because my waitlist peeps will be getting there “the wait is over!” email veryyy soon 👀 along with their special discount code AND the bonus lesson (which is only available to them). 🏆
If we haven’t had the chance to *virtually* meet yet, hi! I’m Sara Noel—website copywriter and marketing mentor for creatives, copywriters, and all-around cool people. If you like my content and you want even more BTL in your life, here are a few ways you can connect with me:
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