Even so, you need to remember that many media people and potential clients may not have a mental definition for such acronyms. For instance, publishing insiders can email each other about "POD initiatives," but in a press release "POD" should not only be clearly explained as "publishing on demand" but that term given a brief gloss as well. By using both acronym and written-out words that letters stand for, as well as further definitions when a phrase is relatively new or specialized, you communicate clearly and set stage for your news to be found through search engines.

Now what about specialized vocabulary - "hematoma," "habeas corpus," "chakra" and "candlestick charts"? Such phrases have precise and established meanings in certain fields, but people who don't use terms every day may have a hazy comprehension of them. Thus, you should handle them as I recommended for acronyms. Provide a brief, unobtrusive definition in close proximity to their first use in a release.

When you do this subtly, tucking an explanation into your release, neither in-group nor outsiders take offense. For instance, within Eastern medicine "qi" is a standard term. You could define it discreetly as in this sentence: "Acupuncture restores balance and regulates flow of qi, basic life force." The last four words prevent both confusion and insult.

When I wrote my first two novels, I had a real problem with dialog. I audio-taped a couple of movies and transcribed them. It worked. For an investment of maybe eight hours, I've found dialog easy and fun to do ever since.

The bonus --- not only did it improve my dialog 1000 per cent, but it also improved all my performance writing as well. I formed a mental link between how words look on page, and how they sound.

* Write, then: read your words aloud. Or: talk. Start talking to yourself (it helps if you have your own office) about product you're writing copy for. Include sound-effects. Be outrageous. You'll create excellent copy.

* Think about sub-text. This is underlying meaning of our words. The better script (dialog) writer, simpler writing, because it relies almost completely on sub-text. This is difficult to do. However, don't let that stop you. The more practising you do, better you'll get. Look for examples of sub-text when you're watching movies and TV, and write examples down in a notebook.

* Listen to conversational styles of people you meet.

Unless they've made an effort to change it, their conversational style reflects their early family environment. So you'll find that someone who's grown up in a home where her parents are from another culture may not speak her parents' native language, but she nevertheless has some of that language structure in her conversational style --- in way she uses words.

You can use this knowledge to add veracity to your conversational style.

Try above approaches. For a small investment in time, you'll improve your copywriting skills.

***Resource box: if using, please include*** When your words sound good, you sound good. Author and copywriter Angela Booth crafts words for your business --- words to sell, educate or persuade. Get in touch today for a free quote:

mailto:ab@digital-e.biz

Free ezine: Creative Small Biz --- subscribe at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Creative_Small_Biz/

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