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Ann Handley

Writer. Speaker. Marketer.

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Ideas you can steal

Addressing the Elephant In the Room: 6 Strategies for Writing About the Hard Stuff

grayscale drawing of an elephant throwing a paper airplane

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * How do you write about Difficult Topics? How do you message to an audience about the Hard Stuff? At a time everything is wildly […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, best writing advice, Ideas you can steal, Writing Tagged With: better writing, content copywriting, email newsletter

How to Get Better at Writing: 10 Ideas to Ignite Your Best Work This Year

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * <Hand over heart; eyes to the heavens.> This year, you resolve to…. 1. WRITE THE FIRST DRAFT AS FAST AS YOU CAN. Get it […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, best writing advice, Ideas you can steal, Writing Tagged With: become a better writer, better writing, daily writing habit, first draft writing

Specific Writing Is More Relatable Writing: Standout Sentences #1

Normally I celebrate standout marketing writing. But this week I’m sharing a line from a novel I’m reading. It’s simple. It’s compact. And it’s perfect: “His skin was not just clammy but the color and consistency of actual clams.” —Ann Patchett, Bel Canto Ann is describing a Bel Canto character—a Russian bureaucrat named Fyodorov. I […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, best writing advice, Ideas you can steal Tagged With: Ann Patchett, Bel Canto, specific writing, writing advice

Public Speaking for Introverts (And Those Who Forget How to Be Around People)

yellow T-rex toy on a bubblegum pink background. There is a speech bubble coming from the dinosaur's mouth that reads "rawr" in hand-written lettering.

Years ago I hired a public speaking coach to help me improve my on-stage presence. Yikes that sentence is lifeless. Let’s try it again, mmkay? Years ago I hired a public speaking coach to help me keep my heart rate in a normal range instead of flitting close to a cardiac episode every time I […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, Ideas you can steal, Speaking Tagged With: public speaking, public speaking advice

Should You Ungate Your Content in 2021?

screenshot of a website homepage with 5 different popup notifications obscuring the content on the screen

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * Last week I walked by a storefront. From the outside, I liked the vibe of the place. The products on the shelves looked… […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, Annecdote, Business, Content, Ideas you can steal Tagged With: b2b content marketing, content marketing trends, trust, ungating content

What I Learned in 3 Years of Writing a Newsletter

A french bulldog wearing star-shaped glasses sits in front of a star-shaped cake with a "3" candle in the center of it

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * Three years ago this week—in January 2018—I decided to start a newsletter. Why? I wanted connection—not one-to-many social media connection, but me-to-you direct […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, best writing advice, Ideas you can steal, Slow Marketing, storytelling, Writing Tagged With: culture of writing, email newsletters, process of writing, Total Annarchy anniversary

20 Ridiculously Useful Holiday Gifts for 2020

Image of a red Christmas ornament shaped like a virus, with 2020 stenciled in the center

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * It’s easy to nod along to the narrative that 2020 is a raging dumpster fire, the worst year ever—what with the pandemic and the […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, Family, Ideas you can steal Tagged With: gift guide, gifts for writers, marketing gift guide, writer gifts

Can Your Virtual Event Be Better Than Your In-Person Event?

How do you run a virtual program that has personality, joy, heart, humor, character, spirit, soul, magic? Can a virtual event be better than a physical, in-person event? Last Tuesday, I would have answered… I hope so (to the first question). And no (to the second)—not really, anyway. Maybe I was just exhausted. (Aren’t we […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, Ideas you can steal, Speaking Tagged With: how to plan a great event, marketing events, marketingprofs b2b forum, virtual events

The Best Marketing CTA (and Why It Works So Well)

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * This is a story about the best Call To Action (CTA), and why it works so well. In my two decades of marketing experience, […]

Filed Under: Annarchy, Ideas you can steal Tagged With: CTA, Currituck, Economic development, Larry Lombardi

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