Word count: 250 words
Reading time: 1 minute
This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help writers.
One of my weekly blog entries now relates to figurative language. Does this seem odd for someone who specializes in non-fiction writing? I suspect it does because readers often tell me that they can’t put metaphors, similes or personification in their writing. Their bosses won’t allow it.
If this describes you, take a look at a book called Metaphorically Selling by Anne Miller. Filled with more than 250 examples from modern-day business, politics and media writing, the book illustrates not only how to use metaphors seamlessly but WHY they are so important. One of the main reasons, according to Anne, is that the human brain is wired to respond more to the emotional than to the cognitive and more to the visual than the verbal.
Says Anne: “The lesson for salespeople: you have greater selling impact when you use words that create images in your listener’s mind.” I think the same rules applies if you change the word “salespeople” to “writers.”
If you have a boss or client who thinks that figurative language should be reserved for novelists then get yourself a copy of Metaphorically Selling. You’ll find a raft of practical, persuasive arguments that will help you convince your boss or client that metaphors are not only helpful for selling and writing — they’re essential.
