8 Writing Bits (in 1 Byte)

Lingo Help, Headline Hacks, & Parkinson's Law

As promised, here is your recap of the last 8 weeks of Friday Write Bytes.

Table of Contents (scrollers unite!)

1. Options for the word “immediately”

2. Threat Headlines - What Keeps Your Readers Up at Night?

3. Zen Headlines - Promising Your Readers a Simpler Life

4. Piggyback Headlines - Riding on the Back of a Famous Brand

5. Mistake Headlines -Irresistible Teasers from the Masters

6. How To Headlines - The Oldie but Goodie That Never Fails

7. List Headlines - Bite-Sized Content That Readers Adore

8. How Parkinson's Law Helps Me Write More in Less Time

---

Week 1: 10 Options for the word "immediately"

On the spot, Instantly, At once, Without delay, At this moment, Right away, Straightaway, Forthwith, Promply, Directly

Week 2: Curated Threat Headline Templates

What Keeps Your Readers Up at Night?

• How Safe Is Your [Valuable Person/Object] from [Threat]?

• Warning Signs That [Blank]

• Warning: [Blank]

• Can We Really Trust [Person/Company/Product]?

• The Shocking Truth about [Blank]

• The Great [Blank] Hoax

• How [Blank] Gamble with Your [Blank]: 7 Ways to Protect Yourself

• Lies [Group of People] Like to Tell

• 13 Things Your [Trusted Person] Won’t Tell You

• 5 Little-Known Factors That Could Affect Your [Blank]

• [Your Audience] Alert: The New [Blank] Scam to Avoid

Week 3: Zen Headline Templates

Promising Your Readers a Simpler Life

• The Zen of [Blank]

• Can’t Keep up? 11 Ways to Simplify Your [Blank]

• How to Take Charge of Your [Unruly Problem]

• The Minimalist Guide to [Aggravation]

• 10 Shortcuts for [Completing Tedious Process] in Record Time

• Get Rid of [Recurring Problem] Once and for All

• How to End [Problem]

• How to [Blank] in 5 Minutes

• 101 [Blank] Hacks: A Cheat Sheet for [Blank]

Week 4: Piggyback Headlines

Riding on the Back of a Famous Brand

• [Do Something] Like [Famous Person]: 20 Ways to [Blank]

• [Famous Person’s] Top 10 Tips for [Blank]

• The [World-Class Example] School of [Blank]

• The [World-Class Example] Guide to [Blank]

• 29 Secrets of [Famous Group]

• What [World-Class Example] Can Teach Us about [Blank]

Week 5: Mistake Headlines

Irresistible Teasers from the Masters

• Do You Make These 9 [Blank] Mistakes?

• 7 [Blank] Mistakes That Make You Look Dumb

• 5 [Blank] Mistakes That Make You [Look/Sound] Like a [Blank]

• 11 [Blank] Mistakes You Don’t Know You’re Making

• Don’t Do These 12 Things When [Blank]

Week 6: How To Headlines

The Oldie but Goodie That Never Fails

• How to [Blank]

• How to Be [Desirable Quality]

• How to [Blank] (Even If [Common Obstacle])

• How to [Blank] Without [Objectionable Action]

• How to [Do Something] While You [Do Something Else]

• How to [Blank] and [Blank]

• How to [Do Something] That Your [Target Audience] Will Love

• How to Use [Blank] to [Blank]

• How to [Blank] in [Year]

• How to [Blank] — The Ultimate Guide

• How to Be Smart in a World of Dumb [Group]

Week 7: List Headlines

Bite-Sized Content That Readers Adore

• 7 Ways to [Do Something]

• 101 [Blank] for [Event/Cause/Process]

• 72 Killer Resources for [Audience/Process]

• The Top 10 [Blank]

• 7 [Blank] Secrets Every [Audience] Should Know

• 7 Surprising Reasons [Blank]

• The 5 Laws for [Blank]

• 7 Steps to [Blank]

• Get [Blank]! 10 Ideas That Really Work

• 7 Things Your [Target Audience] Needs to Hear You Say

Week 8: Parkinson's Law

Write More in Less Time

Parkinson’s law implies that if you give yourself a longer deadline to complete a task, you’re likely to take longer to complete it.

Even if the task could have been finished in a shorter amount of time.

Give yourself an hour to complete a task, it will likely take the entire hour.

Give yourself two tasks in that hour, again, you’re likely to finish both in the allotted time.

---

That’s it for this week. ;) Have a great weekend!

X.O.,

Friday Write Bytes is a free newsletter and my weekly labor of love- sharing tips to make you a more efficient writer. If you have the means, please consider financially supporting this newsletter.