Enjoy this 1075-word “Micro-Interview with marketer, Sam Browne.
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Thanks, Sam.
Let’s get started:
1) "Do you have a work routine?”
My writing routine looks like this:
I jot down ideas with a few sentences in my phone's Notes app whenever they come.
When I sit down to write, I pick one of those ideas, and outline a rough structure in Google Docs (intro, sections, key ideas to hit along the way).
Then I get to work.
If I get 20% into it and it feels a bit crap, I abandon it.
If it's a good idea, I just keep going til the first draft is finished.
The first 10 minutes are always the hardest. It's like going for a jog on a winter morning. You're stiff and sore at first, and then everything warms up, and it feels effortless, and you remember why you enjoy it so much.
After finishing the first draft, I'll leave it for a day, and then review it with fresh eyes the next morning. This instantly highlights anything boring, or jarring, or unnecessary.
I edit, then review, then repeat until I'm happy with every word.
Once the copy is finished, I'll open Canva and load up my carousel template.
I try to imagine the reader's experience as they flip through it. Every page should feel fun and easy to read. They should forget that they're reading at all.
Once the carousel is finished, I create the cover image using Midjourney. I always leave this til last, like dessert.
From there, I will spend about 15 minutes writing the best headline I can in order to maximise engagement. Most people don't give this the attention it deserves.
Then I hit post. I usually just post when I'm done, rather than scheduling.
Typically after posting, I'll reply to comments for about 45 minutes, and then periodically over the next day or so. I try to give proper replies to anyone who takes the time to share their thoughts.
2) “What do you wish you'd known about your work when you first started?”
There's a lot of pressure for new creators to find their niche, niche down, only write for a very specific audience, focus on leads not engagement, all of that.
The truth is, you can make your own rules. Do what you want. Do what works for you.
I have been fortunate to have built an audience where I'm not restricted to writing about a single specific topic.
I really just explore stuff I"m interested in, and try and do the best writing I can. That's my niche.
3) “What did your biggest professional failure teach you?”
My biggest professional failure was my band breaking up. We spent six years together, created two albums, but never really experienced any major success.
I had a lot of my identity tied up in being a rock singer, a guitarist, and a songwriter.
For 10 years, I was singularly focused on becoming successful as a recording artist. If only I could achieve that, then I'd get to be happy. Life could begin.
When that didn't work out, I had to reevaluate who I was, and who I wanted to be.
Today, I try to stay focused on being in the moment, and finding joy and meaning in each day. It's dusk as I write this. There's a beautiful pink sky outside my window right now. My little dog is cuddled in next to me. My daughter just told me all about the book she's reading (A Good Girl's Guide to Murder) and why she's enjoying it so much. That's enough for me now. More than enough.
I think I'm getting better at realizing that this it it. I'm in it. Today is the only day.
4) “Has anything helped you shorten your craft's learning curve?”
The beauty of writing on Linkedin is that you hit post, and you instantly receive feedback on your work.
If it's good, it performs well, and people tell you why they liked it.
If it's bad, it sinks like a stone, and no one says anything at all.
That feedback cycle has consistently improved my writing.
Besides that, having a good grasp of copywriting has been very advantageous for cutting through the noise on Linkedin.
I'd recommend The Copywriter's Handbook by Robert Bly, Cashvertising by Drew Eric Whitman and Influence by Robert Cialdini to anyone who wants to learn.
5) “Do you have a book recommendation?”
In terms of non-fiction, I really enjoyed Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman.
He makes the case that we're all so focused on sacrificing the present for the future, and productivity and time management and status and wealth, but maybe we should just chill out and remember that we are all going to die quite soon, so we should try and enjoy ourselves a bit more.
In terms of fiction, I just finished a short story collection, North American Lake Monsters by Nathan Ballingrud, that floored me. The stories are fantastic, but the writing is masterful.
I also want to mention A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck, which is about a mormon who dies and unexpectedly wakes up in hell (it turns out Zoroastrianism was the true religion - darn!). I think about this book all the time.
6) “Any parting piece of advice?”
To anyone who wants to start writing, I would say this:
18 months ago, I was exactly where you are now.
I didn't know how it all worked. I didn't know what was allowed and what wasn't. I didn't know what made one post successful while another was ignored. I didn't know if anyone would care what I had to say. I was scared of judgement and criticism.
Everyone feels that way on day one.
Start. Start writing. Start posting.
See what happens.
Do it again, and see if you can make it a little bit better than last time.
Then do it again.
The pieces will fall into place along the way.
The act of writing and posting regularly might just change your life. It changed mine.
