Intrigue, Inspire, Invigorate
“I am a writer using language to intrigue, inspire and invigorate.”
^ I emblazoned my site headline with the words “intrigue, inspire, and invigorate.” I want to talk about what I mean. In a manner of speaking, this alliterative trio of i’s make up a holistic philosophy on my writing - how I try to do it and what I do it for.
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In the art of copywriting, as previously discussed at surface level, there is a general formula that comes along for best conveying a brand or business’ operation:
Headline > Details > Call-to-Action
From Evernote’s homepage: https://evernote.com/
The copywriter needs to grab audience attention at the head > effectively detail the product or service offering with relevant details on features & benefits > and then tie it all together with an urging message to get the potential buyer/participant/joiner, etc. moving with a final call to take the action you wish for them to take.
In the same way, my three i’s convey something similar. Let’s go into their definitions, etymology, and my philosophy around their conceptions for the sake of my writing.
By *INTRIGUE* I mean just that - “to arouse the interest, desire, or curiosity of.” Sourced from 1600s French, Italian and Latin, at first primarily meaning perplexing trickster deceptions, plots and schemes of a merely curious or even sexual nature, the word has been tamed by history. In modernity, intrigue, as a verb, now just means to grasp the attention of. An intrigue, as a noun, is something - a plan or deal - worth paying attention to. An “intriguing” premise for a story, or business, animates our eyes, our minds, and our heart.
At first glance, through titles, headlines, or opening sentences, all writing should intrigue the reader to continue reading to find out more. That… or else all the rest below is for not. Pretty simple. As a first principle, your words as a writer must intrigue.
By *INSPIRE* I mean ALL the things - “to spur on : IMPEL, MOTIVATE | to exert an animating, enlivening, or exalting influence on | to influence, move, or guide by divine or supernatural inspiration | BRING ABOUT, OCCASION | INCITE | to draw forth or bring out | to communicate to an agent supernaturally…”
All relevant. Even the supernatural stuff! (Maybe..) In the same way that intrigue is a necessary initial component of any successful writing or copy - inspiration, as a feeling, is the opening salvo for any new idea or action yet to be. Sourced from 1300s French and Latin holy books speaking of breathing and of God, to be inspired, simply, is to be changed. Under the “immediate influence of God”, inspiration spurs one to embrace the influence of the air around them, or Jah, (or some good copy), to alter their mindset, and thus, the course of their life, time, and resources.
To my mind, inspiration must come from an emotional connection. An idea, product, service - or person - needs to be truly compelling, in an emotional capacity, to change someone. All real change must come from the heart. To change a frown into a smile, you or your work needs to be humorous, artistic, beautiful. To change someone’s mind enough to have them make a material outlay of their finite resources - a contribution of their time or money - to your business or cause, altogether you or your work needs to be inspiring.
By *INVIGORATE* I mean to animate toward ACTION - “to give life and energy to : ANIMATE.” The final component of this triad - from the Anglo-French root “vigour”, meaning strength and liveliness and thriving and flourishing - is the most important piece of the puzzle. For without such invigorating action created as a result of the writing being read, communicated, and internalized by a person… then it was all for not. (Sound familiar? Like with any geometrically perfect circle, or any Hero’s Journey, all components of its whole are equivalently important to the endgame. The beginning and the end must be in place for the circle to complete… So, I guess each “i” is the most important piece of the puzzle, huh?)
“Ideas are cheap; execution is everything.” ~ Chris Sacca
In the end, writing must invigorate - cause an action - or else it is not really worth that much to you or me. Copywriting for a business must convert leads to buyers, or else it isn’t working. Ideas, philosophies, words - they all must intrigue, inspire and invigorate the people that read them into changing the material reality around them. Or else - they are just that: words.
“Words without thoughts never to Heaven go.” ~ Hamlet
More than just a poetic way of describing copywriting, or writing more generally, my three i’s are also inspired by a triad of building emotional capacities innate to us as human beings:
Sympathy > Empathy > Compassion
Sympathy, empathy and compassion are the language of our morality. In a structure of escalating significance - and effort - these three emotions, in relation to other people, build atop one another ~ going from a feeling, to an understanding, to action.
One experiences sympathy at the sight of pain > through education and conversation, comes to an empathic understanding of the source of that pain > and then, as a human being that can help, with proper intention, time, and resources in hand, one may begin to compassionately move toward alleviating that pain.
And so, purposeful writing of all kinds should look the same:
Intrigue attention toward a sympathetic feeling > Inspire an empathic understanding via detailed poetry or prose or copy > Invigorate a compassionate response - an action in the real world - from out of the hearts and minds experiencing your words on your pages.
Easier said than done. But, in my honest opinion, such things as this must be the goal with writing. ~
