The Underrated Metric That Trumps All Other Writing Stats

How can you improve what you don’t measure?

I track trends; I monitor numbers; I love stats. And I encourage every writer to do the same. But I also know the numbers don’t tell the complete story.

Bounce rates, traffic sources, social shares, fan comments, and cash earned are excellent metrics that try to project what you’re doing right — or wrong.

But sometimes, we put too much faith in these measures at the expense of this all-important metric. Before you get carried away by the stats alone, let your development as a writer matter the most to you.

No, don’t consign the stats to the garbage heap. But let how well you’re developing be your most important metric. To help track this development, here are some important factors you ought to pay every cent of attention to.

As a writer worth your salt, your peculiar style should be what gives taste to your words in the mouth of your readers. That’s what’ll endear you to your followers.

That may be the message your fans are going to run around singing. Does anyone else miss Genius Turner and his style?

Yes, it takes time — months, years, and even decades to develop a unique style your readers would identify you with.

And that’s all the more reason developing a style should rank high on your to-do list. That should matter to you as much as any other metric.

Some would argue you need readers to read your work first, or none of that style will matter. But I’ll say it’s more important to get a style that readers will identify with you.

Fans are fleeting, but style is permanent.

You don’t need an MFA in Creative Arts to know every writing rule. But it helps to acquaint–no, familiarize yourself with some rules of writing.

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