The Kow Kow Method: How to write your best stuff (without really writing anything)
I love Steve Miller.
I love his music.
I love his voice.
I love his style.
I love his smile (Ah! That smile!).
He’s probably the only man who could say, “Come here, mama” and I’d be like, “Hell YES will this mama come over there. And she’s bringing a bottle of Espolón with her.”
To be clear – I’m talking about a young Steve Miller here. You know, the cute man in his 30s who looked like a 6’4” baby that somehow got his hands on a hair dryer that belonged to Cheryl Ladd of Charlie’s Angels.
👆 This one, not the one who shat on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Anyway, 2 years ago I got really lucky as a fan, because he released a GARGANTUAN box set of all his songs ever released … including a ton of alternate versions.
One morning, I was playing one of my favorites by him on Spotify, “Kow Kow Calqulator” (Definitely recommend. So cruisey).
Suddenly I thought,
Wait, why does this sound different? Am I listening to an alternate version? I don’t like this one as much. It’s not as folksy and jazzy.
Turns out, the version I’d always liked was the one that didn’t even make the original album
While listening, I was like, “Dude, IDK why you chose THIS over THAT… but man, am I glad you kept the other one.
Why am I telling you this? Well, turns out, ya boi Steve is a great example of one of the best writing secrets ever:
→ SOME OF YOUR BEST WORK IS ON THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR.
Listen, there are 2 main problems people hit when writing, especially their copy:
They can’t come up with something to say.
They have a LOT to say – and have a hard time cutting out the “good stuff” even though they know their email is getting way too long-winded.
If you hold onto the good stuff that doesn’t make the final cut, you solve both problems.
You’ll have a bunch of content you can use later for…
→ Headlines
→ Subject lines
→ Intros
→ Sections in an essay/article
→ Specific examples
→ Funny stories
→ Sidebars
→ Offer details
→ Social media posts
→ Ads
Hell, I’ve used sentences – yes, single sentences – to create entire new emails!
LESSON: When you cut out something you really like, don’t trash it – just save it as an alternative.
You might not ever come back to it or need those “extras.”
But hey, you’ll end up with a BUNCH of content that you can repurpose in tons of different ways!
(I myself have a bunch of pages on the notes app that are just random sentences or paragraphs that I couldn’t bear to part with for good.)
Anyhow, while you do that, this mama is going to put on a pair of bell bottoms and listen to Book of Dreams on vinyl for the 500th time.
Love + Joy,
Ariana
P.S. I think I realized why I like Steve so much…
