Hello all,

can you please recommend books to get me started?

I'm interested in improving the copy at the company I work for (in catalogues, a website and on product packaging) and would like some general advice, pointers, tips and tricks to make the copy concise, bold and functional.

Any suggestions are gratefully received!

Thanks,

Leif

Do a search and you'll come across quite a few threads regarding books.

I'd suggest Advertising Secrets of the Written Word by Joe Sugarman to get you started.

Leif,

On writing creative and effective catalog copy, take a look at my 73 Ways to Describe a Widget:

http://www.yudkin.com/catalog.htm

There's an excerpt from the report on that page, plus several reviews from Bob Bly, Karon Thackston and some of my customers.

Good luck!

Marcia Yudkin

I've only been browsing these forums for a few weeks, but I've already found a lot of great resources. Don't forget to do a search. However, a few books that have really helped me include:

-Writing Copy for Dummies (its all in the title, but its a solid book)

-The Well-Fed writer: Back for Seconds (more for starting a copywriting business)

- Michel Fortin's blog is excellent.

Hope that helps. Just my limited 2 cents.

I'm a huge supporter of sugarman... I actually idolize the man a bit. But I'm not entirely sure how helpful the book will be for someone just starting out. I think the perfect (and inexpensive) way to start is with Vic Schwab's "How to write a good advertisement - A short course in copywriting."

It's a breeze to read and had tons of 2007 pertinent stuff in it, even though it's 40 years old.

Just trust me on this... if you're new... it's all in there, and it's set up in a "course" of sorts with quizzes at the end of each chapter.

There are 2 great things about the quizzes. First... they kinda lead you right to the important stuff. This is great if you're busy. Second... when you're done with it, it's very easy to use the quizzes to reference that important stuff, when you need to know it.

It can be found used for as little as 11 bucks.

This book is excellent!

Amazon.com: The Copywriter's Handbook: A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Copy That Sells: Books: Robert W. Bly

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. Sounds like there are some good books around!

As a newbie myself. Sugarmans book was great! Get it!

Dan Kennedy's Ultimate Sales Letter is good and easy to read also.

On another thread some idiot is blathering on and on about some software that supposedly is helpful for copywriters. The moron is ticking me off.