5 A Beginning
PULL UP A CHAIR AND
I’m considered the creator of Hypnotic Writing. While it’s true that
I wrote the first book on the subject (okay and the next seven e-
books on the subject), I have to confess that I learned how to write
“hypnotically” from two unusual sources.
I used to read Jack London, Mark Twain, Shirley Jackson, and
Ernest Hemingway and marvel at their ability to weave words in
such a way that they moved me to laughter, fear, or tears.
How did they do that? We have access to the same alphabet and
same vocabulary as those masters, yet they wrote classics and most
of the rest of us write garbage.
What’s up here?
Then, I would read sales letters by Robert Collier, or Bruce Bar-
ton, or John Caples and wonder how they used the same language
but caused people to shell out their hard-earned money—often
during tough economic times.
How did those famous copywriters do that? How did they write
to persuade?
My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel
in the best and simplest way.
—Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961)