5 Ways to Shorten a Blog Post

​Scroll just a few posts down, and you’ll see I’m not experienced in the art of keeping blog post short. I’m a story-teller. And as any story-teller knows, length is your friend and enemy. A long story can bring your audience from “cool story, bro” to tears rolling down their cheeks.

But if a post is too long? Well, you know it well. You don’t have an audience. 

So, how do you keep a blog post short—especially when you’re a story-teller?

If it’s Grandma, wanting to read every word (even if it really should be called a novel)—write away. If it’s 13-year-olds who are used to flicking through Instagram stories, cut at least two-thirds of what you planned for Grandma. Probably more. ​

If you’re like me, you use the writing process to discover what you want to say. Some people enjoy going on that journey, but most people don’t. When you’ve discovered, for example, “It’s okay to fail”—cut everything unrelated. ​

Go get yourself a cup of coffee, then come back. Test your post. Would you read it if you were scrolling through your Facebook feed, or if it was in an email? How far would you get? Edit accordingly.

Can’t shorten it? Split it into a blog series. This is great for longer stories you want to tell family and friends. Make sure it’s clear in the title, like “Part 1 of 5”. Still stuck? Go wild and write a book. ​

Think of parables. They’re short, but effective. Peter’s sermon on Pentecost was about 500 words. This blog post is 360 words. So I believe even if you cut more than you ever thought you could—you still can change the world.

If you’ve made it this far, and read under the titles, what I learned in my writing course is a reality. If not, I’m excited this blog post is shorter than my previous ones. That’s all we can do—start small. Oh, in this case, start long. Then little by little, change the world.