Help! I have to write a newsletter about a “dull” topic

Have you ever been asked to pen an article or blog post, or perhaps write a newsletter, on a topic that seemed a bit, well, dull?

The first thing I want to say is that if an irredeemably dull topic exists, I haven’t been asked to write about it yet.

Over the years, I’ve produced content related to many, many topics that initially seemed dull, but which invariably turned out to be pretty interesting once I got into the details. (In fact, the same goes for people and interviews, but that’s a different blog post)

I was thinking about this recently while writing a newsletter for a Japanese company. Without giving too much away, I’ll just describe the company as working with concrete and not particularly famous.

My brief is to highlight one of the company’s successful projects in each newsletter. To do that, I use briefing materials from the company, which are often data and jargon-heavy

So how do you make a seemingly dull topic interesting?

A beginning, a middle, an end… and plenty of concrete detail

Well, as usual the key is to find a story. It doesn’t have to be Gone with Wind. But it does need to be coherent and specific.

One huge construction project that I featured in the newsletter involved months of planning, but actually took place in a very short space of time. That made it easy to give the story a chronological framework, which after all is the oldest and simplest story.

There was also plenty of interesting detail, such as the incredibly cumbersome and heavy equipment, and the careful safety precautions.

But watch out: sometimes remarkable details that could bring a story alive seem so ordinary to specialists that they don’t bother to mention them, or they are buried deep in the briefing materials.

It’s vital to read carefully, and ask questions if you can.

Is there a human angle?

Another way to bring life to a story is to give it a human angle. Can you focus on a specific person? What challenges did they face? How did they overcome them? What did they learn? Do the briefing materials include an interview? Are there quotes?

You might have noticed that this is beginning to sound quite a lot like journalism. Of course, journalism is also about telling stories, albeit for a different purpose to marketing or PR.

Pictures. Maybe video too.

Your task may be to write a newsletter, but pictures are at least, if not more, powerful than words. If you have pictures, or even videos, use them. A series of two or three photos can function as a story in itself, telling the tale almost at a glance.

Captions can be a great way to add more interest. Make sure to keep them short and sweet and striking.

Anyway, if you ever have to write a newsletter, or produce anything else on a topic that “seems” less than rivetting, I hope this tips help!

Three dull-but-not-dull book recommendations

Finally, for examples of how fine writers have skillfully covered topics some might consider dull, please check out these three fascinating and highly readable books!