Being an author of self-help requires one additional skill that they don't tell you about in writing school.  It's a skill perfected by political speechwriters, but self-help gurus are famous for it, too.  It's:

The ability to produce writing that's quotable

What makes a piece of writing quotable, and how can you develop that skill yourself?  Here's what I've learned.

Quotable writers excel in short, pithy sentences.  They use simple devices like parallel structure and alliteration to come up with statements that pack a punch.  You'll often find quotable sentences at the end of a paragraph, where they sum up the preceding argument in one simple declaration.  Quotes are almost always deeper than they first appear.

I had no idea about what it took to produce quotable writing when I first began writing self-help.  Crazily enough, it was not any great tutor or friendly word of advice that turned me on to the potential of being quotable.  Rather, it was our graphic designer.

At the time, our graphic designer was laying out our e-books in a very simple style.  He'd get the elements right on the page, then he'd scan the contents for one sentence or phrase that seemed to stand out.  He put that sentence in a little red box on the right-hand side of the page, where it served to highlight and summarize the page's contents.

Unfortunately, our graphic designer wasn't the best at picking out suitable phrases.  He was under strict time constraints, so he often picked sentences hastily, without reading the whole page.  In order to help him out and reduce editing time, I began highlighting suitable sentences and phrases for him as I was writing the book.  It made his job easier, and it made me more aware of the need for clarity.

Having to produce a quotable phrase on every page transformed my writing style.  I began writing sentences deliberately for the purposes of quotation.  I reduced long-winded explanations, eliminated unnecessary words, and played more with metaphor and allusions to popular culture.  My goal was to make my writing snappy.

It's always been amazing to me how few words are necessary to express a concept.  I often judge the quality of a piece of writing by how succinctly and memorably the author expresses his/her ideas.  I shake my head and frown in disapproval when an author leads me a page or more into his/her work without getting to the point.  Time is money, and reading takes time.  Modern readers are notorious skinflints.

So, if you're interested in being more quotable, make brevity a priority in your writing.  Each time you finish a paragraph, see how well you can sum up what you've said in just a few words.  Say it out loud to get a taste for it on the tongue.  You'll develop the knack with practice.

For an inspiring example of truly quotable writing, check out Alan Cohen's Why Your Life Sucks ... And What You Can Do About It. Cohen is simply stunning.  Each page abounds with messages you just want to write down so that you'll remember them.  I love his quote, "Success is more expression than impression."  Express yourself with passion and truth, and success will follow.