This being my 100th article for Return Of Kings, I thought it would be worth taking some time out to reflect on what lessons that writing has taught me. This is not to blow smoke up my own ass—it will hopefully be of value to those interested in journalism, blogging, or content creation generally. There are however also some more general themes to be drawn out that apply to guys who want to persist and get good at anything, be it getting girls, creating a business, or excelling in your career.

1. Consistency is key

Yes, it’s been said a million times in self-help and business books, but consistency really is key. I wrote my first article for ROK, 7 Tips For Building A Harem, back in February 2014. After a gap of a couple of months (during which I was presumably trying to think of a suitable follow up, or out macking girls, or both) I submitted 6 Tips For Getting Laid In London. After that I was away, publishing posts on a more-or-less weekly basis consistently right up until last year, when a legal battle I was involved with meant that I had to take the odd week out (and even that is making excuses for myself—really I should have pushed myself harder during those times).

When Roosh offered me the gig as game writer for ROK I made a commitment to him and to Winston, the site’s editor, that I would deliver regularly. More importantly, perhaps, I also made that commitment to myself. What that meant was the even when I didn’t feel like it, I would sit down at the keyboard and bash out an article. Or, if I was going to be away on business, or on vacation, I would write and submit multiple articles ahead of time to make sure my slot got filled. That’s not to say I’ve been perfect—no-one is—but in general I’ve kept consistency front of mind.

Consistency has many benefits both for you and for those around you. I haven’t been perfect, but I’ve tried to be as consistent as possible, and when I have, it’s made me feel really good. Because there’s nothing better in life than holding good on promises and accomplishing what you set out to do.

2. Over time, you will get better

This is the other key thing about consistency—if you stick at something long enough, you will get better at it. Do I think 6 Tips For Getting Laid In London is a brilliant piece of writing? No. Would I write the article differently if I tackled it now? Yes, of course I would. But around the time I had published Use the ‘One Strike’ Rule to Improve Your Dating Life in May 2015, I believe I had begun to hit my stride. It was around this time that views on my articles really started to go up, I was getting great reader feedback and my posts were regularly in the top 5 of the week. I was also getting emails from readers and famous PUAs, and sales of my book The Seven Laws of Seduction were up.

Understand that this isn’t to give myself a pat on the back—it merely underlines the fact that if you do something consistently for long enough, you will start to improve.

3. There is an abundance of content

The rule of abundance applies in writing (or creativity generally) just as it does with girls and money. There is an abundance of everything out there—you just have to internalise this and believe it. When I first agreed with Roosh that I would write a weekly article for ROK, I had no long term plan for what I was going to submit. I just knew that the subject area of dating, girls, and relationships was one that I was passionate and knowledgeable about having had a long background in game.

I never thought too much about where the next article was coming from. I knew only that I had made a commitment to the site and its readers, believed in abundance and sat down every week to write. As it was, life invariably threw up circumstances that I was able to use as the raw material for articles, while hopefully helping other guys at the same time.

My experience here taught me that there is no lack of content out there—in fact, there’s an abundance of it. The same is true of girls, things to say in a conversation, jobs, or business opportunities.

4. Write about what you know for a defined target audience

Writing about game and relationships was a no-brainer for me, since it is something I have done myself, and taught, for over a decade. I’ve also written a book about it. Nearly all of my articles include some example from real life which I use to illustrate the technique or phenomenon I am describing.

At the same time, after a while it became necessary for me to start looking outside of my own experience for inspiration. This is where writing for a defined audience really helps. In my case, I often think about my mate Steve. Steve is a great guy who has often needed support and advice with meeting girls and a lot of my ROK articles have been born out of real life conversations with him. Perhaps surprisingly, it turned out that Steve’s individual issues actually resonate with a lot of guys.

Anyone writing or creating content is well advised to either keep a real person in mind while they work, or at least create an avatar of your target audience and speak to that one person.

5. You can never tell for sure what will be popular, so just start

Sometimes you bust your gut over a piece of content only to find that your article bombs. Other times you create something quickly which you feel is a bit throwaway only to see it become incredibly well-viewed with readers really engaged in the comments section.

As has been said of the movie business, “no one knows anything.” Of course experience is valuable. I believe I have a better idea now of what will play well with ROK readers than I did two years ago. But still, every article you publish, every book you write, every business you start and every approach to a girl you make is essentially a crap shoot. You never know 100% what’s going to fly. On that basis then, why not just start? You never know—this idea could just be the one that gets you the girl or makes you a million.

6. Haters gonna hate—but there’s no such thing as consensus

On a related note, any time you put yourself out there in some way, whether it’s by publishing an article, launching a product or chatting up a girl, you will get haters—it’s just a fact of life. People will disagree with you, tell you you’re doing it all wrong, and suggest that you crawl back into your mom’s basement and never come out again.

Like all ROK writers, I have received my fair share of hate over the years, with people leaving derisory and sometimes personally insulting comments under my articles. What’s interesting though is how diverse opinion actually is. For every detractor you get, you will always get at least one person who thinks what you’re doing is brilliant.

This backs up something I wrote in The Seven Laws of Seduction—there is no such thing as consensus. There is no “right” opinion. If you approach a girl and ask her out in a club and she rejects you, then maybe some guy watching will think you’re a douchebag. But equally, the guy standing next to him will admire you for your balls and wish he could be more like you.

In life you have to stand for something. There’s no point in holding back out of fear of what people may or may not think. Act with integrity to your core purpose, whatever that is, and don’t let people who think or feel differently hold you back.

 7. On the internet, all publicity is good publicity

The good news about haters is this—if people are talking about you then you can make money, regardless of what they are saying. The weeks when I’ve received the most vicious reader feedback are also those when my book sales have been highest. Go figure. As above, if you act with integrity to your core purpose then those who like what you are saying will seek you out and support or reward you.

8. Headlines are really important—as is having a great editor

Online, a snappy, engaging headline is the difference between being read or not. Furthermore, your copy should be well-written in order to get your ideas over informatively and entertainingly. When you are creating content solo, this is all down to you, and it’s your responsibility to get things right. Fortunately ROK is blessed with a great editor, Winston, as well as Roosh himself. Many times I have submitted articles with okay headlines, only to see these transformed into showstoppers on publication, causing my numbers to skyrocket. Great editing is a skill acquired over time, so props to those guys.

9. Be helpful

Finally, when creating content of any kind, the best way to go is to take a step back and think about how best you can help your audience. Is it by solving a particular problem? If so, would a certain example from your life help out? Is it by entertaining them? If so, how can you make your work funnier or more dramatic? Is it to move them? If so where can you add more poignancy or pathos. If you always put your audience’s needs first when creating content then you won’t go far wrong.

I hope that at least some people have found some of my first 100 articles helpful. Many thanks for reading—here’s to the next 100!

Want to read more Troy Francis and find out how to approach and seduce sexy girls? Buy Troy’s bestselling book, The Seven Laws of Seduction. To learn more click here.

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