January 2009 January 2009

Friday, January 2, 2009

Checklist For Writing Effective Articles


by: John

Before writing an article, have you ever felt overwhelmed by a blank sensation, not knowing where to start?

...I'll bet you have!

This checklist should help you eliminate some common problems in writing articles:

1. Have a specific purpose in mind.

Always have a specific purpose in mind before you begin writing: you should be crystal clear about what are you hoping to accomplish by writing your article.
Is it an article clarifying an issue for your customers, to attract prospects, to improve the link popularity for your website?

2. Know your target population.

Before writing an article, conduct research on the target population. What are their experience, their interest, and their wants in the chosen topic? What pain or problem do they try to avoid?

3. Develop a detailed outline first, stressing on the benefits.

Now that you have a purpose and a target, organize your article so that scanning it quickly will show immediately to your reader how he will benefit from it and what are the most important points.

4. Stop your reader in his tracks with your title.

Your title should grab the reader's attention and 'force' him to read your first paragraph. Using your most important benefit usually does it.

5. Start your article with the most important information

Again, do not keep your most important information for the conclusion! Give it immediately and develop on it in the following paragraphs.

6. Keep jargon to a minimum.

If possible, avoid jargon as well as prejudices and insinuations. Write your article so that even a child can understand it.

7. Make your article warm and personal.

Speak direct to the reader. Use a lot of 'you'.
Reading your article, the reader should feel warmth and empathy, knowing that you have the same problems and goals than him.

8. Keep sentences short and simple.

Using short and simple sentences will allow a fluid and easy reading, preventing your reader to get bored.

9. Have someone from the target population critique your article.

Who can give you a better feedback than someone from your target population? It will help you

10. Spend more time rewriting than writing.

Besides formatting your article for easy reading and nice presentation, be sure to use tools or an external editor to carefully proofread your writing for grammatical and spelling errors.


Remember that the more writing you do, the better you will get. After sometimes, when you are in the habit of writing, article writing will not seem as difficult as now!

How to Write Articles – Choosing Your Article Subject


by: John

There are many things to consider when writing an article. One of the main ones is the choice of topic. Choosing a topic you are passionate about is important for several reasons.

· Your writing will not only flow more easily, but your enthusiasm will show through and affect the reader in a positive way.

· Editors like enthusiasm in writing.

· You will know much about your topic, thus saving a lot of time in research.

· Your writing task will be a joy to do.

You might feel that writing in the area of your interest is too limiting, but it is possible to branch out into areas that are similar. For instance, if your area of expertise is in chemistry, then writing about health should not be too much of a learning curve. It will also give you a wider scope for selling your articles. Many magazines have a health section. Health topics can be widened to include such topics as sporting injuries and how to treat them, or nutrition. Nutrition can focus on various age groups. See how the ripples widen? In no time you’ll be able to submit articles to many different magazines or websites and you’ll still be writing with passion and enthusiasm.

Choosing your own topic is easier if you decide to write freelance. You can submit to magazines specializing in that topic, but what happens if you are asked to write about a topic you hate, or know little about? If you are a skilled researcher and writer you will bring all your skills to bear on doing the job correctly. Otherwise, consider refusing. If, for example, you are asked to write about finance and investments and you are not even familiar with the terms used, then unless you are a quick learner and love research, your reputation might suffer.

Publishing articles on the Internet is even riskier to your reputation, since there is not always an editor to scrutinize the details and say yea or nay. You must not only get your facts right, but offer good solid meat in your article. An article that includes the basic information that everyone but the man from Mars knows, will make you a laughing stock in the article world.

For example, everyone knows that Fido needs to be fed, watered and exercised properly to be a happy doggie. But does everyone know that his drooping ears need to be inspected carefully for ticks or disease? Do they know the symptoms of a certain disease that particular breed is prone to and what to do about it? Have they heard about that old remedy that will save them a bomb at the vet? If you can provide information such as this in your article, you will soon have a happy readership.

English Coursework Tips


by: John Petrucci

Extremely regularly, students face such appealing articles as writing an English coursework. At once, a lot of questions appear in the head – what students must write concerning in their English coursework, in addition how to organise their English coursework as well as what can assist to develop their English coursework? English coursework articles depict information on the language, its growth as well as customs. Students are open to select whichever topic for their English coursework. Good GCSE English Coursework also demands: * Critical thinking skills as well as composition skills; * Original research of the issue addressed; * Creative approach to the article; Writing an English Coursework-Some hints * if probable, students should try to choose a topic in which they are interested – when the writer is concerned into the procedure of writing, the time required is too short; * Deadline management should be the prior concern – students should work out their personal plan that may assist them to map out their time. Although writing an English coursework demands definite mood, students must work on the usual basis not to make immense pauses in the writing procedure. When students come to write their English coursework after 3 months rearrangement students are in all likelihood to be unsuccessful writing in the similar tone as well as manner, furthermore, students can forget their preceding achievements, otherwise what is worst, student may not find the materials offered previously. * take your time – Students should not hesitate to edit and rewrite their work. Students should be sure to communicate the rules of official writing content as well as their teacher’s specifications. * Consult your teacher – Teacher is the mainly dependable basis of the data on student’s English coursework topic. This is his/her opinion student must take care of, considering it as student’s last hope.

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