Helpful Tips for Article Writers

image by wikipedia

I hope you find these hints and tips helpful during your article writing.

Magic Quill

The Title

The first thing the potential reader will see is the title. Try to make it catchy. Leave the reader wondering what the article is about. For example pose a question, make a bold statement or half finish what you are saying.

Research

Researching your topic is of upmost importance. Poorly researched and inaccurate information is tiresome to the reader. Don’t skimp on the research, the more information you know about your subject then the more interesting and in depth your article is going to be. Use reference books and text books, web sites, notebooks etc.

Body of the text

Here’s how I do it. I decide on subject matter and a title (usually in bed or during housework), then I sit down and research the topic. I already have an idea in my head and I want the article to be original. I want a particular slant or perspective on the piece, I want to include my opinion sometimes and I want to keep the reader interested. Nobody wants to read an article which is simply a rewording of Wikipedia! We would probably get sussed out sooner or later too. Plagiarism is not pretty! Never copy anything from another source and if you do then give it quote marks and state the original source.

Take notes

As I go through the research process I take notes, add my own thoughts and record any useful facts and figures. You are more likely to make the article varied and you can avoid plagiarism this way.  Next I sit back and type it all out, often posing questions and adding my own personal input as I go along.

The image

An image can make or break an article, I think. Perhaps it is the artist in me but I am always keen to read an article which has an enticing image. I love looking at pictures in colour or monochrome. I always chose my images carefully. Sometimes I want clip art and cartoons to inject a bit of humour into a light subject and other times I want serious and thought provoking images to accompany darker works. In my opinion they shouldn’t be too big.

Your new best friend – The spell checker

I won’t read back over my own article until it has been spell checked. I hate untidy spelling with a passion and I am always glad when people point out mine so that I can change it. Sometimes the checker misses mistakes for example if you typed ‘waste’ and you meant ‘waist’. Sloppiness is laziness and you can’t be expected to be taken seriously as a writer if your work is full of clumsy typos and careless grammatical mistakes. See the spell checker as your bodyguard, only protecting your reputation! Who wants to get shouted down during a book signing, ‘on page 120 you spelt ‘too’ with only one ‘o’?