10 Ways to Make Writing an Article Easy
Writing an article doesn’t have to be hard. In fact, it can be downright easy if you use the following 10 steps! This article will explain how to get started with each step in detail so that you can write your own articles in no time at all.
1) Choose Your Topic
- Identify your topic and write a thesis statement
- Write in paragraphs rather than individual sentences
- Use evidence or quotes from experts to support your point of view
- Put numbers, statistics, and examples in lists and tables rather than scattered throughout the text
- Go with the quickest approach you can think of
- Show progression or stages in your writing such as introduction, points, conclusion or takeaways. That way it's easier for readers to follow along.
- Determine the top three reasons for having this blog post - this is what will drive readers back. It should be personal (something that will affect them) clear and concise. Finally, know when enough is enough - when you've said all you needed too say. If it feels like you're not saying anything new, then stop there. You don't want to bore your reader by repeating yourself unnecessarily! Think about your first sentence and try to end on a sentence that makes people want more. The goal is to provide value to your reader so they'll come back and read another one of your posts. With these ten tips, writing articles becomes easy and enjoyable again.
2) Research the Topic
1. Figure out your idea or start with a conversation and see where it leads you. 2. Consider your audience and what they want from you and their opinion on the topic at hand. 3. In general, there are three types of articles: information-based, persuasive, and argumentative - it's important to know which one you're writing before anything else 4. Get some background information on the issue by looking at recent media coverage 5. Set up a timeline for how long you plan on working on the draft 6. Figure out who your voice is as a writer 7. Write drafts for every section in order 8. Set up themes that will run throughout the document 9. Create simple charts or graphs if appropriate 10 Be open minded about what other people have to say
3) Organize Information into Chunks
1. Carefully plan your content by using the following questions: What do I want to accomplish? What information do I need? Who am I writing for? What will my audience find interesting? 2. Draft your points and write down the most important points as bullet points. 3. Organize the bullets in a way that makes sense and that is easy for readers to follow. 4. Eliminate any clutter and ensure key words stand out by using bold or italics when necessary. 5. Write as much detail as you need while still keeping it concise so readers won't feel overwhelmed with irrelevant information that could detract from your main point(s). 6. Place emphasis on what you are trying to convey by eliminating unnecessary words and adding sentence connectors like moreover or furthermore. 7. Add a strong concluding paragraph that summarizes your message, gives the reader something new to think about, and ties together all of the previous points you made throughout the piece. 8. Consider structuring your introduction more like a story than just describing what you are going to say--the introduction should tell readers why they should care about what's coming next, not just give them some background information on where this post came from or how it was written. 9. Close with a clear statement of how someone can take action now--for example, You can make these five changes right now! 10. Proofread your work carefully before submitting! If you have time, ask a friend to read over your work too. But if you don't have time, at least read it aloud to yourself and listen for typos or parts that don't sound quite right. Finally, use spell-check and grammar-check programs because computers are better at catching those mistakes than humans are. Before you submit your work, also consider posting it on social media sites like Facebook or Twitter first to get feedback from friends who might be willing to share their thoughts with you privately. You can also post an update asking people what they would change about the content - both positive and negative comments can help you improve the final draft. After you've got a polished draft, post your work online for others to see. Feedback from other readers is one of the best ways to improve your writing skills!
4) Create Strong Headlines
When writing, you will want to make sure that you have a headline. When writing a headline, it is important that you think about your audience and what they would be most interested in. Sometimes, the headline is going to be different depending on the type of post you are trying to write. You also want to make sure that you capitalize or use italicitalicss when appropriate. When you have a strong headline, people will know exactly what they can expect from reading the entire blog post. They will also be more likely to read the whole thing if you have some really catchy phrases in there. It's all about getting them hooked. Create Compelling Titles: The titles for posts should go hand-in-hand with headlines so that readers can get a general idea of what they might find within the content itself. When you title something, do not use too many words as this may turn off readers who aren't interested in reading long posts with long titles
5) Build on What’s Been Written Before
Tip #1: Use easy-to-understand words
Tip #2: Use short sentences
Tip #3: Try not to use any complex grammar. If you need it, make sure you understand it before using it. Tip #4: Always read your work aloud and listen for anything that sounds wrong or unnatural.
Tip #5: Don’t get hung up on sentence length. There are no hard and fast rules about how long a sentence should be. Sometimes shorter is better; sometimes longer is better. The key is to keep them clear and readable without being too long or too short. Tip #6: Keep the paragraphs short. Paragraphs should have only one topic and never exceed three lines of text unless they're really important.
Tip #7: Limit each paragraph to one thought so readers can easily follow what you're saying. Tip #8: Write in stream of consciousness style - just write whatever comes into your head as if you were talking to someone, but don't worry about proper punctuation at this point.
Tip #9: Do some research online first and then come back to the page with what's already been written in order to see if there's anything new or different that might be worth adding here. Read over what you've written and ask yourself these questions:
• Is there anything I want to add?
• Is there anything I want to delete?
• Does this seem logical? Does it flow nicely from start to finish?
6) Set a Word Limit
Start by planning out what you want to write about. Figure out what your point is and how you're going to make it. What's the best evidence or proof that your case? What examples or stories can you share? Also, think about what types of words will make your point clearer and more interesting. You don't need flowery language just for the sake of making it sound more elaborate. Be creative but be straightforward with the message you're trying to convey
7) Tell a Story
Once you've determined the topic of your post, you should then try to come up with a way that it can be presented in a story form. The best articles are those that are more informal and conversational. This will put your readers at ease and make them feel like they're talking to a friend rather than reading a lesson. Rather than writing out everything in formal terms, try using phrases like I noticed, It made me feel this way, or you might want to know. You'll find that people connect better with these kinds of sentences because they are so relatable. For example, if your topic is on how to buy clothes for work, you could start by telling about a time when you felt really confident in what you were wearing. Then describe the outfit and what kind of message it gave off. Keep on going by adding in some thoughts about what other people think when they see us wearing clothes that we feel good about ourselves in. As long as your post has something to do with the clothing advice, it's not hard to continue from there! Another idea would be to show different outfits and talk about which ones are appropriate for different situations. Maybe you have a whole chapter on the differences between casual wear vs. business attire? Be sure to tell stories throughout each paragraph that illustrate your point - it will keep things interesting and help break up any monotony in the text. There's no need to go overboard with details either; just mention enough so that people understand what you're trying to say.
8) Use Scannable Text
Since writing articles can be tough, here are 10 ways to make the process easier:
1. Focus on your expertise and make sure your topic has a very narrow scope. You want people to read what you write. If it's not that interesting or useful, they won't bother reading it in the first place.
2. Make sure there's enough supporting material for each sentence in your body copy - images, quotes, diagrams, links, etc... these will make your work more engaging and easy for readers to follow along with their journey through the content you're providing them with. A little visual stimulation goes a long way! 3. Write using simple language so anyone can understand it. Don't use words like utilize when use is sufficient and understood by everyone who reads your blog post or other text piece.
4. Use headers to break up your text into easily digestible chunks of information so readers don't get lost trying to keep track of where they are in the document as they go from one idea to another (or worse yet, find themselves scrolling back up). 5. Spell out acronyms at first mention and then after provide a link to the definition in case readers aren't familiar with them. For example, instead of saying SEO at every mention, say Search Engine Optimization followed by a link where readers can learn more about it if needed. 6. Include a summary paragraph at the end of each blog post so if someone is too busy or distracted to read all of your brilliant ideas, they have everything summarized for them in just a few sentences. It also allows you to reiterate the most important points of your message while giving readers something new to think about before they click away. 7. Whenever possible, include charts, infographics, and other visuals that help tell your story without bogging down your audience with wordy explanations. 8. Keep things concise! Every word counts so edit ruthlessly until you've only got what needs to be said left on the page and no more than two thoughts per paragraph. 9. Be specific! When writing about any subject, try to avoid vague statements like it's important or everyone should. These phrases are meaningless and unhelpful. What does important mean? What does everyone encompass? What specifically should we do? To give readers real-world examples, show how concrete actions lead to desirable outcomes. 10. Pay attention to grammar and spelling. Avoid mistakes and correct your errors as soon as you spot them. The cumulative effect of many small mistakes, such as confusing there and their, can detract greatly from the impact of your article. 11. Always look at your article one last time before publishing it. Make sure all links are working, you haven't misspelled anything, and there's nothing else that might need fixing before sending it off to the world wide web. 12. Never rush!
10) Maintain Good Writing Habits
A big part of writing is all about the process. Your day-to-day thoughts, habits, and activities will inevitably influence your work in one way or another. Do your best to develop positive habits that lead you down a path of continual improvement as a writer.
First and foremost, be sure you write every day. Resist the urge to chase after short-term results at the expense of long-term effectiveness. Write with a word count goal in mind, but don't get hung up on hitting it every time; we're all human and our brains need downtime from time to time! Do write consistently, though - especially at first - as your consistency will snowball into a daily writing habit over time. Don't let yourself make excuses for not having enough time or ideas to come up with something worth reading; there's always something interesting happening somewhere in the world if you look hard enough for it. Just remember: Rome wasn't built in a day! If you want people to read what you've written, do your best to ensure that what they find is worth their time. The end result will speak for itself. So take care when editing to ensure that nothing detracts from your message. Put Yourself Out There: It can be tempting to keep things private and share only when necessary, but resist this impulse by regularly publishing content to social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, etc. Your personal information may seem unimportant to you now, but trust me - eventually everything will change (either in good ways or bad). So don't shy away from telling the whole story because it might later embarrass you; instead put yourself out there so that others know who you are and where they can find more of your work. You never know who'll see it and become interested in your style of writing! You'll likely feel the same way when you read somebody else's stuff. Who knows? You might just discover someone new that you never would have known otherwise... or maybe even reconnect with somebody you haven't seen in awhile. And once you start following other writers, there's no telling how many friends you'll make along the way. Be Prepared for Tough Feedback: It's important to accept feedback graciously and use it to improve future articles. Though constructive criticism can sting sometimes, don't allow it discourage you from putting your best foot forward each time. Use Feedback Wisely: When presented with feedback, consider how well it aligns with your intended message before incorporating changes into future drafts. Then set a date for when these changes will go live to give yourself plenty of time to implement them properly. You can also ask for opinions from a few trusted friends or family members to gauge which option you should pursue. Maintain Self-Confidence: Writers block is inevitable from time to time, and that's OK. All you need to do is stay patient and believe in your ability to produce quality work. Your self-confidence will carry you through the tough times and remind you that it's normal for things to slow down every now and then. Stay Focused: Work on any particular article until it feels finished, rather than switching between projects frequently. This way, you'll avoid wasting your energy or risking burnout by spreading yourself too thin.
9) Stop Editing and Finish!
While some parts of the process of writing a piece can be difficult, the hardest part is actually just finishing. Getting to a point where you are done and feel satisfied with what you've produced may seem like it takes forever or never seems possible. But it's important that you learn how to push past this feeling, so you can get everything down on paper. Here are ten ways that might help
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