This may come as a surprise... to you, but writing articles that get published is an art anyone can learn.
For many Internet Marketers getting publicity and the traffic it brings is second only in importance to making sales.
Writing articles, press releases, and advertising copy is a sure fire way to get publicity, but for many people, writing is a chore best avoided if possible.
Learning how to write is as simple as putting this seven step repeatable method into action.
Step #1 - Define Your Topic and Set Goals.
Good writers start by clearly defining what they want to write about.
Start by focussing your mind on the topic and broad message you want to communicate.
The topic can be one you are an expert on, something you have an interest in, or even something about which you intend to do some research.
The important thing is, be clear on the topic you intend to write about.
Next, with topic and subject firmly in mind, define your goals.
Decide on the writing format you want to put together.
For instance, writing these types of articles results in different output even though you may be writing about the same content.
- A report
- A "How To" style article
- A Press release
- Ad copy (display v classified)
- An e-Book
Setting goals focuses your mind on how best to present your written material. It forces you to set standards by which you can measure the quality of your work.
Step #2 - Research and Order Your Material
Depending on your knowledge about your topic, research can be a completely new study of the subject matter or it can be an organisation of your knowledge, thoughts and opinions into a logical sequence or order.
Depending on content and subject matter, the Internet is probably all you need for most research purposes.
For more complex content you have to use other sources such as
- Libraries,
- Interviews with experts
- Public and private archives.
Make notes during your research, and catalogue the content into structured order as you find it.
Step #3 - Write Mode
The objective in this step is to put all your material onto the page without stopping to edit, format or in any other way manipulate the writing.
This is a pure "Brain Dump", a non critical outpouring of your material onto the page.
For short articles the "Brain Dump" can happen in one sitting. For longer articles, break down the material into manageable chapters or sections which you can then process using the write, edit and polish method.
This is perhaps the most difficult step to perform because we constantly try to improve things as we write. However, going back and forth as you write interrupts your creative flow and makes the whole process more difficult.
Such improvements come in the next two steps. For now concentrate on getting the content out.
Step #4 - Edit Mode
In this stage you can now format the article, spell check, order, and replace or modify the content. Organise your paragraphs and get the layout and presentation correct.
This is where you proofread and check your grammar, turning the raw material from step 3 into a product resembling the finished article.
Editing probably takes more time than any other stage in writing.
Be prepared to spend time going over the material to get it just right.
Step #5 - Polish Mode
At this point, your article is free ......
