Almost everyone involved with Internet marketing is talking about how great it is to make money with articles. And it's true, articles are an awesome and great way to make money online! In order for you to be really successful you need to almost master article marketing. This doesn't mean that you have to be an expert in the field but, at least know how to put together a good article. Below are 5 tips on how to do just that!
You can create articles that generate free traffic to your website and get you sales for what ever it is that you are selling. And isn't that the goal and wanting to master article marketing?
Master Article Marketing #1: Write and Submit The best advice that anyone can give you on the subject of article marketing is to write, write, and write some more. After you write then submit your articles to free article directories. How many directories should I submit to? It all depends on how much time you have set aside for this task. On a good day I will submit to about 75 directories. On a fast day I will submit to only about 10. Ten is the least amount of directories that you would want to submit to. The more you write and submit the more traffic and sales you are going to receive. To be really successful writing articles, I’m talking about 6 figure successful; you need to write about 1000 articles per year. That’s three a day, every day!
Master Article Marketing #2: Attention Grabbing Headline The second key to writing a good article is the headline. The headline is probably the most important part of your article. Your headline should grab the readers attention and make them want to read your article. Make your headline 'Pop' with excitement! Here is an example of two headlines you tell me which one grabs more attention. "5 Ways That Make Your Article Sell" or "Write Articles That Sell - Top 5 Hot Tips". Can you see the difference? Your title is what sells the reader on continuing on with your article. And that is what you really want, is someone to read your article and then take action.
Master Article Marketing #3: Features and Benefits When writing your articles you want to give the reader some useful information. You don't want to sell them the farm, I mean don't give them all of the information keep some back so that they will want to click on your link to learn more. When giving useful information you should try to concentrate on 'Features' and 'Benefits'. Here is an example of a feature for a toastmaster toaster: "Can make toast in as little as 3 minutes" now the benefit for the purchaser: "Can make toast in as little as 3 minutes, so you can get out the door and get to work faster". Feature: "Toaster is shiny" Benefit: "Will look great on your counter top". I think you get the idea.
Master Article Marketing #4: Good Resource Box Your resource box is for you to so some small advertising to get the reader to take action and click on your link! You don't want to be to obvious but, just make mention of your product for more information. I my opinion this is the only place in your article that you should be putting links. To see how to accomplish this go to Ezinearticles.com and look at some articles and check out the resource box at the end of the article. If you have written a good informative article then most people will click on your link to learn even more, and that is exactly your goal!
Master Article Marketing #5: Use of Keywords Keywords play a major role in putting together a good article. You want to make sure that people are searching on your keywords so that they will find your article. You should use long tail keywords (more than one word). You should always put your keywords in your title. The first 3 words in your title should have your keywords in them. To be able to do keyword research you can go to http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com. This is a free tool that will help you refine your search and get an idea of how many people are searching on a phrase. Keywords are very important and you must also use them with in your article (keyword density).
To learn more on how to master article marketing check out my website!
About the Author
Discover how to master article marketing today! >> How To Master Article Writing
Discover The Top Secret Underground Formula for Article Writing! >> Amazing Article Formula
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
How to Pump Out Articles in less than 30 Minutes! by Prince Avery
Now there are many benefits to producing your own articles for any body planning to do any kind of internet marketing out there. The pluses to having your own fresh articles on the internet far outweigh the amount of time it takes to get skilled at producing such articles for yourself. I mean you could spend money and buy your articles from websites such as associatedcontent.com and forums where freelancers advertise their articles writing services such as the warrior forum. The thing about this is that you pay about $3-5 per article when you could easily pump out good quality material, filled with your personality and your twist on things for FREE!
Here are a few of the benefits to using articles to promote your websites or products:
Having articles submitted to article directories creates a lot of quality backlinks to your website, causing your search engine PR to go higher. This could be done over and over again as there are many search engine submission websites ready to take your article as long as its original content. All the links are also going to come from popular websites that get a lot of traffic so your ranking will go even higher as you keep submitting more and more articles to many websites!
Your articles will have a greater chance of being read if you submit to certain directories such as ezinearticles.com and amazines.com and you would be surprised how quickly your articles can show up among the top in google.com search results. Having a lot of keyword targeted articles out there all linking to your website or blog is one of the best free ways to boost traffic to your site.
The articles also help to establish your expert status among surfers who will look to your content for advice and solution to their problems. That’s a very powerful way for establishing readership and gaining return visitors. Even the big websites that spend millions on advertising also spend money hiring writers that produce articles and little information products that keep people interested.
No on to how to get these things out with lightning speed! The first thing to understand is that you cant force your brain to perform in ways its not designed to. I mean you have to actually know something about what you’re writing about. Not much, but just a little bit. You have to commit to doing research on any topic you’re interested in so you actually have something to say. I had that problem before when I tried to write articles about things that bored me to death. Kind of slowed me down along my internet marketing career because I then disliked the task of writing for a while simply because I picked the wrong things to write about, nor did any research to gain at least an opinion about it. Do your homework!
Article writing is mainly about your keywords and title. The body needs to be created around the title of your article, which is the most important thing to think about if you’re an internet marketer. The title has to make people want to read your article, while being focused enough to make it easier for you to stay on topic while writing. The title has to also attempt to solve a problem or fulfill a need people have.
The best thing I can say for now about pumping out articles with quickness is to write as if you were talking. It’s not an essay or a research paper, just an organized string of your opinions and what you know about a specific topic. Keep it fun and interesting, and write what you would have wanted to read when you were doing research.
About the Author
Keep Reading on my blog and also learn how you could be spitting Articles out as fast as every 15minutes, the lazy way! Click Here
Here are a few of the benefits to using articles to promote your websites or products:
Having articles submitted to article directories creates a lot of quality backlinks to your website, causing your search engine PR to go higher. This could be done over and over again as there are many search engine submission websites ready to take your article as long as its original content. All the links are also going to come from popular websites that get a lot of traffic so your ranking will go even higher as you keep submitting more and more articles to many websites!
Your articles will have a greater chance of being read if you submit to certain directories such as ezinearticles.com and amazines.com and you would be surprised how quickly your articles can show up among the top in google.com search results. Having a lot of keyword targeted articles out there all linking to your website or blog is one of the best free ways to boost traffic to your site.
The articles also help to establish your expert status among surfers who will look to your content for advice and solution to their problems. That’s a very powerful way for establishing readership and gaining return visitors. Even the big websites that spend millions on advertising also spend money hiring writers that produce articles and little information products that keep people interested.
No on to how to get these things out with lightning speed! The first thing to understand is that you cant force your brain to perform in ways its not designed to. I mean you have to actually know something about what you’re writing about. Not much, but just a little bit. You have to commit to doing research on any topic you’re interested in so you actually have something to say. I had that problem before when I tried to write articles about things that bored me to death. Kind of slowed me down along my internet marketing career because I then disliked the task of writing for a while simply because I picked the wrong things to write about, nor did any research to gain at least an opinion about it. Do your homework!
Article writing is mainly about your keywords and title. The body needs to be created around the title of your article, which is the most important thing to think about if you’re an internet marketer. The title has to make people want to read your article, while being focused enough to make it easier for you to stay on topic while writing. The title has to also attempt to solve a problem or fulfill a need people have.
The best thing I can say for now about pumping out articles with quickness is to write as if you were talking. It’s not an essay or a research paper, just an organized string of your opinions and what you know about a specific topic. Keep it fun and interesting, and write what you would have wanted to read when you were doing research.
About the Author
Keep Reading on my blog and also learn how you could be spitting Articles out as fast as every 15minutes, the lazy way! Click Here
Marketing Strategy For Beginning Copywriters: 3 Reasons to Stay Out of the Bargain Bin by Justin Best
Go to almost any retail shop today, and you'll find the bargain bin. It's that large box or basket (the bin part) near the front of the store that's full of stuff that's ridiculously low priced (the bargain part). And while some people pick at it, looking for something they might someday, possibly, perhaps, maybe use, the products in the bin aren't exactly flying out of the store, despite the low price. Why not? Because people assume that it's low quality. It's not even worth that lowly price. Why? Because it's in the bargain bin.
As with any career, starting out as a freelance copywriter can be tough, and there seems to be as many opinions about how to "break in" to writing as there are writers. Recently, I read an article by a business writer touting that the best way to get in to the industry is through rock-bottom prices. I had to go back and re-read this sentence a second and even a third time. Surely, he had meant, "Don't charge rock-bottom prices." But there it was: Get work by charging low fees. Basically, he was saying: Put yourself in the bargain bin.
Certainly, if you check any number of writing websites, you'll see that this is a popular strategy. I recently read on Craigslist where someone was willing to pay up to $8/hour for a business letter. But just because it's a popular strategy, doesn't mean it's a good one. By setting your fees at rock-bottom prices, you are establishing yourself as a bargain bin writer, a mold which can leave a bad impression and be difficult to break out of. Plus, there will always be someone cheaper than you.
First, by setting your prices too low, you can leave a bad impression with serious clients. Imagine you need to have a tooth pulled. One dentist offers to pull your tooth for $25. Another says that he charges $400. While I don't exactly know the market price for tooth-pulling, I know that $25 sounds ridiculously low, and I'm immediately going to start wondering why that dentist's price is so low. In my mind, I've already started to think that the $25 dentist must not be very proficient. I'm going to trust my pearly whites somewhere else.
When you price yourself at below average rates, you are doing the same thing. Professional clients expect to pay professional fees. If your fees are too low, clients will automatically assume that your skills are below average. If you are charging professional fees, even it's your first job, the client will start to think, "That sounds about right. He must provide quality if he's able to get work at that price." You are establishing yourself as a professional in the client's mind.
Secondly, once you have established yourself as a bargain bin writer, it can be hard to break out of that image in the client's mind. Even if you tell the client that this is a special, one time only deal. And even if he agrees profusely, he now knows that you can be had at the lower rate. In all future negotiations, he can use this as leverage to get products from you priced at the lower end of the pay scale. You've now "broken-in" and established a client, but, in the long run, what good is a client who doesn't want to pay you what you're worth? Plus, I've found that many clients shopping for bargain writers aren't serious, or, that they may come with other factors that might end up costing you even more. For example, they might be feeling the pressure from working within a tiny budget and feel that this is their make-or-break piece. This could manifest itself in never-ending revisions or a constant feeling of disappointment in your work, no matter how great it is. Clients looking for writers on the cheap are often hoping to get much more than what they're paying for.
Finally, if the bulk of your marketing strategy is based on being cheaper than the other guy/girl, then you should know that there are others who are using the same strategy, and many who will be willing to go lower than you. Sites like ELance or Craigslist make this painfully obvious. That's not to condemn those sites, but some of the fiercest competition comes from writers at the bottom of the pay scale.
Getting started in any new profession is tough, and it can be tempting to price yourself lower than the competition to get work. But don't do it. It creates a bad image, can be tough to change the client's picture of you, and you can always be undersold. Sure, you're probably not going to be able to start out at $200/hour, but price yourself at what you're worth. You don't want to be stuck in a writer bargain bin.
About the Author
Justin M. Best is a full time freelance business writer, based out of New York City. He has worked with clients on both coasts, the Midwest, and internationally. http://www.justinmbest.com
As with any career, starting out as a freelance copywriter can be tough, and there seems to be as many opinions about how to "break in" to writing as there are writers. Recently, I read an article by a business writer touting that the best way to get in to the industry is through rock-bottom prices. I had to go back and re-read this sentence a second and even a third time. Surely, he had meant, "Don't charge rock-bottom prices." But there it was: Get work by charging low fees. Basically, he was saying: Put yourself in the bargain bin.
Certainly, if you check any number of writing websites, you'll see that this is a popular strategy. I recently read on Craigslist where someone was willing to pay up to $8/hour for a business letter. But just because it's a popular strategy, doesn't mean it's a good one. By setting your fees at rock-bottom prices, you are establishing yourself as a bargain bin writer, a mold which can leave a bad impression and be difficult to break out of. Plus, there will always be someone cheaper than you.
First, by setting your prices too low, you can leave a bad impression with serious clients. Imagine you need to have a tooth pulled. One dentist offers to pull your tooth for $25. Another says that he charges $400. While I don't exactly know the market price for tooth-pulling, I know that $25 sounds ridiculously low, and I'm immediately going to start wondering why that dentist's price is so low. In my mind, I've already started to think that the $25 dentist must not be very proficient. I'm going to trust my pearly whites somewhere else.
When you price yourself at below average rates, you are doing the same thing. Professional clients expect to pay professional fees. If your fees are too low, clients will automatically assume that your skills are below average. If you are charging professional fees, even it's your first job, the client will start to think, "That sounds about right. He must provide quality if he's able to get work at that price." You are establishing yourself as a professional in the client's mind.
Secondly, once you have established yourself as a bargain bin writer, it can be hard to break out of that image in the client's mind. Even if you tell the client that this is a special, one time only deal. And even if he agrees profusely, he now knows that you can be had at the lower rate. In all future negotiations, he can use this as leverage to get products from you priced at the lower end of the pay scale. You've now "broken-in" and established a client, but, in the long run, what good is a client who doesn't want to pay you what you're worth? Plus, I've found that many clients shopping for bargain writers aren't serious, or, that they may come with other factors that might end up costing you even more. For example, they might be feeling the pressure from working within a tiny budget and feel that this is their make-or-break piece. This could manifest itself in never-ending revisions or a constant feeling of disappointment in your work, no matter how great it is. Clients looking for writers on the cheap are often hoping to get much more than what they're paying for.
Finally, if the bulk of your marketing strategy is based on being cheaper than the other guy/girl, then you should know that there are others who are using the same strategy, and many who will be willing to go lower than you. Sites like ELance or Craigslist make this painfully obvious. That's not to condemn those sites, but some of the fiercest competition comes from writers at the bottom of the pay scale.
Getting started in any new profession is tough, and it can be tempting to price yourself lower than the competition to get work. But don't do it. It creates a bad image, can be tough to change the client's picture of you, and you can always be undersold. Sure, you're probably not going to be able to start out at $200/hour, but price yourself at what you're worth. You don't want to be stuck in a writer bargain bin.
About the Author
Justin M. Best is a full time freelance business writer, based out of New York City. He has worked with clients on both coasts, the Midwest, and internationally. http://www.justinmbest.com
Write Better Dialoge by Deborah Sutton
Fictional dialogue is a strange beast.
It has to sound real and natural in the reader's mind, but in reality it's nothing like the live, everyday dialogue that we all use.
For a start, much of the talking that people do in everyday circumstances is more to establish communication and friendly relations than to further our interests or help us achieve our goals.
You meet someone in the street and it goes something like this:
“Hey, long time no see. How're things?â€
“Not so bad, you know. Mustn't grumble. How're you?â€
“Yep, okay thanks. Miserable weather isn't it?â€
“Oh, dreadful. Nothing but rain. And it's been so cold.â€
“I know. More like winter than spring. I never know what to wear these days.â€
“Nor me. One minute it's freezing and the next it's gone all muggy and close.â€
“I just wish the rain would stop.â€
“Ah well. The garden needs it I suppose.â€
“Yeah. Saves on watering.â€
“Must dash. Doing a bit of shopping for my daughter.â€
“Me too. I'm just on my way to work.â€
“Nice seeing you anyway. Take care.â€
“And you. Bye for now.â€
What did that exchange achieve? In real life it achieved quite a lot.
It enabled two people who haven't seen each other for a while to remind each other of mutual acquaintance and show concern for each other (How are you? Mustn't grumble.) They quickly get onto a comfortable subject where they can both agree on one thing (Miserable weather. Oh, dreadful.) and therefore mutually sympathise with the bad things and find common ground in the upside (Garden needs it). They're both on important errands so they can quickly part without giving offence and with the satisfaction of having had a little moan to a person who feels the same way. Both are uplifted in a small way, and the parting is positive (Take care. And you.)
Everyone has this sort of encounter every day, and we all need them.
Our words are mostly meaningless. It's small talk. But never underestimate the importance of small talk. In real life our small dialogue is our reaching out, our point of contact with other humans, our finding common ground and our chance to give and receive the warmth of a friendly smile.
But in fiction we need to find another way of giving our characters these little but important lifts in life. In fiction there is no place for the kind of dialogue shown above.
Why?
Because fictional dialogue needs to have a purpose that's directly relevant to the story being told. Every single line that your characters speak must address what's happening in the story.
Dialogue has a heavy workload in fiction. It must fulfil one or more of the following functions:
Move the story forward.
Show situation.
Expose character.
Reveal conflict.
And each of those functions must be performed within the boundaries of the story. If you take the above dialogue you might argue that those two people need to meet that day so their meeting needs to be in the story. Okay, I'll accept that. But their dialogue must the relevant to the reason 'why' they need to meet.
The weather and the fact they're both in reasonably good health probably isn't the reason why. So you need to ask yourself what relevance to the story this meeting has, and either include it directly in their conversation or hint at it very strongly.
In short, this meeting must be so important that the story can't go forwards without it. If you can remove the meeting and still write the story, then removing the meeting is what you should do.
Fictional dialogue always has a job to do that is bigger than the actual words exchanged. Make sure it does that job and you won't go far wrong.
About the Author
Deborah Sutton is a writer and professionally qualified creative writing tutor, published in both fiction and nonfiction.
http://www.deborahsutton.co.uk
It has to sound real and natural in the reader's mind, but in reality it's nothing like the live, everyday dialogue that we all use.
For a start, much of the talking that people do in everyday circumstances is more to establish communication and friendly relations than to further our interests or help us achieve our goals.
You meet someone in the street and it goes something like this:
“Hey, long time no see. How're things?â€
“Not so bad, you know. Mustn't grumble. How're you?â€
“Yep, okay thanks. Miserable weather isn't it?â€
“Oh, dreadful. Nothing but rain. And it's been so cold.â€
“I know. More like winter than spring. I never know what to wear these days.â€
“Nor me. One minute it's freezing and the next it's gone all muggy and close.â€
“I just wish the rain would stop.â€
“Ah well. The garden needs it I suppose.â€
“Yeah. Saves on watering.â€
“Must dash. Doing a bit of shopping for my daughter.â€
“Me too. I'm just on my way to work.â€
“Nice seeing you anyway. Take care.â€
“And you. Bye for now.â€
What did that exchange achieve? In real life it achieved quite a lot.
It enabled two people who haven't seen each other for a while to remind each other of mutual acquaintance and show concern for each other (How are you? Mustn't grumble.) They quickly get onto a comfortable subject where they can both agree on one thing (Miserable weather. Oh, dreadful.) and therefore mutually sympathise with the bad things and find common ground in the upside (Garden needs it). They're both on important errands so they can quickly part without giving offence and with the satisfaction of having had a little moan to a person who feels the same way. Both are uplifted in a small way, and the parting is positive (Take care. And you.)
Everyone has this sort of encounter every day, and we all need them.
Our words are mostly meaningless. It's small talk. But never underestimate the importance of small talk. In real life our small dialogue is our reaching out, our point of contact with other humans, our finding common ground and our chance to give and receive the warmth of a friendly smile.
But in fiction we need to find another way of giving our characters these little but important lifts in life. In fiction there is no place for the kind of dialogue shown above.
Why?
Because fictional dialogue needs to have a purpose that's directly relevant to the story being told. Every single line that your characters speak must address what's happening in the story.
Dialogue has a heavy workload in fiction. It must fulfil one or more of the following functions:
Move the story forward.
Show situation.
Expose character.
Reveal conflict.
And each of those functions must be performed within the boundaries of the story. If you take the above dialogue you might argue that those two people need to meet that day so their meeting needs to be in the story. Okay, I'll accept that. But their dialogue must the relevant to the reason 'why' they need to meet.
The weather and the fact they're both in reasonably good health probably isn't the reason why. So you need to ask yourself what relevance to the story this meeting has, and either include it directly in their conversation or hint at it very strongly.
In short, this meeting must be so important that the story can't go forwards without it. If you can remove the meeting and still write the story, then removing the meeting is what you should do.
Fictional dialogue always has a job to do that is bigger than the actual words exchanged. Make sure it does that job and you won't go far wrong.
About the Author
Deborah Sutton is a writer and professionally qualified creative writing tutor, published in both fiction and nonfiction.
http://www.deborahsutton.co.uk
Translations for Marketing by kelvin berry
All around the globe one thing that is growing quite rapidly and without any bonding and restrictions is the field of business. Businessmen around the globe want to explore more and more new destinations for doing business and to introduce their products and ideas to even more and more people around the Earth. This will give them more profit and more exposure to their products and ideas. Also it will be highly beneficial for the general people; they will get more and more variety of goods for their daily usage. But in order to achieve this target for their business they need to have a good command on the marketing techniques and plans for their business.
The primary thing that the businessmen needs is a service which can convey their ideas in different languages of the world. So as to make the people aware of the noble cause for which they are entering their market. In order to achieve this goal they need to have a good translation agency which could offer them a reliable and true translation services.
For the marketing of a new product in a new market you got to have a translation service which can convey their exact message behind the product without destructing the sense of the marketing. Translation services for the marketing purpose are one of the things which can provide a greater height to you and your business. The exact idea and moto of your business is conveyed to the people through marketing and if the marketing for your business is to be done in a different region then the translation service for your business comes into act. Because the translation service for your business will take your ideas through the minds of the peoples of that specific region.
Investor’s around the globe are spending in a variety of markets around the world and in order to make the most of each opportunity there is a need of flourishing endorsement and advertisement of the business and for this they need an efficient website translation service or say a professional translation agency. What ever be the need of the translation service be it business translation , Legal translation, medical translation, financial translation, academic translation, commercial translation, technical translation or any other means of translation needs the translation agencies are offering every single type of services.
So the investors around the globe can get a better translation service through a reputed translation agency and could market there product efficiently and positively around the globe and in every region they want to. Having a proper translation service for your business gives you and your business an upper hand over the other competitors of your field.
About the Author
Glikson www.glikson-translations.comis a leading translation agency specializing in English-Chinese and Chinese- English translations. Our business philosophy: localized, accurate and fast. We offer first-class translation services in the following fields.
The primary thing that the businessmen needs is a service which can convey their ideas in different languages of the world. So as to make the people aware of the noble cause for which they are entering their market. In order to achieve this goal they need to have a good translation agency which could offer them a reliable and true translation services.
For the marketing of a new product in a new market you got to have a translation service which can convey their exact message behind the product without destructing the sense of the marketing. Translation services for the marketing purpose are one of the things which can provide a greater height to you and your business. The exact idea and moto of your business is conveyed to the people through marketing and if the marketing for your business is to be done in a different region then the translation service for your business comes into act. Because the translation service for your business will take your ideas through the minds of the peoples of that specific region.
Investor’s around the globe are spending in a variety of markets around the world and in order to make the most of each opportunity there is a need of flourishing endorsement and advertisement of the business and for this they need an efficient website translation service or say a professional translation agency. What ever be the need of the translation service be it business translation , Legal translation, medical translation, financial translation, academic translation, commercial translation, technical translation or any other means of translation needs the translation agencies are offering every single type of services.
So the investors around the globe can get a better translation service through a reputed translation agency and could market there product efficiently and positively around the globe and in every region they want to. Having a proper translation service for your business gives you and your business an upper hand over the other competitors of your field.
About the Author
Glikson www.glikson-translations.comis a leading translation agency specializing in English-Chinese and Chinese- English translations. Our business philosophy: localized, accurate and fast. We offer first-class translation services in the following fields.
Turning Easy To Write Articles Into Long Term Income! by Bud Phillips
Whatever your goal is article marketing can help you reach it. You goal might be to generate more website traffic or generate more sales it doesn't really matter as long as you know where you are headed. If you want to turn easy to write articles into a long term income there are some tips that will help you to do just that!
As you write articles, you'll become aware that the more articles you write, the more powerful a promotional tool article marketing is - you get more clients and more sales.
Easy To Write Articles Tip #1: What Do You Want To Promote
Before you start writing your article, decide what you want to promote. Do you want to promote a business? A product or service? An affiliate product?
Whatever you decide to promote, write the article to attract the most readers that will have an interest in what you are promoting.
Easy To Write Articles Tip #2: Research Your Topic
To write a good article you don't have to be an expert. Almost any topic that you choose will more than likely already have an article written. All you will need to do is some research. Go to an article directory like EzineArticles and search for articles on your topic. Read and take notes on what you find. Never copy another writer's work but, you can take the same idea and rewrite it in your own words. You can usually get the most information from reading about 3 - 5 articles and taking good notes. Always jot down points to remember and that you want to cover in your article.
Easy To Write Articles Tip #3: Write and Submit
The best way to make a long term income from writing articles is to take action and start writing articles. Write, write, and write some more. Once you are done writing your article run it through a spell checker. Once that is complete then you will need to submit your article to free article directories. You should submit your article to no less than 10 directories, that way you will get good exposure and you should start to see some traffic coming to your website.
Your article should contain around 300 - 500 words to be considered an article. I would say that it shouldn't be longer than 750 words. Your article doesn't have to be perfect as long as you provide good information to your readers in an easy to understand format. Your articles will work for you 24/7 like little sales machines. The more you write and submit the more traffic you will get and the more sales you will make.
So it's important that you become skilled at writing articles, because of the boost article marketing gives your business.
Turning easy to write articles into long term income is not hard and anyone can achieve this goal. All of this takes a great deal of time, and some patients to be successful.
About the Author
Turn Article Marketing Into a Roaring Success! >> Easy To Write Articles
FREE Ebook - Start Making Money Everyday! >> Free Ebook
As you write articles, you'll become aware that the more articles you write, the more powerful a promotional tool article marketing is - you get more clients and more sales.
Easy To Write Articles Tip #1: What Do You Want To Promote
Before you start writing your article, decide what you want to promote. Do you want to promote a business? A product or service? An affiliate product?
Whatever you decide to promote, write the article to attract the most readers that will have an interest in what you are promoting.
Easy To Write Articles Tip #2: Research Your Topic
To write a good article you don't have to be an expert. Almost any topic that you choose will more than likely already have an article written. All you will need to do is some research. Go to an article directory like EzineArticles and search for articles on your topic. Read and take notes on what you find. Never copy another writer's work but, you can take the same idea and rewrite it in your own words. You can usually get the most information from reading about 3 - 5 articles and taking good notes. Always jot down points to remember and that you want to cover in your article.
Easy To Write Articles Tip #3: Write and Submit
The best way to make a long term income from writing articles is to take action and start writing articles. Write, write, and write some more. Once you are done writing your article run it through a spell checker. Once that is complete then you will need to submit your article to free article directories. You should submit your article to no less than 10 directories, that way you will get good exposure and you should start to see some traffic coming to your website.
Your article should contain around 300 - 500 words to be considered an article. I would say that it shouldn't be longer than 750 words. Your article doesn't have to be perfect as long as you provide good information to your readers in an easy to understand format. Your articles will work for you 24/7 like little sales machines. The more you write and submit the more traffic you will get and the more sales you will make.
So it's important that you become skilled at writing articles, because of the boost article marketing gives your business.
Turning easy to write articles into long term income is not hard and anyone can achieve this goal. All of this takes a great deal of time, and some patients to be successful.
About the Author
Turn Article Marketing Into a Roaring Success! >> Easy To Write Articles
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Freelance Writing Jobs - Earn $100 and More Per Day by jitesh arora
Freelance writing jobs are one of the money making methods. Freelance writing jobs are getting popular every day. You cannot imagine how much money you can make through freelance writing jobs.
In this article I will write some methods which I am using myself to make money through writing jobs.
How can you start? First of all find a popular niche. For example you can start with health and fitness articles. You can also opt for a topic which is interesting for you. You can write articles related to the topic you have selected and after that you can sell then through online market places.
Who will buy my articles? Your articles will be bought by webmasters for their blogs and websites. As they need fresh articles every day. You can sell your articles to websites like Associated content.com or Helium.com. They can pay a good amount of money for quality content. Helium .com actually shares the revenue which he it earns through your articles. It means that your earnings depend on the quality of your articles.
The best thing about online jobs is that you can make money at the comfort of your home.
There are many websites which are offering online writing jobs. They pay up to $20 per page. It is not a difficult task to write five pages per day. You can easily find these websites through major search engines.
By following simple tips and techniques you can become a successful freelance writer. There are many blogs and websites which are devoted to freelance writing jobs.
About the Author
One of the Popular Blogs Is Freelance Writing Jobs. I am regularly updating this blog by adding Freelance Writing Tips. If you really want to become a successful online writer then it is a good idea to visit http://www.uniquearticle.net
In this article I will write some methods which I am using myself to make money through writing jobs.
How can you start? First of all find a popular niche. For example you can start with health and fitness articles. You can also opt for a topic which is interesting for you. You can write articles related to the topic you have selected and after that you can sell then through online market places.
Who will buy my articles? Your articles will be bought by webmasters for their blogs and websites. As they need fresh articles every day. You can sell your articles to websites like Associated content.com or Helium.com. They can pay a good amount of money for quality content. Helium .com actually shares the revenue which he it earns through your articles. It means that your earnings depend on the quality of your articles.
The best thing about online jobs is that you can make money at the comfort of your home.
There are many websites which are offering online writing jobs. They pay up to $20 per page. It is not a difficult task to write five pages per day. You can easily find these websites through major search engines.
By following simple tips and techniques you can become a successful freelance writer. There are many blogs and websites which are devoted to freelance writing jobs.
About the Author
One of the Popular Blogs Is Freelance Writing Jobs. I am regularly updating this blog by adding Freelance Writing Tips. If you really want to become a successful online writer then it is a good idea to visit http://www.uniquearticle.net
The Difference of Web Content Writing from Print Writing by Paula Cambridge
Web content writing is not the same as writing for print because people read differently on the Internet. Studies show that reading from computer screens is slower than from paper, and that 79% of Web users merely scan a web page instead of reading the whole content. Online reading truly requires extra effort from the users, because not even the best computer monitors can compare to the glossy pages of a magazine.
But the bigger problem of web copywriters is not finding the most technologically advanced computer monitor. The problem is not something physical, it's behavioral. Any one who has been doing web content writing for a long time will agree that online readers are in a hurry to get the information they want. They don't have the patience to read through volumes of complex texts, and would rather go to other less complicated websites.
Attracting the attention and retaining reader interest is a challenge web copywriters has to face. Given only ten seconds to grab the attention of a reader, copywriters have to come up with a copy that is clear, concise and highly attractive. They have to keep in mind that the headings and subheadings should have powerful attention-grabbing words because readers look at these sections first for hyperlinks and keywords. Web content writing is about overcoming readers' impatience by keeping everything as brief and simple as possible.
The Web is an informal medium compared to print, so its contents should have a somewhat informal writing style. Excessive use of humor, metaphors and other figures of speech have no place in web content writing. Convoluted writing and puns simply do not work for international users.
In web content writing, copywriters should keep in mind that readers suffer from information overload everyday. Readers have to face a multitude of tasks at work , including answering emails and typing large quantities of documents. They simply will not exert effort on reading contents that will take much of their limited time. To nail the information quickly and easily, web copywriters should use short sentences and short paragraphs that stresses a single idea.
Credibility is a factor web copywriters have to consider in producing a copy. Readers are naturally skeptical, they will easily ignore copies that overflow with marketing jargons or exaggerated claims. Web content writing is earning the readers' trust, which can easily be lost by arrogant and pretentious language. Copywriters can retain the interest of readers and eventually encourage a sale if they use objective language, and write meaningful headlines and subheadings. Lengthy and clever lines that do not immediately stress their main point will only burn the patience of a reader.
The web is an unstable medium, so web pages should be updated regularly to reflect change. Statistics and numbers all need to be recent or credibility suffers. Adding bylines and other ways of showing personality also increases a websites credibility.
Offering hyperlinks to the sources of the information adds credibility to a website as well. If possible, copywriters should link quotes from different articles or references to the source.
About the Author
Paula Cambridge is a marketing communications copywriter in one of Illinois's leading distributor of packaging and industrial supplies. Her rich copy writing experience allows her to take freelance jobs from many design and advertising firms.
But the bigger problem of web copywriters is not finding the most technologically advanced computer monitor. The problem is not something physical, it's behavioral. Any one who has been doing web content writing for a long time will agree that online readers are in a hurry to get the information they want. They don't have the patience to read through volumes of complex texts, and would rather go to other less complicated websites.
Attracting the attention and retaining reader interest is a challenge web copywriters has to face. Given only ten seconds to grab the attention of a reader, copywriters have to come up with a copy that is clear, concise and highly attractive. They have to keep in mind that the headings and subheadings should have powerful attention-grabbing words because readers look at these sections first for hyperlinks and keywords. Web content writing is about overcoming readers' impatience by keeping everything as brief and simple as possible.
The Web is an informal medium compared to print, so its contents should have a somewhat informal writing style. Excessive use of humor, metaphors and other figures of speech have no place in web content writing. Convoluted writing and puns simply do not work for international users.
In web content writing, copywriters should keep in mind that readers suffer from information overload everyday. Readers have to face a multitude of tasks at work , including answering emails and typing large quantities of documents. They simply will not exert effort on reading contents that will take much of their limited time. To nail the information quickly and easily, web copywriters should use short sentences and short paragraphs that stresses a single idea.
Credibility is a factor web copywriters have to consider in producing a copy. Readers are naturally skeptical, they will easily ignore copies that overflow with marketing jargons or exaggerated claims. Web content writing is earning the readers' trust, which can easily be lost by arrogant and pretentious language. Copywriters can retain the interest of readers and eventually encourage a sale if they use objective language, and write meaningful headlines and subheadings. Lengthy and clever lines that do not immediately stress their main point will only burn the patience of a reader.
The web is an unstable medium, so web pages should be updated regularly to reflect change. Statistics and numbers all need to be recent or credibility suffers. Adding bylines and other ways of showing personality also increases a websites credibility.
Offering hyperlinks to the sources of the information adds credibility to a website as well. If possible, copywriters should link quotes from different articles or references to the source.
About the Author
Paula Cambridge is a marketing communications copywriter in one of Illinois's leading distributor of packaging and industrial supplies. Her rich copy writing experience allows her to take freelance jobs from many design and advertising firms.
Writing a low-budget screenplay that sells by Bryon Blakey
Here is a list of points to consider when writing a low-budget script. This is definitely not all of them and I'll try to hit more points over time. They are some of the things I've learned over the years, not necessarily what I've put into play up to this point.
* Write the script around the best and fewest possible locations that you have available in your immediate area. You can't do like hollywood and just build a 3 story battleship, so don't write one in unless it is just a few locations that you can build or mock up. Also, for the sound man's sake, consider the audio levels in the environment. You want to have complete control over any sound (heaters, air conditioning, rowdy neighbors, traffic). You won't want to have too many night outdoor shots unless you plan to do a lot of dialog looping in post. You will want to consider electrical issues for the lighting of your environment. If there are not enough outlets and breakers in the area you plan to light, it won't work. If you can't control these things don't write this location into the script. * Make sure your characters have depth. Do the background work on each actors part and have it conveyed in the story. If the players in your script are not fleshed out they won't jive with your audience and you will lose them quickly. With a small budget this may be one of the most important aspects of a script. * If you want your script to become a movie that sells, it will need to be a genre movie. Horror, suspense, sci-fi, comedies, or combinations of either, are among the most successful micro-budget flicks. Some would say that close personal stories of a small group of people are better, but realistically you need to give people something that they haven't seen before. You only have ingenuity on your side. I've seen great dramas and love stories on small budgets, but they don't fly off the shelves. I mean we love making movies but we don't want to make them for free. * Don't write in a bunch of gun fights, explosions and squibs. They are all great, but most of the time they come off cheezy and there is a safety issue. You don't want to hurt anyone in the process. Most low-budgeters just do the gun flare in post. This is something I will never do again. It takes forever to track, it looks like crap and there is nothing like the real thing. It is better to use blank guns and just enhance the flare in post or just don't write it in the first place. * If you write something that will require a lot of green screen to portray, you are shooting yourself in the foot. Try to create something that can be done out of the box with real life characters and locations. You can plan to do a little digital effect work in post to enhance it , but I wouldn't get carried away. Otherwise, your editor or you in many cases will be sitting in front of your editing suite 3 times longer than it took you to shoot the movie in the first place. * Rewrite it until it is done. It's a lot easier to write and plan the feasibility of a movie than it is to fix it in the middle of shooting. You don't want to discover too late that it is too complicated for your director to keep straight in his head or even worse way below their capabilities. If everyone working on the movie thinks that it is intellectually below them, they will make it a short production. Some may even quit in the middle and force a dramatic rewrite.
One other major mistakes in movie scripts, especially if you are not directing it, is to write in camera directions (pan, zoom, fade in etc.). I'll get more into that in a later post. Just remember you are only writing the script for now. When it is time for whoever to put on the directors hat, that will be the proper time to make those decisions.
These are problems that we have had in the learning experiences of our shooting. For some reason I don't truly learn a lesson until it hits me in the face and when it hits you can usually trace the problem back to the writing. Just remember it's always the screenwriters fault, so tread lightly.
About the Author
Founder of Black Meadow Production and writer of Independent Filmmaking
* Write the script around the best and fewest possible locations that you have available in your immediate area. You can't do like hollywood and just build a 3 story battleship, so don't write one in unless it is just a few locations that you can build or mock up. Also, for the sound man's sake, consider the audio levels in the environment. You want to have complete control over any sound (heaters, air conditioning, rowdy neighbors, traffic). You won't want to have too many night outdoor shots unless you plan to do a lot of dialog looping in post. You will want to consider electrical issues for the lighting of your environment. If there are not enough outlets and breakers in the area you plan to light, it won't work. If you can't control these things don't write this location into the script. * Make sure your characters have depth. Do the background work on each actors part and have it conveyed in the story. If the players in your script are not fleshed out they won't jive with your audience and you will lose them quickly. With a small budget this may be one of the most important aspects of a script. * If you want your script to become a movie that sells, it will need to be a genre movie. Horror, suspense, sci-fi, comedies, or combinations of either, are among the most successful micro-budget flicks. Some would say that close personal stories of a small group of people are better, but realistically you need to give people something that they haven't seen before. You only have ingenuity on your side. I've seen great dramas and love stories on small budgets, but they don't fly off the shelves. I mean we love making movies but we don't want to make them for free. * Don't write in a bunch of gun fights, explosions and squibs. They are all great, but most of the time they come off cheezy and there is a safety issue. You don't want to hurt anyone in the process. Most low-budgeters just do the gun flare in post. This is something I will never do again. It takes forever to track, it looks like crap and there is nothing like the real thing. It is better to use blank guns and just enhance the flare in post or just don't write it in the first place. * If you write something that will require a lot of green screen to portray, you are shooting yourself in the foot. Try to create something that can be done out of the box with real life characters and locations. You can plan to do a little digital effect work in post to enhance it , but I wouldn't get carried away. Otherwise, your editor or you in many cases will be sitting in front of your editing suite 3 times longer than it took you to shoot the movie in the first place. * Rewrite it until it is done. It's a lot easier to write and plan the feasibility of a movie than it is to fix it in the middle of shooting. You don't want to discover too late that it is too complicated for your director to keep straight in his head or even worse way below their capabilities. If everyone working on the movie thinks that it is intellectually below them, they will make it a short production. Some may even quit in the middle and force a dramatic rewrite.
One other major mistakes in movie scripts, especially if you are not directing it, is to write in camera directions (pan, zoom, fade in etc.). I'll get more into that in a later post. Just remember you are only writing the script for now. When it is time for whoever to put on the directors hat, that will be the proper time to make those decisions.
These are problems that we have had in the learning experiences of our shooting. For some reason I don't truly learn a lesson until it hits me in the face and when it hits you can usually trace the problem back to the writing. Just remember it's always the screenwriters fault, so tread lightly.
About the Author
Founder of Black Meadow Production and writer of Independent Filmmaking
Tips For Writing An A+ Term Paper by Daniel Millions
There are eight basic steps to writing a good term paper. Incidentally, term paper and research paper are really one in the same so I may take the liberty of using both of these terms interchangeably. The real start to writing a term paper of an A+ ranking is to believe that you are capable of achieving it. Keep a positive attitude as you develop your research paper and set your sights high.
Choose A Topic: Try to choose a topic which genuinely interests as well as challenges you. If you really like the topic, then you will naturally put a lot of enthusiasm and effort into you term paper. Once you have narrowed your topic down, get your teacher's approval for it before embarking head over heels on full-scale research.
Select a topic that you can easily manage. At all costs, you want to avoid subjects that are too specialized, technical or learned. If your topic has very limited source materials, then you had better go back to the drawing board and choose something else.
Find Information: There are many places where you can find information. The library is still an excellent source for research materials. They have encyclopedias, magazines, periodicals and books.
With the Internet becoming increasingly popular, you can check out different materials that are available online. You must learn how to evaluate websites with a critical eye. By searching the Internet effectively you will be able to eliminate irrelevant sites so that your time will not be wasted.
State Your Thesis: This may involve some critical thinking on your part in order to write your thesis statement in one sentence. The vast majority of your term paper will consist of arguments to defend and support your thesis.
Make A Tentative Outline: You should all know how to make an outline for your term paper. In the opening capital Roman Numeral, you must make sure that all of the points you have mentioned will relate to it.
The main purpose of having an outline is to help you think through your subject with care and organize it in a logical manner before you begin writing. Your outline should have an introduction, a body and finally a conclusion.
Organize Your Notes: Organize the information that you have gathered according to the outline you have prepared. You must now check your data for accuracy and verify that all of your information you have gathered is up-to-date, factual and correct. Include no data that is not relevant to your topic. Remember not to plagiarize.
Write Your First Draft: You should write your first draft of your term paper according to the organization of your outline. For each idea that you plan to include in your term paper either write summaries, quotations or paraphrases.
Revise And Outline: Go over your term paper for any content errors. Make sure that your facts and figures are correct. Arrange all of your ideas to follow your outline. You must always keep your readers in mind as well as the purpose of your paper.
Type Final Paper: Since your term paper is a formal report, it should be typewritten. Most of us these days have a printer to go along with our computer. Proofread you final paper for spelling, missing or duplicated words and punctuation. Make sure that your term paper is tidy, clean, neat and attractive.
Try to turn in your term paper early. Pride yourself in your work and know that you did your very best. I am sure you will swell with pride when you see your final grade!
About the Author
Get custom College Term Papers and find unique Term Paper Topics.
Choose A Topic: Try to choose a topic which genuinely interests as well as challenges you. If you really like the topic, then you will naturally put a lot of enthusiasm and effort into you term paper. Once you have narrowed your topic down, get your teacher's approval for it before embarking head over heels on full-scale research.
Select a topic that you can easily manage. At all costs, you want to avoid subjects that are too specialized, technical or learned. If your topic has very limited source materials, then you had better go back to the drawing board and choose something else.
Find Information: There are many places where you can find information. The library is still an excellent source for research materials. They have encyclopedias, magazines, periodicals and books.
With the Internet becoming increasingly popular, you can check out different materials that are available online. You must learn how to evaluate websites with a critical eye. By searching the Internet effectively you will be able to eliminate irrelevant sites so that your time will not be wasted.
State Your Thesis: This may involve some critical thinking on your part in order to write your thesis statement in one sentence. The vast majority of your term paper will consist of arguments to defend and support your thesis.
Make A Tentative Outline: You should all know how to make an outline for your term paper. In the opening capital Roman Numeral, you must make sure that all of the points you have mentioned will relate to it.
The main purpose of having an outline is to help you think through your subject with care and organize it in a logical manner before you begin writing. Your outline should have an introduction, a body and finally a conclusion.
Organize Your Notes: Organize the information that you have gathered according to the outline you have prepared. You must now check your data for accuracy and verify that all of your information you have gathered is up-to-date, factual and correct. Include no data that is not relevant to your topic. Remember not to plagiarize.
Write Your First Draft: You should write your first draft of your term paper according to the organization of your outline. For each idea that you plan to include in your term paper either write summaries, quotations or paraphrases.
Revise And Outline: Go over your term paper for any content errors. Make sure that your facts and figures are correct. Arrange all of your ideas to follow your outline. You must always keep your readers in mind as well as the purpose of your paper.
Type Final Paper: Since your term paper is a formal report, it should be typewritten. Most of us these days have a printer to go along with our computer. Proofread you final paper for spelling, missing or duplicated words and punctuation. Make sure that your term paper is tidy, clean, neat and attractive.
Try to turn in your term paper early. Pride yourself in your work and know that you did your very best. I am sure you will swell with pride when you see your final grade!
About the Author
Get custom College Term Papers and find unique Term Paper Topics.
How To Write An Excellent College Term Paper by Daniel Millions
Writing college term papers are a very common requirement when you reach the upper-division courses. You will find that it counts as an influential part of your final grade. Remember that you are no longer in high school. Gone are the times when you could turn in just a mediocre term paper and come out on top with a good grade. Here are some guidelines for you to follow to assure that you will receive an A on your college term paper.
1. Getting Started: Make sure that you understand all of the directions that your professor gives. If something is not clear, do not hesitate to ask for clarification. If you just go your own way and turn in a paper that does not meet the instructor's wants, then you may really feel dumb!
2. Don't Procrastinate: A good college term paper requires careful preparation, critical thinking, research and writing. You must also allow time for the unexpected. Your computer may crash, files may somehow get erased, you may run out of ink or personal crises may arise.
3. Choosing a Topic: Try to pick an interesting subject that fulfills the assignment the professor gave you. It will help if you pick a topic that interests you. Make sure that your paper is a reasonable length. If your subject is too broad, consider narrowing the focus. Your main source of research will most likely be your local or campus library.
4. Research: The foundation or your college term paper is good research. If you build a paper without a solid foundation, that paper will inevitably be weak. You should make sure that you use a good variation of the most specific, expert and up-to-date resources. The first place to do research is your library.
5. Research Resources: There are many types of resources that can be utilized to do your research. One of the first places to visit is probably the reference room. You can begin to structure the basic outline for your college term paper right in the reference room. Some other reference materials are, of course, books and scholarly journal articles.
6. Organizing the Paper: The keys to having an effective college term paper are good organization as well as presentation of ideas. In order to have a good plan for your paper, you must organize all of your material in an outline. This will serve to lay out the structure of your paper to ensure that your paper is logical and complete and will prevent you from getting off the track.
7. Writing the Paper: You should always have clarity in writing. You must use good communication skills in order to bring your points home. You may even submit drafts to your professor well ahead of the deadline so that he or she may be able to help you refine your topic, identify resources and avoid pitfalls.
8. Citations and References: A good research paper will rely on information that has been compiled by and analysis that has been done by others. A research paper MUST cite other's works. You do not want to be guilty of plagiarism.
9. Presenting the Paper: You must now prepare for the physical presentation of your paper. Unless you were otherwise told, your paper should be typed by double-spacing with one-inch margins on every side of your page. Your college term paper should have a title page, the main body of the paper followed by the bibliography and then by Works Cited, or References.
Even a paper that contain cogent analysis, impeccable research and brilliant writing will still elicit a negative reaction from the one who is reading your paper if it happens to be wrinkled or barely readable. After reading over your term paper for the last time and proclaiming that it is free from errors, go home relax and grab a pizza.
About the Author
Hand written custom College Term Papers and a big list of Term Paper Topics to choose from.
1. Getting Started: Make sure that you understand all of the directions that your professor gives. If something is not clear, do not hesitate to ask for clarification. If you just go your own way and turn in a paper that does not meet the instructor's wants, then you may really feel dumb!
2. Don't Procrastinate: A good college term paper requires careful preparation, critical thinking, research and writing. You must also allow time for the unexpected. Your computer may crash, files may somehow get erased, you may run out of ink or personal crises may arise.
3. Choosing a Topic: Try to pick an interesting subject that fulfills the assignment the professor gave you. It will help if you pick a topic that interests you. Make sure that your paper is a reasonable length. If your subject is too broad, consider narrowing the focus. Your main source of research will most likely be your local or campus library.
4. Research: The foundation or your college term paper is good research. If you build a paper without a solid foundation, that paper will inevitably be weak. You should make sure that you use a good variation of the most specific, expert and up-to-date resources. The first place to do research is your library.
5. Research Resources: There are many types of resources that can be utilized to do your research. One of the first places to visit is probably the reference room. You can begin to structure the basic outline for your college term paper right in the reference room. Some other reference materials are, of course, books and scholarly journal articles.
6. Organizing the Paper: The keys to having an effective college term paper are good organization as well as presentation of ideas. In order to have a good plan for your paper, you must organize all of your material in an outline. This will serve to lay out the structure of your paper to ensure that your paper is logical and complete and will prevent you from getting off the track.
7. Writing the Paper: You should always have clarity in writing. You must use good communication skills in order to bring your points home. You may even submit drafts to your professor well ahead of the deadline so that he or she may be able to help you refine your topic, identify resources and avoid pitfalls.
8. Citations and References: A good research paper will rely on information that has been compiled by and analysis that has been done by others. A research paper MUST cite other's works. You do not want to be guilty of plagiarism.
9. Presenting the Paper: You must now prepare for the physical presentation of your paper. Unless you were otherwise told, your paper should be typed by double-spacing with one-inch margins on every side of your page. Your college term paper should have a title page, the main body of the paper followed by the bibliography and then by Works Cited, or References.
Even a paper that contain cogent analysis, impeccable research and brilliant writing will still elicit a negative reaction from the one who is reading your paper if it happens to be wrinkled or barely readable. After reading over your term paper for the last time and proclaiming that it is free from errors, go home relax and grab a pizza.
About the Author
Hand written custom College Term Papers and a big list of Term Paper Topics to choose from.
Writing An Essay Is Easier Than You Think by Daniel Millions
Even though essays have many purposes, the basic structure remains the same. You may be writing your paper to explain the steps needed to complete a task or you may be arguing for a particular paint. No matter which kind of essay you choose to write, the format will remain essentially the same.
By only following a few simple steps, you will see that your essay will almost write itself. The only thing you will be responsible for is for supplying the ideas which is the main meat of the essay. Do not let the thought of putting your pen to the paper overwhelm you. You must simply choose to get started. Below are some steps that will serve as your guide as you write your essay:
1. Decide A Topic: You may not have a choice as to what your topic is to be. That is all up to the teacher who assigns the essay. Think about what kind of paper you will be expected to produce. Should you prepare a general overview or should it be narrowed down to a specific analysis of the topic?
2. Prepare an Outline of Ideas: The main purpose of a diagram or an outline is to jot down your ideas about the topic on paper in a loosely organized format. You may still have to change this before your essay is complete, so don't lose sleep over this point.
3. Write A Thesis Statement: This statement tells the reader exactly what the essay will be about and the point that you the author, will be making. You already know what your essay will be about since you had chosen that topic to write about.
Now you must take a look at you outline and decide what point you will make. Take a look at your outline again. What do the main ideas as well as the supporting ideas say about your topic?
4. Write the Body of Your Essay: Now that you have chosen your topic, it has to be described, explained or argued. Each main idea that you jotted down in your outline will become one of the main body paragraphs. In the body of your essay you are going to write about the main points, the subpoints and even elaborate on each of the subpoints.
5. Write the Introduction: Before you essay is finished, you must write the introduction as well as the conclusion. With the introduction, you want to attract the reader's attention and give him or her an idea of the focus of the essay. You may even think about beginning your essay with an attention grabber.
6. Write Conclusion: This brings a sense of closure to the reader. You are able to sum up your points or provide a final perspective on your subject. You only have to have three or four strong sentences in your conclusion. If you can end your essay in a useful way with an anecdote, then by all means use it.
7. Finishing Touches: Before you can consider that your essay is finished, you must think about how you are going to format your paper. Make sure the order of your paragraphs makes sense. Make sure to check your writing. Does your computer have a grammar checker or a spell checker? Make sure that your sentences flow smoothly.
All of these points will make sure that you will have a very good essay to turn in if you follow them. If you are given two weeks to complete your essay, don't try to save it for the last minute and expect to get a good grade. Not many of us can pull that off. Allow yourself plenty of time and pace yourself for a good grade.
About the Author
Essay Writing is a skill aquired by practicing. If you don't have the time check out some Free Essays.
By only following a few simple steps, you will see that your essay will almost write itself. The only thing you will be responsible for is for supplying the ideas which is the main meat of the essay. Do not let the thought of putting your pen to the paper overwhelm you. You must simply choose to get started. Below are some steps that will serve as your guide as you write your essay:
1. Decide A Topic: You may not have a choice as to what your topic is to be. That is all up to the teacher who assigns the essay. Think about what kind of paper you will be expected to produce. Should you prepare a general overview or should it be narrowed down to a specific analysis of the topic?
2. Prepare an Outline of Ideas: The main purpose of a diagram or an outline is to jot down your ideas about the topic on paper in a loosely organized format. You may still have to change this before your essay is complete, so don't lose sleep over this point.
3. Write A Thesis Statement: This statement tells the reader exactly what the essay will be about and the point that you the author, will be making. You already know what your essay will be about since you had chosen that topic to write about.
Now you must take a look at you outline and decide what point you will make. Take a look at your outline again. What do the main ideas as well as the supporting ideas say about your topic?
4. Write the Body of Your Essay: Now that you have chosen your topic, it has to be described, explained or argued. Each main idea that you jotted down in your outline will become one of the main body paragraphs. In the body of your essay you are going to write about the main points, the subpoints and even elaborate on each of the subpoints.
5. Write the Introduction: Before you essay is finished, you must write the introduction as well as the conclusion. With the introduction, you want to attract the reader's attention and give him or her an idea of the focus of the essay. You may even think about beginning your essay with an attention grabber.
6. Write Conclusion: This brings a sense of closure to the reader. You are able to sum up your points or provide a final perspective on your subject. You only have to have three or four strong sentences in your conclusion. If you can end your essay in a useful way with an anecdote, then by all means use it.
7. Finishing Touches: Before you can consider that your essay is finished, you must think about how you are going to format your paper. Make sure the order of your paragraphs makes sense. Make sure to check your writing. Does your computer have a grammar checker or a spell checker? Make sure that your sentences flow smoothly.
All of these points will make sure that you will have a very good essay to turn in if you follow them. If you are given two weeks to complete your essay, don't try to save it for the last minute and expect to get a good grade. Not many of us can pull that off. Allow yourself plenty of time and pace yourself for a good grade.
About the Author
Essay Writing is a skill aquired by practicing. If you don't have the time check out some Free Essays.
How I Constructed Some Kind Of Angel by Melvin M. Harter
Authors are frequently asked how they conceive and create a story. There may be almost as many ways as there are authors: outline; write ending and work up to it; precise factual experience or observation ("creative non-fiction;") whatever comes into your head; emotional idea; paper or audio notes; etc., etc. I can only speak for myself.
IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO EXCITING EXPERIENCES
For Some Kind of Angel, I drew on my long years as a disability evaluation doctor, mostly assessing injured workers within the framework of California workers compensation law. I was especially impressed with death cases and the special way the law dealt with them.
About the time I was ready to write we entered the post 9/11 period. War on terror was declared and the search for what turned out to be invisible or non-existent weapons of mass destruction. So, a two themes and a couple of plots were born.
CREATE GOOD CHARACTERS, HEROES AND VILLAINS
I needed engaging characters, people with outstanding values, to be drawn into the story and turned upside down in the chase. I needed a villain motivated by controversial, but nevertheless real moral issues. I needed characters so well defined that they wrote most of the story. And I had to know them better than I knew my siblings. So, I generated several character back story pages. For each character I wrote and rewrote a very intimate and personal biography. Each had, in addition to interesting physical attributes, such an emotional value-driven personality that there was rarely a time they behaved other than predictably, that is, until they made life-altering choices in a virtual dramatic pressure cooker.
All this being done, I sat down and wrote my heart out. What my heart wrote were 120,000 words encompassing two very good but awkwardly overlapping plots and an large number of subplots. The theme of exposing white collar crooks, doctors and lawyers alike, and bringing justice to workers compensation was exciting enough for one novel. Fighting a war on terror, WMD's, genocide, corporate criminality, and deceiving elected leaders, many of moral turpitude, comprised enough for another. I chose the latter.
After deciding which story to develop I eliminated the tedious (well written!) back stories and worked what I needed of that into action scenes, into credible dialogue. Remember "Show, Don't Tell?"
As I again read this clumsy text it became clear to me that I needed to use my brain in the rewrites -- and there were several rewrites. It needed more serious pruning. I had to "kill my babies."
First, I had to find and write "the hook." If this was truly to be a thriller it had to be so from the first sentence. I think the opening prologue accomplished this. It told enough to engage my readers as all the while it withheld enough to keep them curious.
After accomplishing these preliminary tasks it became easier to pull my hooked readers into many blind alleys. This abetted the process of deductive diagnosis without boredom.
After about four years of occasionally revisiting the manuscript, I had successfully converted 120,000 words of garble into 54,000 words of excitement..
Paraphrasing what Mark Twain said, "I would have written a much shorter story if I'd had more time."
About the Author
Melvin M. Harter is a retired physician. He specialized in evaluation of the causes and extent of injury and disability. He has become a freelance writer and author of the novel, Some Kind of Angel. This sci-fi thriller explores the world of terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and genocide. For more, visit Some Kind of Angel and view the video trailer.
IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO EXCITING EXPERIENCES
For Some Kind of Angel, I drew on my long years as a disability evaluation doctor, mostly assessing injured workers within the framework of California workers compensation law. I was especially impressed with death cases and the special way the law dealt with them.
About the time I was ready to write we entered the post 9/11 period. War on terror was declared and the search for what turned out to be invisible or non-existent weapons of mass destruction. So, a two themes and a couple of plots were born.
CREATE GOOD CHARACTERS, HEROES AND VILLAINS
I needed engaging characters, people with outstanding values, to be drawn into the story and turned upside down in the chase. I needed a villain motivated by controversial, but nevertheless real moral issues. I needed characters so well defined that they wrote most of the story. And I had to know them better than I knew my siblings. So, I generated several character back story pages. For each character I wrote and rewrote a very intimate and personal biography. Each had, in addition to interesting physical attributes, such an emotional value-driven personality that there was rarely a time they behaved other than predictably, that is, until they made life-altering choices in a virtual dramatic pressure cooker.
All this being done, I sat down and wrote my heart out. What my heart wrote were 120,000 words encompassing two very good but awkwardly overlapping plots and an large number of subplots. The theme of exposing white collar crooks, doctors and lawyers alike, and bringing justice to workers compensation was exciting enough for one novel. Fighting a war on terror, WMD's, genocide, corporate criminality, and deceiving elected leaders, many of moral turpitude, comprised enough for another. I chose the latter.
After deciding which story to develop I eliminated the tedious (well written!) back stories and worked what I needed of that into action scenes, into credible dialogue. Remember "Show, Don't Tell?"
As I again read this clumsy text it became clear to me that I needed to use my brain in the rewrites -- and there were several rewrites. It needed more serious pruning. I had to "kill my babies."
First, I had to find and write "the hook." If this was truly to be a thriller it had to be so from the first sentence. I think the opening prologue accomplished this. It told enough to engage my readers as all the while it withheld enough to keep them curious.
After accomplishing these preliminary tasks it became easier to pull my hooked readers into many blind alleys. This abetted the process of deductive diagnosis without boredom.
After about four years of occasionally revisiting the manuscript, I had successfully converted 120,000 words of garble into 54,000 words of excitement..
Paraphrasing what Mark Twain said, "I would have written a much shorter story if I'd had more time."
About the Author
Melvin M. Harter is a retired physician. He specialized in evaluation of the causes and extent of injury and disability. He has become a freelance writer and author of the novel, Some Kind of Angel. This sci-fi thriller explores the world of terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and genocide. For more, visit Some Kind of Angel and view the video trailer.
Benefits of Critique by Deborah Sutton
When you join a critique group what's your reason?
In my experience most writers join critique groups because they want some feedback on their writing. There are a few who only want to be told how great they are and take umbrage at any criticism, but the majority are happy to hear what's good in their writing as well as what's bad.
I've found, however, that the greatest, and most overlooked benefit of joining a writing critique group is how much you can learn about your own writing by critiquing other's work.
It's far easier to spot where someone else's story is going wrong than it is to pinpoint faults in your own. You get so close to your own work that unless you've got loads of experience it can be difficult to look at it objectively and really get a clear picture of what your written words are saying to the reader.
All writers carry far more information about the story in their heads than they put on the page. It can be hard to know if you've said enough, or too much, when you already know all there is to know about a situation or character.
Think back to conversations you've had with someone where you think you've explained everything but your listener just doesn't get it, or doesn't understand who said what or what order things happened in. The same misunderstandings can happen in fiction. The reader just doesn't have the right information in the right order to understand the writer's intention. It's not the reader's fault, it's the writer's.
When you critique some else's writing, you can get a sense of where stories are most likely to go wrong. You quickly pick up on common mistakes, spot plot misdirections and recognise dialogue that's not doing it's job.
The savvy writer realises these lessons learned can be used in their own writing and that by working through a piece of writing not their own they're honing their own skills.
Many members of critique groups shirk the workload when it comes to returning critiques. They fail to understand that they'll get even more out of working through someone else's story than they will from all the feedback on their own.
And of course it's a two-way street.
If a critique group is stuffed with members who just want feedback on their own work, how do they think they're going to get it? The other members are the same as them. They just want to do the minimum; make any old comments without giving the story much thought. None of the critiques received are going to be worth very much.
Contrast that with a group where the writers actually realise the personal benefit of seriously critiquing a story and the quality is going to go through the roof.
We're always asking 'what's in it for me' after all. Few of us like to do something for nothing.
So do yourself a favour. If you're a member of a critique group, give it your all. Approach each new story like a personal lesson in creative writing and learn all you can from the mistakes others make. By the same token, learn about what works too.
Not only is critique work a two-way street, it's got more than one lane going in each direction.
About the Author
Deborah Sutton is a writer and creative writing tutor. http://www.deborahsutton.co.uk
In my experience most writers join critique groups because they want some feedback on their writing. There are a few who only want to be told how great they are and take umbrage at any criticism, but the majority are happy to hear what's good in their writing as well as what's bad.
I've found, however, that the greatest, and most overlooked benefit of joining a writing critique group is how much you can learn about your own writing by critiquing other's work.
It's far easier to spot where someone else's story is going wrong than it is to pinpoint faults in your own. You get so close to your own work that unless you've got loads of experience it can be difficult to look at it objectively and really get a clear picture of what your written words are saying to the reader.
All writers carry far more information about the story in their heads than they put on the page. It can be hard to know if you've said enough, or too much, when you already know all there is to know about a situation or character.
Think back to conversations you've had with someone where you think you've explained everything but your listener just doesn't get it, or doesn't understand who said what or what order things happened in. The same misunderstandings can happen in fiction. The reader just doesn't have the right information in the right order to understand the writer's intention. It's not the reader's fault, it's the writer's.
When you critique some else's writing, you can get a sense of where stories are most likely to go wrong. You quickly pick up on common mistakes, spot plot misdirections and recognise dialogue that's not doing it's job.
The savvy writer realises these lessons learned can be used in their own writing and that by working through a piece of writing not their own they're honing their own skills.
Many members of critique groups shirk the workload when it comes to returning critiques. They fail to understand that they'll get even more out of working through someone else's story than they will from all the feedback on their own.
And of course it's a two-way street.
If a critique group is stuffed with members who just want feedback on their own work, how do they think they're going to get it? The other members are the same as them. They just want to do the minimum; make any old comments without giving the story much thought. None of the critiques received are going to be worth very much.
Contrast that with a group where the writers actually realise the personal benefit of seriously critiquing a story and the quality is going to go through the roof.
We're always asking 'what's in it for me' after all. Few of us like to do something for nothing.
So do yourself a favour. If you're a member of a critique group, give it your all. Approach each new story like a personal lesson in creative writing and learn all you can from the mistakes others make. By the same token, learn about what works too.
Not only is critique work a two-way street, it's got more than one lane going in each direction.
About the Author
Deborah Sutton is a writer and creative writing tutor. http://www.deborahsutton.co.uk
Don't Loose Readers, Get the Narrative and Dialogue Balance Right by Mervyn Love
A good story deserves a good narrative to dialogue balance to keep your chosen audience enthralled and turning those pages. Getting it right can be tricky, so here are a few tips to help you master the art.
Modern readers in general prefer a story that moves along with a fair degree of alacrity. If not, they soon get bored, and when that happens your novel is history. That's today's book reader for you; spoon fed on fast action films and TV with perhaps little time to read anyway. But maybe the readers you are aiming at are more relaxed and cerebral and are quite at home with a slower paced tale. But which is right for you and your readers?
Take a careful look at published books or stories of the type you are writing yourself and gauge what proportion of the text is dialogue and what is narrative. Compare what you see with your own writing and note the difference. It is vital that you get this right or you may fall between two stools.
And this is where dialogue comes in. Put in too much and your reader gets lost. Too little and the reader can get bogged down and toss your tome aside.
TOO MUCH DIALOGUE
If your story has too much dialogue it is not unknown for readers to loose track of which character is speaking. And you need to avoid too many 'he said', 'she said' or 'said Mark', 'said Hermione'.
Too much non-stop burbling from your characters can be annoying so inject some snippets of movement or description to anchor things down. As for example:
'Maria looked up from her work. "So that's what you think of Grimble, is it?'
Carla nodded. 'He's passed his sell-by date if you ask me'.
Introducing that small movement 'Maria looked up from her work.' immediately pops a picture into the readers mind and activates their imagination.
Imagine two characters having a heated argument. To break this up you could say something like:
'A removal lorry shuddered to a halt in the street outside followed by the blare of a horn from an angry motorist. Ronald stomped over to the window and closed it with a bang.'
This gives us movement and description, not only of the character Ronald, but of the traffic outside, which, incidentally, also echoes the turmoil going on inside.
TOO LITTLE DIALOGUE
If you find you are filling up page after page with too much narrative you may need to ask yourself these questions:
Does this piece of narrative add to the storyline or is it superfluous?
Would the story or plot suffer if I left it out altogether?
You may love to describe the start of a new day with three paragraphs of purple prose but these could be saved by simply saying:
'Gail drew back the curtains and sighed dispiritedly as she took in the grey clouds and pouring rain.'
You can also use a character's dialogue to add a descriptive element. You could save the necessity to put in a long meandering flashback by writing something like:
'I often think about those hazy summer days when you, me and Dave used to wander over the downs picking the buttercups and daisies. Then we'd lie down by the pond in that little grove of trees. Remember? Lovely. I wonder what ever happened to Dave...'
But often you simply have to be cruel to be kind and axe those sections of narrative that add nothing to the story so that your narrative/dialogue balance is right.
And when you do get it right, believe me, your readers will warm to you and want more.
About the Author
Mervyn Love offers a warm welcome and a stress free zone for all writers at his website: http://www.WritersReign.co.uk Here you can relax and browse pages of advice, resources, competition listing, markets and much more. His free Article Writing Course has proved extremely popular, so why not sign up now while you're thinking about it? http://www.writersreign.co.uk/WRac.html
Modern readers in general prefer a story that moves along with a fair degree of alacrity. If not, they soon get bored, and when that happens your novel is history. That's today's book reader for you; spoon fed on fast action films and TV with perhaps little time to read anyway. But maybe the readers you are aiming at are more relaxed and cerebral and are quite at home with a slower paced tale. But which is right for you and your readers?
Take a careful look at published books or stories of the type you are writing yourself and gauge what proportion of the text is dialogue and what is narrative. Compare what you see with your own writing and note the difference. It is vital that you get this right or you may fall between two stools.
And this is where dialogue comes in. Put in too much and your reader gets lost. Too little and the reader can get bogged down and toss your tome aside.
TOO MUCH DIALOGUE
If your story has too much dialogue it is not unknown for readers to loose track of which character is speaking. And you need to avoid too many 'he said', 'she said' or 'said Mark', 'said Hermione'.
Too much non-stop burbling from your characters can be annoying so inject some snippets of movement or description to anchor things down. As for example:
'Maria looked up from her work. "So that's what you think of Grimble, is it?'
Carla nodded. 'He's passed his sell-by date if you ask me'.
Introducing that small movement 'Maria looked up from her work.' immediately pops a picture into the readers mind and activates their imagination.
Imagine two characters having a heated argument. To break this up you could say something like:
'A removal lorry shuddered to a halt in the street outside followed by the blare of a horn from an angry motorist. Ronald stomped over to the window and closed it with a bang.'
This gives us movement and description, not only of the character Ronald, but of the traffic outside, which, incidentally, also echoes the turmoil going on inside.
TOO LITTLE DIALOGUE
If you find you are filling up page after page with too much narrative you may need to ask yourself these questions:
Does this piece of narrative add to the storyline or is it superfluous?
Would the story or plot suffer if I left it out altogether?
You may love to describe the start of a new day with three paragraphs of purple prose but these could be saved by simply saying:
'Gail drew back the curtains and sighed dispiritedly as she took in the grey clouds and pouring rain.'
You can also use a character's dialogue to add a descriptive element. You could save the necessity to put in a long meandering flashback by writing something like:
'I often think about those hazy summer days when you, me and Dave used to wander over the downs picking the buttercups and daisies. Then we'd lie down by the pond in that little grove of trees. Remember? Lovely. I wonder what ever happened to Dave...'
But often you simply have to be cruel to be kind and axe those sections of narrative that add nothing to the story so that your narrative/dialogue balance is right.
And when you do get it right, believe me, your readers will warm to you and want more.
About the Author
Mervyn Love offers a warm welcome and a stress free zone for all writers at his website: http://www.WritersReign.co.uk Here you can relax and browse pages of advice, resources, competition listing, markets and much more. His free Article Writing Course has proved extremely popular, so why not sign up now while you're thinking about it? http://www.writersreign.co.uk/WRac.html
Writing a comedy screenplay by Gurmeet Mattu
Isn't it funny how the court jester has become the superhero of the entertainment world. Yes, the comedian, the funny man, has surpassed the movie star or rock musician in the popularity league. Think of the likes of John Cleese, Steve Martin or Woody Allen and you are seeing writer/actors that people aspire to be. A far cry from the local fool or village idiot.
So what drives people to comedy? Many comedians have told of how, as youngsters, they used comedy to defuse potentially violent encounters. But surely not all comedy geniuses sprang from the ranks of the bullied. To my mind the comedy impulse operates on a much simpler basis, the need to be liked. We court popularity by giving people the safe, non-addictive, drug of laughter.
But that's not what this article is about, it's about writing comedy screenplays, which is a much harder proposition than writing gags. You'll note that the three stalwarts named above gained their greatest honours with movies. They may have started out as gag writers, but ultimately the glittering prizes only come via the silver screen. Having said that I would encourage any novice screenwriter contemplating a screenplay to master the short form first.
The relationship between a gag or joke and a full length screenplay is a strange one. I personally like the Monty Python methodology of stringing sketches along a comedic plotline, but a character telling a joke does not make your movie a comedy. The comedy must from the start be in your basic plot. Around your daft situation your characters can become involved in humorous situations and say funny things, as long as they are moving the plot forward. A useful rule of thumb which I learned when writing sit-coms was that there were only three reasons for a line of dialogue to be in a comedy script. One, to move the plot forward; two, the set up line for a joke; and three, the punchline to a joke. Everything else is waffle and should be stripped out.
It is possible to take a favourite joke and mould it into your character's plotline, but you must ensure that the joints don't show. Does the situation fit in with the rest of the narrative? Would your character utter that punchline? Comedy is not a one-size fits all scenario.
Take for instance this joke - A guy gets on a plane and finds himself sitting next to a beautiful woman. He strikes up a conversation and the woman tells him that she is a sex researcher. He is fascinated and asks her what she is researching. "I'm looking into sexual myths," she says, "For instance it's believed that black men have the largest appendages of any race, whereas it's the native Americans who can claim that honour." "Really," he says. "Yes, and Italian men have a reputation as the world's greatest lovers, whereas it is actually Jewish men who are the most amorous. My name's Julie Crawford by the way, and you are ..." He takes her proferred hand and replies without a blink, "Tonto Cohen."
Sorry if you've heard that one before, but the point I'm trying to make is that John Cleese couldn't use that line because it doesn't fit his screen persona, but it seems almost specifically written for Woody Allen's sexual neurotic. In previous articles I've told how I write comedy sketches. Take a ridiculous situation and keep writing till you hit a punchline. Then go back and prune out the extraneous material. This method wouldn't work for an entire screenplay but would work if you regard the entirety of a 90 minute movie as consisting of 30 scenes or sketches. Your problem would be in keeping your sketches within the limits of your plot. And remember, not only must your screenplay have a beginning, a middle and an end, but each sketch must have the same.
For me there's a greater satisfaction in writing comedy material than any other and I've tried most. Try it yourself, but remember that the competition is brutal.
Run titles.
About the Author
Gurmeet Mattu is an award winning writer with a track record in print, theatre, radio and TV. He is also a qualified Trainer.
So what drives people to comedy? Many comedians have told of how, as youngsters, they used comedy to defuse potentially violent encounters. But surely not all comedy geniuses sprang from the ranks of the bullied. To my mind the comedy impulse operates on a much simpler basis, the need to be liked. We court popularity by giving people the safe, non-addictive, drug of laughter.
But that's not what this article is about, it's about writing comedy screenplays, which is a much harder proposition than writing gags. You'll note that the three stalwarts named above gained their greatest honours with movies. They may have started out as gag writers, but ultimately the glittering prizes only come via the silver screen. Having said that I would encourage any novice screenwriter contemplating a screenplay to master the short form first.
The relationship between a gag or joke and a full length screenplay is a strange one. I personally like the Monty Python methodology of stringing sketches along a comedic plotline, but a character telling a joke does not make your movie a comedy. The comedy must from the start be in your basic plot. Around your daft situation your characters can become involved in humorous situations and say funny things, as long as they are moving the plot forward. A useful rule of thumb which I learned when writing sit-coms was that there were only three reasons for a line of dialogue to be in a comedy script. One, to move the plot forward; two, the set up line for a joke; and three, the punchline to a joke. Everything else is waffle and should be stripped out.
It is possible to take a favourite joke and mould it into your character's plotline, but you must ensure that the joints don't show. Does the situation fit in with the rest of the narrative? Would your character utter that punchline? Comedy is not a one-size fits all scenario.
Take for instance this joke - A guy gets on a plane and finds himself sitting next to a beautiful woman. He strikes up a conversation and the woman tells him that she is a sex researcher. He is fascinated and asks her what she is researching. "I'm looking into sexual myths," she says, "For instance it's believed that black men have the largest appendages of any race, whereas it's the native Americans who can claim that honour." "Really," he says. "Yes, and Italian men have a reputation as the world's greatest lovers, whereas it is actually Jewish men who are the most amorous. My name's Julie Crawford by the way, and you are ..." He takes her proferred hand and replies without a blink, "Tonto Cohen."
Sorry if you've heard that one before, but the point I'm trying to make is that John Cleese couldn't use that line because it doesn't fit his screen persona, but it seems almost specifically written for Woody Allen's sexual neurotic. In previous articles I've told how I write comedy sketches. Take a ridiculous situation and keep writing till you hit a punchline. Then go back and prune out the extraneous material. This method wouldn't work for an entire screenplay but would work if you regard the entirety of a 90 minute movie as consisting of 30 scenes or sketches. Your problem would be in keeping your sketches within the limits of your plot. And remember, not only must your screenplay have a beginning, a middle and an end, but each sketch must have the same.
For me there's a greater satisfaction in writing comedy material than any other and I've tried most. Try it yourself, but remember that the competition is brutal.
Run titles.
About the Author
Gurmeet Mattu is an award winning writer with a track record in print, theatre, radio and TV. He is also a qualified Trainer.
A Personal Checklist That You Can Use To Create Article Writing Ideas by Jane Hatfield
Writing articles can be a long and laborious process if you let it be one. At times we can get stuck on what to write, how to write and how to express ourselves so that people can understand us. This is a common occurrence and this article will give you a checklist of techniques that you can use to get over writers block.
It's important for you to have some sort of crutches available to you when the inevitable occurs and that is a loss of words. Reading a book may help when you are stuck for words but if the time period that you are in requires that you start writing, reading won't help you too much in that category.
Here is a checklist that you can use at your discretion.
a) Make sure that you are in the right place with the right mindset. You need to be in an environment where writing is a natural thing to do. You wouldn't think of writing your best work in the transit station would you? Well there are always exceptions to the rule but for the majority of us we need to be in an area that gives us the energy to write. That means no distractions of any kind can be in your immediate vicinity.
Turn on your favorite music, burn a little incense, turn off the TV, unplug the phone, close the door. The whole point is to secrete your way into a portion of this earth where you are isolated and need solitude. Whatever it takes and you will be surprised at the amount of writing and the quality of writing that will come out because of that environment.
b) If you need article writing ideas, take a drive. Literally jump into your car turn on the news channel and drive around town or on the freeway and concentrate on what's being said. Making sure that you have at least a pen and tablet or more preferably a portable tape recorder to jot down ideas that pop into your head.
So many ideas can come into yourself but a lot of times they are forgotten by the time you want to recall them.
c) If you want to concentrate at home you can freewrite. Free writing is just that, write about anything that comes to mind. Association writing is similar as well, write down a keyword for any topic that you want to write about. Then write 1 or 2 words that are closely related to that keyword. It doesn't even have to be associated but its better if what you write are associated and relevant. The point is to get your mind and pen working at the same time. After a period of time of 5 or 10 minutes then look over the subjects and see if there's something there that piques your interest.
This checklist is a great way to stimulate your creative writing ideas so that you won't be at a standstill for something to write about.
About the Author
Are you just starting out in an online business? If you are then you understand the importance of traffic to your website. You need it quick and fast and a lot of it. You can outsource writing articles for traffic but that means more money out of the pocket. How would like you learn to write articles fast? I mean like under 10 minutes per article? Go ahead and check out http://www.theshopoutlet.com and learn how to do it right.
It's important for you to have some sort of crutches available to you when the inevitable occurs and that is a loss of words. Reading a book may help when you are stuck for words but if the time period that you are in requires that you start writing, reading won't help you too much in that category.
Here is a checklist that you can use at your discretion.
a) Make sure that you are in the right place with the right mindset. You need to be in an environment where writing is a natural thing to do. You wouldn't think of writing your best work in the transit station would you? Well there are always exceptions to the rule but for the majority of us we need to be in an area that gives us the energy to write. That means no distractions of any kind can be in your immediate vicinity.
Turn on your favorite music, burn a little incense, turn off the TV, unplug the phone, close the door. The whole point is to secrete your way into a portion of this earth where you are isolated and need solitude. Whatever it takes and you will be surprised at the amount of writing and the quality of writing that will come out because of that environment.
b) If you need article writing ideas, take a drive. Literally jump into your car turn on the news channel and drive around town or on the freeway and concentrate on what's being said. Making sure that you have at least a pen and tablet or more preferably a portable tape recorder to jot down ideas that pop into your head.
So many ideas can come into yourself but a lot of times they are forgotten by the time you want to recall them.
c) If you want to concentrate at home you can freewrite. Free writing is just that, write about anything that comes to mind. Association writing is similar as well, write down a keyword for any topic that you want to write about. Then write 1 or 2 words that are closely related to that keyword. It doesn't even have to be associated but its better if what you write are associated and relevant. The point is to get your mind and pen working at the same time. After a period of time of 5 or 10 minutes then look over the subjects and see if there's something there that piques your interest.
This checklist is a great way to stimulate your creative writing ideas so that you won't be at a standstill for something to write about.
About the Author
Are you just starting out in an online business? If you are then you understand the importance of traffic to your website. You need it quick and fast and a lot of it. You can outsource writing articles for traffic but that means more money out of the pocket. How would like you learn to write articles fast? I mean like under 10 minutes per article? Go ahead and check out http://www.theshopoutlet.com and learn how to do it right.
You Just Might Be a Technical Writer by Bryan S. Adar
Let's look at how you can tell if you're already a technical writer. Or if you want to become a technical writer.
The first question, of course, has to be: What is a technical writer? There's no universal definition that covers every situation, but generally speaking a technical writer - or technical communicator - is someone who:
- has the ability to assimilate and convey technical material in a concise, effective manner
- designs, creates, maintains, and updates technical documentation
A technical writer is a professional writer who designs, creates, maintains, and updates technical documentation-including online help, user guides, white papers, design specifications, and other documents. The technical writer's primary responsibility is to gather information and produce documentation tailored to a particular audience.
So, how do you know if you're already a technical writer? Or want to become one? If your response to these questions is either, "Yes, I do that now," or "I'd like to learn how to do that," there's a good chance that you're already a tech writer or should seriously think about becoming one.
The Technical Writer Identification Test
1. Do you like to do research and learn about "stuff?"
When you look for one piece of information, do you often find yourself going off on side trips to find out about other things because you like to know things just for the sake of knowing?
2. Do you work well both alone and as part of a team?
Are you comfortable working on your own, being your own boss, and being responsible for when you work and how? But when necessary, can you work as a productive member of a team?
3. Do you have good analytical skills?
Can you organize information coherently, analyze situations, and propose solutions?
4. Do you have good people skills?
Are you comfortable talking to people, asking questions and evaluating their responses?
5. Do you have basic computer skills?
Are you proficient in word processing, creating spread sheets, and building PowerPoint® presentations?
6. Do you have a basic understanding of technology?
Are you either generally aware of how an internal combustion engine, a nuclear reactor, a light bulb, a computer program, or a jet plane works - or would like to find out?
7. Do you have good language skills?
You don't need a master's degree in English. But you should know how to construct clear, direct sentences.
8. Do people like your travel directions because they're clear and actually get them where they want to go?
9. Do you often write business documentation?
Does your current work involve any of the following:
- Process or equipment instructions
- Cost and schedule estimating
- Project administration documentation
- Writing standards and procedures
- Information management
- Writing design documents that describe the workings of a system
- Creating control documents that communicate project standards
10. Do you want to move into a new and exciting position in a profession with substantial rewards and rapidly growing opportunities?
How about it? Do these questions describe who you are now or who you'd like to become? The field of technical writing is growing and needs writers who can turn raw data into simple to read documentation.
Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it’s such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he’s accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he’s written dozens of technical manuals, repor
The first question, of course, has to be: What is a technical writer? There's no universal definition that covers every situation, but generally speaking a technical writer - or technical communicator - is someone who:
- has the ability to assimilate and convey technical material in a concise, effective manner
- designs, creates, maintains, and updates technical documentation
A technical writer is a professional writer who designs, creates, maintains, and updates technical documentation-including online help, user guides, white papers, design specifications, and other documents. The technical writer's primary responsibility is to gather information and produce documentation tailored to a particular audience.
So, how do you know if you're already a technical writer? Or want to become one? If your response to these questions is either, "Yes, I do that now," or "I'd like to learn how to do that," there's a good chance that you're already a tech writer or should seriously think about becoming one.
The Technical Writer Identification Test
1. Do you like to do research and learn about "stuff?"
When you look for one piece of information, do you often find yourself going off on side trips to find out about other things because you like to know things just for the sake of knowing?
2. Do you work well both alone and as part of a team?
Are you comfortable working on your own, being your own boss, and being responsible for when you work and how? But when necessary, can you work as a productive member of a team?
3. Do you have good analytical skills?
Can you organize information coherently, analyze situations, and propose solutions?
4. Do you have good people skills?
Are you comfortable talking to people, asking questions and evaluating their responses?
5. Do you have basic computer skills?
Are you proficient in word processing, creating spread sheets, and building PowerPoint® presentations?
6. Do you have a basic understanding of technology?
Are you either generally aware of how an internal combustion engine, a nuclear reactor, a light bulb, a computer program, or a jet plane works - or would like to find out?
7. Do you have good language skills?
You don't need a master's degree in English. But you should know how to construct clear, direct sentences.
8. Do people like your travel directions because they're clear and actually get them where they want to go?
9. Do you often write business documentation?
Does your current work involve any of the following:
- Process or equipment instructions
- Cost and schedule estimating
- Project administration documentation
- Writing standards and procedures
- Information management
- Writing design documents that describe the workings of a system
- Creating control documents that communicate project standards
10. Do you want to move into a new and exciting position in a profession with substantial rewards and rapidly growing opportunities?
How about it? Do these questions describe who you are now or who you'd like to become? The field of technical writing is growing and needs writers who can turn raw data into simple to read documentation.
Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it’s such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he’s accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he’s written dozens of technical manuals, repor
Technical Writing Exercise - Technical Writing Fact And Fable by Bryan S. Adar
Technical Writing Exercise - Technical Writing Fact and Fable
This exercise is intended to help separate fact from fiction. Is tech writing as glamorous as some people think? All fun and games, high pay, rich food, and fame? First, take the True/False quiz about being a tech writer, then check the straight story.
Are the following statements True or False?
1. They get paid well, but they don’t get much recognition.
2. This is a profession, and tech writers are professionals.
3. They’re immune to writer's block.
4. They’re able to be “lone wolves†who don’t need many “people skills.â€
5. They have to be an expert on a subject to write about it.
6. People who are already good writers can also be technical writers.
7. They need to be very knowledgeable about modern technology.
8. They need good language skills.
9. They need good analytical skills.
10. They need to be skilled in all popular computer programs.
11. They’re limited to the field of knowledge they're trained in.
When you're done check the solution below.
Exercise - Answer
Here are the answers to the Fact and Fable quiz. How accurate is your view of technical writing?
1. They get paid well, but they don’t get much recognition.
True. Taking an average across the country, established tech writers are well paid. They’re not well recognized. Since they do what is called “work for hire,†their writing becomes the property of the client. The writer’s name almost never appears any place the public can see it.
2. This is a profession, and tech writers are professionals. Absolutely true. By the very nature of the work, tech writers frequently handle sensitive and even secret material. They’re privy to information that could seriously hurt their clients if it got into the wrong hands. When writers accept payment for their work, their professional responsibility is to produce a quality product, within the allotted timeframe, and at or below the allotted budget. But that’s only part of it. As professionals, it’s their responsibility to uphold the reputation of their clients even after the task is complete. It’s fundamental to being a professional that they never do anything that will injure or discredit their clients.
3. They’re immune to writer's block.
True for the simple fact that there’s no reason not to know what to write about. Not being able to think of what to write is a problem for purely creative writers. Unlike creative writers whose ideas come from their own minds, tech writers are given the subject and the expected outcome. Besides, as a writer-for-hire, tech writers always have a budget and a deadline. They just don’t have the luxury of having writer’s block.
4. They’re able to be “lone wolves†who don’t have many “people skills.â€
False. Far from it. If they don’t like people, they probably won’t like being a tech writer. Tech writing is a highly collaborative activity. Not everything writers need to know can be found in books or online. They frequently need to track down information from sources both inside and outside an organization. That can involve person-to-person interviews with people who don't have much time to spend with a writer, or they may end up working with several SMEs at once. They spend time on job sites talking with supervisors, workers, or contractors. They need to be able to talk to all kinds of people in whatever situation they find them in.
5. They have to be an expert on a subject to write about it.
False. In fact, there are times when not knowing a lot about a subject can make a person a better technical writer. It's called controlled ignorance. The SME knows the subject …#34; perhaps too well. Recognizing what was most difficult to understand about the subject themselves makes it easier for the writer to decide how to handle the subject for the non-expert they’re writing to.
6. People who are already good writers can also be technical writers.
False. Being able to right good poetry or western novels doesn’t mean they’ll be good tech writers. It’s a specialized field that calls for specialized skills. And that takes training.
7. They need to be very knowledgeable about technology.
False. If they’re generally aware of how an internal combustion engine, a nuclear reactor, a light bulb, a computer program, or a jet plane works, they can find out what they need to know with proper research and input from people who are experts.
8. They need good language skills.
True. True. True. Writing skills alone won’t make someone a good tech writer, but not having good language skill will certainly keep someone from being one. Clients can’t afford writers who can’t write in a clear, concise, and correct manner.
9. They need good analytical skills?
True. Normally, at the start of work, writers are given an “information dump†of fact, figures, and ideas, and they’re expected to make sense out of it all. They need to be able to organize information coherently, analyze situations, and propose solutions.
10. They need to be skilled in all popular computer programs.
False. They need to be knowledgeable about commonly used programs such as ExcelR and VisioR, but they only need to be skilled in word processing. The more they know about building PowerPointR presentations or the capabilities of PhotoShopR the better, but they’ll most likely work with people who are skilled in specialized programs. 11. They’re limited to the field of knowledge they're trained in.
This can be either true or false depending on how it’s meant. If they already work in a field like aerodynamics or pharmaceuticals, and that’s the only field they know anything about, they’re going to be limited as a tech writer. But, if the field of knowledge they’re trained in is technical writing, then they’re not limited because they can write on any subject.
Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it’s such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he’s accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he’s written dozens of technical manuals, repor
This exercise is intended to help separate fact from fiction. Is tech writing as glamorous as some people think? All fun and games, high pay, rich food, and fame? First, take the True/False quiz about being a tech writer, then check the straight story.
Are the following statements True or False?
1. They get paid well, but they don’t get much recognition.
2. This is a profession, and tech writers are professionals.
3. They’re immune to writer's block.
4. They’re able to be “lone wolves†who don’t need many “people skills.â€
5. They have to be an expert on a subject to write about it.
6. People who are already good writers can also be technical writers.
7. They need to be very knowledgeable about modern technology.
8. They need good language skills.
9. They need good analytical skills.
10. They need to be skilled in all popular computer programs.
11. They’re limited to the field of knowledge they're trained in.
When you're done check the solution below.
Exercise - Answer
Here are the answers to the Fact and Fable quiz. How accurate is your view of technical writing?
1. They get paid well, but they don’t get much recognition.
True. Taking an average across the country, established tech writers are well paid. They’re not well recognized. Since they do what is called “work for hire,†their writing becomes the property of the client. The writer’s name almost never appears any place the public can see it.
2. This is a profession, and tech writers are professionals. Absolutely true. By the very nature of the work, tech writers frequently handle sensitive and even secret material. They’re privy to information that could seriously hurt their clients if it got into the wrong hands. When writers accept payment for their work, their professional responsibility is to produce a quality product, within the allotted timeframe, and at or below the allotted budget. But that’s only part of it. As professionals, it’s their responsibility to uphold the reputation of their clients even after the task is complete. It’s fundamental to being a professional that they never do anything that will injure or discredit their clients.
3. They’re immune to writer's block.
True for the simple fact that there’s no reason not to know what to write about. Not being able to think of what to write is a problem for purely creative writers. Unlike creative writers whose ideas come from their own minds, tech writers are given the subject and the expected outcome. Besides, as a writer-for-hire, tech writers always have a budget and a deadline. They just don’t have the luxury of having writer’s block.
4. They’re able to be “lone wolves†who don’t have many “people skills.â€
False. Far from it. If they don’t like people, they probably won’t like being a tech writer. Tech writing is a highly collaborative activity. Not everything writers need to know can be found in books or online. They frequently need to track down information from sources both inside and outside an organization. That can involve person-to-person interviews with people who don't have much time to spend with a writer, or they may end up working with several SMEs at once. They spend time on job sites talking with supervisors, workers, or contractors. They need to be able to talk to all kinds of people in whatever situation they find them in.
5. They have to be an expert on a subject to write about it.
False. In fact, there are times when not knowing a lot about a subject can make a person a better technical writer. It's called controlled ignorance. The SME knows the subject …#34; perhaps too well. Recognizing what was most difficult to understand about the subject themselves makes it easier for the writer to decide how to handle the subject for the non-expert they’re writing to.
6. People who are already good writers can also be technical writers.
False. Being able to right good poetry or western novels doesn’t mean they’ll be good tech writers. It’s a specialized field that calls for specialized skills. And that takes training.
7. They need to be very knowledgeable about technology.
False. If they’re generally aware of how an internal combustion engine, a nuclear reactor, a light bulb, a computer program, or a jet plane works, they can find out what they need to know with proper research and input from people who are experts.
8. They need good language skills.
True. True. True. Writing skills alone won’t make someone a good tech writer, but not having good language skill will certainly keep someone from being one. Clients can’t afford writers who can’t write in a clear, concise, and correct manner.
9. They need good analytical skills?
True. Normally, at the start of work, writers are given an “information dump†of fact, figures, and ideas, and they’re expected to make sense out of it all. They need to be able to organize information coherently, analyze situations, and propose solutions.
10. They need to be skilled in all popular computer programs.
False. They need to be knowledgeable about commonly used programs such as ExcelR and VisioR, but they only need to be skilled in word processing. The more they know about building PowerPointR presentations or the capabilities of PhotoShopR the better, but they’ll most likely work with people who are skilled in specialized programs. 11. They’re limited to the field of knowledge they're trained in.
This can be either true or false depending on how it’s meant. If they already work in a field like aerodynamics or pharmaceuticals, and that’s the only field they know anything about, they’re going to be limited as a tech writer. But, if the field of knowledge they’re trained in is technical writing, then they’re not limited because they can write on any subject.
Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it’s such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he’s accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he’s written dozens of technical manuals, repor
Technical Writing Exercise - How to Make Toast by Bryan S. Adar
Breaking down a process into smaller chunks is one of the foundations of technical writing. In this exercise, you can apply this principle to breaking down a project and learn how to manage a project.
Exercise - How to Make Toast
One kind of project that a tech writer is often given is to explain a process. It can be anything from a short how-to product description to a major document that details the operation of a complicated machine.
A couple of interesting examples that come to mind from my own experience are a video for technicians on how to use the Rotunda Fuel Injector Tester/Cleaner and an installation and service manual for the KWAUN 4600 Copier. Both required extensive research to determine exactly how the machines worked followed by careful consideration of the best ways to lay out the processes.
If you don't have a lot of experience with this type of work (and sometimes even if you do), it's possible to fall into a number traps when it comes to providing a clear, concise, and complete description of a process.
You have to consider:
who your target audience is what they already know about the subject what, if any, experience they've had with the process what, if any, experience they've had with similar processes what you'll need to explain either in words, illustrations, or both Here's Your First Technical Writing Exercise
Your job is to explain how to make a piece of toast.
The exercise in divided into 2 parts. They involve the same process, but each is directed to a different audience. It'll be good practice to work out the exact steps involved in this seemingly simple process. You'll also have to alter your content and approach depending on your target audience.
Toaster Details: The toaster is an ordinary, two-slice, home kitchen toaster. It has a slide to push down to start the toasting process. There's a "light to dark" dial from 0 to 10. It has a separate button for toasting only one side for bagels and English muffins.
Exercise - Part One
Write a step-by-step process for turning a single piece of bread into a piece of dark toast.
The audience is 18- to 25-year olds who live in cities of populations of over 10,000. These cities are located west of the Mississippi and north of Kentucky. Exercise - Part Two
Write a step-by-step process for turning a single piece of bread into a piece of dark toast.
The audience is 18- to 25 year olds who have lived their whole lives on an island in the South Pacific with a population of under 500. They are aware of but not familiar with electricity and indoor plumbing.
After you've written your two processes, check the solutions below to see how your work compares. Look for what you missed or what you thought of that the solutions missed.
Exercise - Answers
The task was to write a brief process on how to make a piece of toast using an ordinary toaster. Your target audience was two very different groups of people.
Part One - Solution
It's reasonable to expect that the first group, the young Americans, are pretty knowledgeable about making toast even if, for some reason, they've never done it. That tells you that you can start at a pretty high level of experience and familiarity with bread and toasters. What you need to do is balance what they already know with what you need to tell them.
The basic steps in making a piece of toast for this group would look something like this:
1. Take a slice of bread [Graphic A: hand holding a slice of bread]
2. Put it into one of the slots in the top of the toaster [Graphic B: bread being inserted into a slot in the top of the toaster]
3. Set the "light to dark dial" scale from 0 to 10 depending on how toasted you want the bread to be [Graphic C: illustration of the scale with an arrow pointing at one of the numbers]
4. Press the slide all the way down [Graphic D: fingers pressing slide down with arrow indicating direction]
5. When the toast is done, it will pop up automatically [Graphic E: slice of toast sitting in the toaster slot]
Part Two - Solution
The second target audience, the young people from the South Pacific island, presents an entirely different challenge. You wouldn't make the same assumptions of experience and familiarity. In fact, you have to assume that these people might be totally unfamiliar with the whole concept of making toast.
You need to start at a much more basic level.
The basic steps in making a piece of toast for this group would look something like this:
[Graphic A: Illustration of a toaster with the various components called out]
1. A toaster is an electrical appliance that must be plugged into a 120v electrical outlet [Graphic B: illustration of the power cord of the toaster plugged into an outlet with plug and outlet called out]
2. Bread comes in many shapes and sizes [Graphic C: a number of illustrations of representative shapes and sizes of bread]
3. To begin, select a single slice of bread that will fit into the toast slot [see Graphic D: toast slot]
4. The slice of bread should not touch either end of the slot and should be thinner than the width of the slot [Graphic E: illustration of bread slice in the slot] Note: If the slice of bread is to thick or too wide, it could stick in the slot or be burned by the heating elements.
5. Set the "light to dark dial" scale from 0 to 10 depending on how toasted you want the bread to be [Graphic F: illustration of the scale with an arrow pointing at one of the numbers] Note: The toast will be darker (more toasted) the higher the number you select on the scale.
6. Press the slide on the front of the toaster down as far as it will go [Graphic G: fingers pressing slide down with arrow indicating direction] and let go of it Note: While in operation, the toaster will become hot. Do not touch the toaster while it is in operation.
7. When the bread is done toasting, the slice will pop up automatically [Graphic H: slice of toast sitting in the toaster slot]
It's obvious that the approach and content is very different for the two groups.
Generally speaking, the steps in the process must:
be in a logical order provide information that tells what to do next provide information that tells what to expect when a step is completed provide graphics and illustrations that support the text
As a tech writer, you can't assume that everyone knows the same things or knows as much as you do about a process. You must consider not only what the audience knows, but also what you can do to make their grasp of the process firm.
Writer's Note: Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it's such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he's accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he's written dozens of technical manuals, reports a
Exercise - How to Make Toast
One kind of project that a tech writer is often given is to explain a process. It can be anything from a short how-to product description to a major document that details the operation of a complicated machine.
A couple of interesting examples that come to mind from my own experience are a video for technicians on how to use the Rotunda Fuel Injector Tester/Cleaner and an installation and service manual for the KWAUN 4600 Copier. Both required extensive research to determine exactly how the machines worked followed by careful consideration of the best ways to lay out the processes.
If you don't have a lot of experience with this type of work (and sometimes even if you do), it's possible to fall into a number traps when it comes to providing a clear, concise, and complete description of a process.
You have to consider:
who your target audience is what they already know about the subject what, if any, experience they've had with the process what, if any, experience they've had with similar processes what you'll need to explain either in words, illustrations, or both Here's Your First Technical Writing Exercise
Your job is to explain how to make a piece of toast.
The exercise in divided into 2 parts. They involve the same process, but each is directed to a different audience. It'll be good practice to work out the exact steps involved in this seemingly simple process. You'll also have to alter your content and approach depending on your target audience.
Toaster Details: The toaster is an ordinary, two-slice, home kitchen toaster. It has a slide to push down to start the toasting process. There's a "light to dark" dial from 0 to 10. It has a separate button for toasting only one side for bagels and English muffins.
Exercise - Part One
Write a step-by-step process for turning a single piece of bread into a piece of dark toast.
The audience is 18- to 25-year olds who live in cities of populations of over 10,000. These cities are located west of the Mississippi and north of Kentucky. Exercise - Part Two
Write a step-by-step process for turning a single piece of bread into a piece of dark toast.
The audience is 18- to 25 year olds who have lived their whole lives on an island in the South Pacific with a population of under 500. They are aware of but not familiar with electricity and indoor plumbing.
After you've written your two processes, check the solutions below to see how your work compares. Look for what you missed or what you thought of that the solutions missed.
Exercise - Answers
The task was to write a brief process on how to make a piece of toast using an ordinary toaster. Your target audience was two very different groups of people.
Part One - Solution
It's reasonable to expect that the first group, the young Americans, are pretty knowledgeable about making toast even if, for some reason, they've never done it. That tells you that you can start at a pretty high level of experience and familiarity with bread and toasters. What you need to do is balance what they already know with what you need to tell them.
The basic steps in making a piece of toast for this group would look something like this:
1. Take a slice of bread [Graphic A: hand holding a slice of bread]
2. Put it into one of the slots in the top of the toaster [Graphic B: bread being inserted into a slot in the top of the toaster]
3. Set the "light to dark dial" scale from 0 to 10 depending on how toasted you want the bread to be [Graphic C: illustration of the scale with an arrow pointing at one of the numbers]
4. Press the slide all the way down [Graphic D: fingers pressing slide down with arrow indicating direction]
5. When the toast is done, it will pop up automatically [Graphic E: slice of toast sitting in the toaster slot]
Part Two - Solution
The second target audience, the young people from the South Pacific island, presents an entirely different challenge. You wouldn't make the same assumptions of experience and familiarity. In fact, you have to assume that these people might be totally unfamiliar with the whole concept of making toast.
You need to start at a much more basic level.
The basic steps in making a piece of toast for this group would look something like this:
[Graphic A: Illustration of a toaster with the various components called out]
1. A toaster is an electrical appliance that must be plugged into a 120v electrical outlet [Graphic B: illustration of the power cord of the toaster plugged into an outlet with plug and outlet called out]
2. Bread comes in many shapes and sizes [Graphic C: a number of illustrations of representative shapes and sizes of bread]
3. To begin, select a single slice of bread that will fit into the toast slot [see Graphic D: toast slot]
4. The slice of bread should not touch either end of the slot and should be thinner than the width of the slot [Graphic E: illustration of bread slice in the slot] Note: If the slice of bread is to thick or too wide, it could stick in the slot or be burned by the heating elements.
5. Set the "light to dark dial" scale from 0 to 10 depending on how toasted you want the bread to be [Graphic F: illustration of the scale with an arrow pointing at one of the numbers] Note: The toast will be darker (more toasted) the higher the number you select on the scale.
6. Press the slide on the front of the toaster down as far as it will go [Graphic G: fingers pressing slide down with arrow indicating direction] and let go of it Note: While in operation, the toaster will become hot. Do not touch the toaster while it is in operation.
7. When the bread is done toasting, the slice will pop up automatically [Graphic H: slice of toast sitting in the toaster slot]
It's obvious that the approach and content is very different for the two groups.
Generally speaking, the steps in the process must:
be in a logical order provide information that tells what to do next provide information that tells what to expect when a step is completed provide graphics and illustrations that support the text
As a tech writer, you can't assume that everyone knows the same things or knows as much as you do about a process. You must consider not only what the audience knows, but also what you can do to make their grasp of the process firm.
Writer's Note: Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it's such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he's accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he's written dozens of technical manuals, reports a
Technical Writing Exercise - Writing an Executive Summary by Bryan S. Adar
Wrting executive summaries is an important aspect of technical writing. This tech writing exercise will get you started on how to create executive summaries.
Technical Writing Exercise - Writing an Executive Summary
The client says, "Tell me what this 30-page report says, and do it in less than a page." Your job: write an executive summary. The exercise is to look at the executive summary below and bring it into line with the description - and to cut it down to between 150 and 200 words at the same time.
Starting in January 2007, a crack team of researchers at the ConDovPro home lab has been working long hours to create a reliable system so everyone who is a member of an event production crew can talk back and forth with the "big guy" - the executive coordinator. They believe the best way to do this is through a satellite link that works any time they need to talk.
After only fourteen months, beginning March 18, 2008, the lab people were ready to put their work to the test. For the first time, an entire crew of fifteen crew members was sent out to four widely separated locations with their shiny, new mobile radios all hooked into the "bird," an ATS-6 satellite.
A truly impressive 91% plus of the 300 transmissions were a clear success. And over 98% of all the transmissions were judged to be a high enough quality that they could live with it. Of course, some transmissions got scrambled. Being in an elevator or around a lot of power equipment messed with the satellite signal. But that only happened 1.7% of the time.
The test was a whopping success. It showed that the basic premise is sound and demonstrated that the prototype design will fly. The guys in the lab think the results call for a significant speed-up in refining the radios. They also recommend that we:
· develop an antenna that can pickup signals even in areas where they didn't get through the first time
· figure out how to configure the satellites so they cover a lot more ground
Exercise - Answer
The task was to bring the executive summary into line with the description in the newsletter and to shorten it by a hundred words or so. As usual, there are a lot of different ways to approach the job, but even allowing for individual styles, your rewrite should come pretty close to this one.
The original is in italics followed by the rewrite.
Starting in January 2007, a crack team of researchers at the ConDovPro home lab has worked long hours to create a reliable system so everyone who is a member of an event production crew can talk back and forth with the "big guy" - the executive coordinator. They believe the best way to do this is through a satellite link that works any time they need to talk.
Starting in January 2007, ConDovPro has been working on a system that allows large numbers of production crew members to communicate directly with the executive coordinator. This is "any time" communication through a satellite link.
After only fourteen months, beginning March 18, 2008, the lab people were ready to put their work to the test. For the first time, an entire crew of fifteen crew members was sent out to four widely separated locations with their shiny, new mobile radios all hooked into the "bird," a ATS-6 satellite.
The week of March 18, 2008, the idea was given it's first test. A ATS-6 satellite was used with fifteen crew members in four locations. Each person was equipped with a prototype mobile radio.
A truly impressive 91% plus of the 300 transmissions were a clear success. And over 98% of all the transmissions were judged to be a high enough quality that they could live with it. Of course, some transmissions got scrambled. Being in an elevator or around a lot of power equipment messed with the satellite signal. But that only happened 1.7% of the time.
Over 91% of 300 transmissions were successful. Over 98% of the transmissions were judged to be of acceptable quality. A major factor limiting the success of the transmissions (1.7% of the all transmissions) was obstructions of the satellite signal in areas with high metallic content such as elevators and concentrations of electrical power equipment.
The test was a whopping success. It showed that the basic premise is sound and demonstrated that the prototype design will fly. The guys in the lab think the results call for a significant speed-up in refining the radios. They recommend that we:
· develop an antenna that can pickup signals even in areas where they didn't get through the first time
· figure out how to configure the satellites so they cover a lot more ground
The test supported the basic premise and demonstrated that the prototype design is sound. Results support accelerated refinement of the radios. Recommendations are:
· develop an antenna designed specifically for use in obstructed areas
· explore the configuration of satellites needed to cover a larger footprint.
Author's Note: Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it's such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he's accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he's written dozens of technical manuals, reports a
Technical Writing Exercise - Writing an Executive Summary
The client says, "Tell me what this 30-page report says, and do it in less than a page." Your job: write an executive summary. The exercise is to look at the executive summary below and bring it into line with the description - and to cut it down to between 150 and 200 words at the same time.
Starting in January 2007, a crack team of researchers at the ConDovPro home lab has been working long hours to create a reliable system so everyone who is a member of an event production crew can talk back and forth with the "big guy" - the executive coordinator. They believe the best way to do this is through a satellite link that works any time they need to talk.
After only fourteen months, beginning March 18, 2008, the lab people were ready to put their work to the test. For the first time, an entire crew of fifteen crew members was sent out to four widely separated locations with their shiny, new mobile radios all hooked into the "bird," an ATS-6 satellite.
A truly impressive 91% plus of the 300 transmissions were a clear success. And over 98% of all the transmissions were judged to be a high enough quality that they could live with it. Of course, some transmissions got scrambled. Being in an elevator or around a lot of power equipment messed with the satellite signal. But that only happened 1.7% of the time.
The test was a whopping success. It showed that the basic premise is sound and demonstrated that the prototype design will fly. The guys in the lab think the results call for a significant speed-up in refining the radios. They also recommend that we:
· develop an antenna that can pickup signals even in areas where they didn't get through the first time
· figure out how to configure the satellites so they cover a lot more ground
Exercise - Answer
The task was to bring the executive summary into line with the description in the newsletter and to shorten it by a hundred words or so. As usual, there are a lot of different ways to approach the job, but even allowing for individual styles, your rewrite should come pretty close to this one.
The original is in italics followed by the rewrite.
Starting in January 2007, a crack team of researchers at the ConDovPro home lab has worked long hours to create a reliable system so everyone who is a member of an event production crew can talk back and forth with the "big guy" - the executive coordinator. They believe the best way to do this is through a satellite link that works any time they need to talk.
Starting in January 2007, ConDovPro has been working on a system that allows large numbers of production crew members to communicate directly with the executive coordinator. This is "any time" communication through a satellite link.
After only fourteen months, beginning March 18, 2008, the lab people were ready to put their work to the test. For the first time, an entire crew of fifteen crew members was sent out to four widely separated locations with their shiny, new mobile radios all hooked into the "bird," a ATS-6 satellite.
The week of March 18, 2008, the idea was given it's first test. A ATS-6 satellite was used with fifteen crew members in four locations. Each person was equipped with a prototype mobile radio.
A truly impressive 91% plus of the 300 transmissions were a clear success. And over 98% of all the transmissions were judged to be a high enough quality that they could live with it. Of course, some transmissions got scrambled. Being in an elevator or around a lot of power equipment messed with the satellite signal. But that only happened 1.7% of the time.
Over 91% of 300 transmissions were successful. Over 98% of the transmissions were judged to be of acceptable quality. A major factor limiting the success of the transmissions (1.7% of the all transmissions) was obstructions of the satellite signal in areas with high metallic content such as elevators and concentrations of electrical power equipment.
The test was a whopping success. It showed that the basic premise is sound and demonstrated that the prototype design will fly. The guys in the lab think the results call for a significant speed-up in refining the radios. They recommend that we:
· develop an antenna that can pickup signals even in areas where they didn't get through the first time
· figure out how to configure the satellites so they cover a lot more ground
The test supported the basic premise and demonstrated that the prototype design is sound. Results support accelerated refinement of the radios. Recommendations are:
· develop an antenna designed specifically for use in obstructed areas
· explore the configuration of satellites needed to cover a larger footprint.
Author's Note: Being a tech writer is a great job. Go interesting places, meet really smart people, learn new things and make really good money. Which is why it's such a rapidly growing profession. The down side, though, is that there are people who get into the business without knowing as much about it as they should.
If you want to become a technical writer try out our free weekly exercises. They are easy and fun to do. You'll also learn common tech writing terms and current industry trends. Click the link below to check out these exercises:
http://www.techwritertoolkit.com/exercises.html
About the Author
Bryan S. Adar is a successful technical writer and instructional designer. Bryan has lived in the United States for 8 years. Prior to that he lived in India where he was born and raised.
In these past 8 years he's accomplished a lot. He graduated from school, learned technical writing and worked for companies like Shell, Halliburton, Continental Airlines and British Petroleum. Over these years he's written dozens of technical manuals, reports a
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
6 Steps to a good Low-Budget Movie Script by Bryon Blakey
Here is a list of things that low-budget screenwriters should consider.
1. Give the character some depth. He or she is a human being you are creating. They have a past, dreams, failures and successes just like every real person does. This all needs to be fabricated but credible. You will want to do a background (character development) on all your main players and most of your secondary characters. During production, let the other actors generate their own backgrounds and the director can tone down the ridiculous ones. Shallow characters will result in a plot that feels more like a pinball game than a connected story. 2. Write something new. Don’t just hash out every old movie clich’e and expect the audience to be entertained. Try something original. Have characters do somehting unexpected. Of course you want to keep some semblance of a digestible story, but give it a new angle or a new environment. I just saw the movie “30 Days of Night†on DVD. I was not expecting much because it looked like it might be just another vampire movie. But, I was surprised by the new angle on an old concept. It was a group of people trapped in an Alaskan town faced with 30 days of seasonal night and a crew of vampire like creatures to fend off. Sure there were a few possible holes in the story, but none that couldn’t be explained away by a devout fan of horror. 3. Try to use proper spelling. You will be needing a lot of people to get behind your movie idea and you don’t want to give them any unreasonable cause to not get in the boat with you. 4. Use dialog that your (hopefully developed) character would naturally use. I can’t stand to see a movie where one person says an unusual saying or phrase and then a completely unrelated character repeats it. It just doesn’t make any sense. Try to envision how that character feels, what their shortcomings are. Just create a living breathing person and your audience will fall in love with or hate them if that is the goal. 5. You don’t have to write about something you know, but you should know it by the time the script has been written. Don’t guess, or make assumptions about how a particular person would do a job or react. Do some real research. Read about psychology to help discover how someone mentally ill would respond to an event. Study police protocol to create a believable crime scene story line. Don’t just repeat the same things you’ve seen in every other movie. People change over time. They create new ways to do every kind of job so if you have a professional in your story make sure that they are doing their job realistically. 6. Don’t follow a script structure. Three acts are great, but if you are writing an independent low-budget screenplay, you can get away with murder. Enjoy this freedom and have fun with it.
About the Author
Founder of Black Meadow Financial Group and writer of Independent Filmmaking
1. Give the character some depth. He or she is a human being you are creating. They have a past, dreams, failures and successes just like every real person does. This all needs to be fabricated but credible. You will want to do a background (character development) on all your main players and most of your secondary characters. During production, let the other actors generate their own backgrounds and the director can tone down the ridiculous ones. Shallow characters will result in a plot that feels more like a pinball game than a connected story. 2. Write something new. Don’t just hash out every old movie clich’e and expect the audience to be entertained. Try something original. Have characters do somehting unexpected. Of course you want to keep some semblance of a digestible story, but give it a new angle or a new environment. I just saw the movie “30 Days of Night†on DVD. I was not expecting much because it looked like it might be just another vampire movie. But, I was surprised by the new angle on an old concept. It was a group of people trapped in an Alaskan town faced with 30 days of seasonal night and a crew of vampire like creatures to fend off. Sure there were a few possible holes in the story, but none that couldn’t be explained away by a devout fan of horror. 3. Try to use proper spelling. You will be needing a lot of people to get behind your movie idea and you don’t want to give them any unreasonable cause to not get in the boat with you. 4. Use dialog that your (hopefully developed) character would naturally use. I can’t stand to see a movie where one person says an unusual saying or phrase and then a completely unrelated character repeats it. It just doesn’t make any sense. Try to envision how that character feels, what their shortcomings are. Just create a living breathing person and your audience will fall in love with or hate them if that is the goal. 5. You don’t have to write about something you know, but you should know it by the time the script has been written. Don’t guess, or make assumptions about how a particular person would do a job or react. Do some real research. Read about psychology to help discover how someone mentally ill would respond to an event. Study police protocol to create a believable crime scene story line. Don’t just repeat the same things you’ve seen in every other movie. People change over time. They create new ways to do every kind of job so if you have a professional in your story make sure that they are doing their job realistically. 6. Don’t follow a script structure. Three acts are great, but if you are writing an independent low-budget screenplay, you can get away with murder. Enjoy this freedom and have fun with it.
About the Author
Founder of Black Meadow Financial Group and writer of Independent Filmmaking
Why Write Cause and Effect Research Papers by Safara Duff
Cause and effect research papers explain why something happened. A writer who is writing a cause and effect research paper will narrate how an event, trend of phenomenon happened and will assimilate its effect on people, on the environment or the world at large. The tone this type of paper carries is serious because of its critical nature, though it can also be humorous if the topic is funny in nature. Since cause and effect research papers usually deals with local or current interests, it should be presented in a thorough manner. The background of the cause must be presented in significant details to allow the readers to understand the basis of the paper.
Cause and effect research papers are direct and generic in approach. Flowery words should be avoided. A writer may have the freedom to use examples or information to strengthen his argument, but he can never experiment with highly embellished words or expressions. The use of flowery words with lots of phrases and sentences will simply not work; it will only make a writer look pretentious or arrogant. It is better to remain generic and straight to the point by using words that are generally understandable.
But no matter how hard a writer tries to present his work in a factual and believable way, he should still expect readers to have different opinions on his topic, some readers may even become aggressive and may overlook a few presented data. A writer who knows his primary purpose for writing this type of research paper will not get disheartened easily when confronted with opposing views. His focus is firmly set on coming out with the truth. A blow-by-blow account of the event, focusing on the relevance or value of its consequences.
Most people will easily forget the news once they put the broadsheet down. They will give little or no attention at all to the details of the event. Not that many readers will sit back and deeply contemplate on what they've read. Writers of cause and effect research papers have the duty to open the eyes, mind and heart of people to what they failed to understand. For them, to merely read about a particular event and look at its present effect on society is not enough, one should also look at how it will affect life in the future.
The job of presenting the cause and effect of an event or phenomenon is tough. Some writers will shun this type of research paper because they feel they are not critical enough or they don't have the courage to face oppositions. The one who will take the assignment, however, is admirable because he is taking up the challenge to become a better writer, a narrator and critique. Furthermore, he is showing courage in defending his work against every kind of opposition using authentic data and information. The benefit of writing a cause and effect research paper can give a writer a wealth of wisdom and experience others could only hope to have.
About the Author
Safar Duff is free, energetic, and stubborn young individual. Adventurous as she is, she enjoys extreme sports. Unusual as it is, she writes poems, essays and loves reading novels.
Cause and effect research papers are direct and generic in approach. Flowery words should be avoided. A writer may have the freedom to use examples or information to strengthen his argument, but he can never experiment with highly embellished words or expressions. The use of flowery words with lots of phrases and sentences will simply not work; it will only make a writer look pretentious or arrogant. It is better to remain generic and straight to the point by using words that are generally understandable.
But no matter how hard a writer tries to present his work in a factual and believable way, he should still expect readers to have different opinions on his topic, some readers may even become aggressive and may overlook a few presented data. A writer who knows his primary purpose for writing this type of research paper will not get disheartened easily when confronted with opposing views. His focus is firmly set on coming out with the truth. A blow-by-blow account of the event, focusing on the relevance or value of its consequences.
Most people will easily forget the news once they put the broadsheet down. They will give little or no attention at all to the details of the event. Not that many readers will sit back and deeply contemplate on what they've read. Writers of cause and effect research papers have the duty to open the eyes, mind and heart of people to what they failed to understand. For them, to merely read about a particular event and look at its present effect on society is not enough, one should also look at how it will affect life in the future.
The job of presenting the cause and effect of an event or phenomenon is tough. Some writers will shun this type of research paper because they feel they are not critical enough or they don't have the courage to face oppositions. The one who will take the assignment, however, is admirable because he is taking up the challenge to become a better writer, a narrator and critique. Furthermore, he is showing courage in defending his work against every kind of opposition using authentic data and information. The benefit of writing a cause and effect research paper can give a writer a wealth of wisdom and experience others could only hope to have.
About the Author
Safar Duff is free, energetic, and stubborn young individual. Adventurous as she is, she enjoys extreme sports. Unusual as it is, she writes poems, essays and loves reading novels.
What Makes A Copywriting Company Worth Hiring by Sunita Biddu
If you’re managing a business, then the value of having good professional copywriting cannot be overstated enough. Copywriting is the best tool by which a business may communicate to its intended clients. Since copywriting plays such a vital function for any business, hiring a good copywriting company is very important. But how does a business pick the most ideal company to provide the copywriting services it needs?
Good copywriters would of course be able to employ good press release writing for themselves and thus should already have a good name in the market. Visit these companies’ web sites and see about arranging a meeting with the copywriters themselves. How well these copywriters could accommodate your schedule would already tell you something about how professional the company is
Ask these companies for samples of their copywriting work. Persuasive copywriting is what you should put a premium on, but you should also be able to determine how experienced these companies are with releasing copy for various media such as newspapers, magazines, print ads, radio, television and online sources.
Ask the company to tell you about what other former clients they might have had and what content writing services they had given to these clients. You could then perhaps see about contacting these references to check if the company really has worked for them and ask about how satisfied they had been with the copywriters’ services.
You should also pick a company that already has extensive experience in copywriting for businesses in your field. The company has to be able to anticipate whatever copywriting needs your business may have, whether it be in sales copywriting or in article writing for your company’s article marketing needs.
A company with experience working for companies such as yours may suggest lines of service that you personally might not be familiar with yet. This shows a great deal of innovation, which is always a desirable quality in copywriting businesses. For example, they may be able to provide copy for newer media such as in web sites. They might tell you about their expertise with seo copywriting or perhaps they may also suggest the use of blogging as an additional medium to release your company’s copy on. If they can easily convince and familiarize you with the benefit to content writing for these newer media, then that might be a good sign that they know what they are doing.
A good copywriting agency has to be trustworthy. You could sometimes be entrusting to these companies’ data about your business that shouldn’t be released to the public prematurely, lest a competitor of yours get some heads up about your next business plans. The copywriters should tell you about the confidentiality clauses that they usually have in place and be able to reassure you about their fidelity to your company.
Finally, you should have a good initial feeling about the heads of the copywriting company as well as their individual copywriters. You should feel that they are approachable and will listen to you. You should be assured that they truly care about your company’s needs and will do their best to ensure that your company’s messages get across to your intended audiences. That is the essence of professional copywriting and that is what you should expect in a company truly worth hiring.
About the Author
Sunita Biddu is an expert author and CEO of Content Axis, Inc. that offers premium quality copywriting services and article submission services. To more more about the services, please visit http://www.eContentAxis.com
Good copywriters would of course be able to employ good press release writing for themselves and thus should already have a good name in the market. Visit these companies’ web sites and see about arranging a meeting with the copywriters themselves. How well these copywriters could accommodate your schedule would already tell you something about how professional the company is
Ask these companies for samples of their copywriting work. Persuasive copywriting is what you should put a premium on, but you should also be able to determine how experienced these companies are with releasing copy for various media such as newspapers, magazines, print ads, radio, television and online sources.
Ask the company to tell you about what other former clients they might have had and what content writing services they had given to these clients. You could then perhaps see about contacting these references to check if the company really has worked for them and ask about how satisfied they had been with the copywriters’ services.
You should also pick a company that already has extensive experience in copywriting for businesses in your field. The company has to be able to anticipate whatever copywriting needs your business may have, whether it be in sales copywriting or in article writing for your company’s article marketing needs.
A company with experience working for companies such as yours may suggest lines of service that you personally might not be familiar with yet. This shows a great deal of innovation, which is always a desirable quality in copywriting businesses. For example, they may be able to provide copy for newer media such as in web sites. They might tell you about their expertise with seo copywriting or perhaps they may also suggest the use of blogging as an additional medium to release your company’s copy on. If they can easily convince and familiarize you with the benefit to content writing for these newer media, then that might be a good sign that they know what they are doing.
A good copywriting agency has to be trustworthy. You could sometimes be entrusting to these companies’ data about your business that shouldn’t be released to the public prematurely, lest a competitor of yours get some heads up about your next business plans. The copywriters should tell you about the confidentiality clauses that they usually have in place and be able to reassure you about their fidelity to your company.
Finally, you should have a good initial feeling about the heads of the copywriting company as well as their individual copywriters. You should feel that they are approachable and will listen to you. You should be assured that they truly care about your company’s needs and will do their best to ensure that your company’s messages get across to your intended audiences. That is the essence of professional copywriting and that is what you should expect in a company truly worth hiring.
About the Author
Sunita Biddu is an expert author and CEO of Content Axis, Inc. that offers premium quality copywriting services and article submission services. To more more about the services, please visit http://www.eContentAxis.com
3 Simple Tips for Beginning Writers by Number 3
I have three suggestions below that will help you improve your basic writing skills. Utilize these simple writing tips and you will quickly notice improvement in your craft.
Read
If you fancy the idea of writing, indulge in reading too. See what you like about a particular author's style or a literary genre's. Look at a story from a reader's point of view to help you write from a writer's.
Try to read thirty minutes a day. Think about what you're reading. If that interferes with your enjoyment, first read a chapter to enjoy. Then go back and skim the chapter, noting how the author deals with things like structure, rhythm...
And reading the type of story that you are planning to write, may also help.
Upgrade
If you need to upgrade your vocabulary or straighten your grammar, start using the dictionary and get a good grammar book. All writers need a good handle of the words they use.
I'm not expert but I check the dictionary whenever I run into a word I don't know. And that's not just with big, rare words but with words like "glowering" or "fervently" that are very commonly used. These are words that I understand when used in context but would not know reading the word alone.
Your vocabulary will start expanding right away.
I also skim the dictionary for common words I don't know which helps a lot but requires more memorization.
And for your grammar, you should start to get a good gist of it just by reading. But for sticky ones like when to use a semi-colon, find one good grammar book and stick with it. You don't need a dozen. Learn everything inside one and you're good to go.
Improving your grammar and vocab. will definitely help you and practically a "must" so start reading up.
Write Like You're On Fire
Start writing now. Don't wait till you memorize the whole dictionary or have read all the classics of your favorite literary genre. Write. And do it whenever you can.
Not only will you notice your improvements from reading more and updating your vocab./grammar, you'll start to have a feel for your writing style. You'll start to "see" what's working and what does not.
Become an amateur writer now, don't wait.
A Few More Tips
Make the first three beginning writing tips part of your daily life. When you're ready, work on these writing tips below. Don't rush or feel overwhelmed, enjoy it.
* Think about your audience when writing. Anticipate their reactions.
* Don't write to show off, write to entertain. Be careful of putting in big words and complex sentences when short and simple works better with your audience.
* Read other works which will help you see how different genres use varying methods and styles, very interesting.
* Let a friend or family member see your work. Ask them to tell you one thing that bothered them the most and one thing that they hope to see more.
* Keep a notebook/paper and pencil with you. Write down ideas when you have them. Don't wait till you get home or "have time".
About the Author
Number 3 is a amateur writer that does not hesitate to share and learn how to write better. Her site Hip Ideas for Children Stories offers story ideas and topics to inspire creative writing.
Read
If you fancy the idea of writing, indulge in reading too. See what you like about a particular author's style or a literary genre's. Look at a story from a reader's point of view to help you write from a writer's.
Try to read thirty minutes a day. Think about what you're reading. If that interferes with your enjoyment, first read a chapter to enjoy. Then go back and skim the chapter, noting how the author deals with things like structure, rhythm...
And reading the type of story that you are planning to write, may also help.
Upgrade
If you need to upgrade your vocabulary or straighten your grammar, start using the dictionary and get a good grammar book. All writers need a good handle of the words they use.
I'm not expert but I check the dictionary whenever I run into a word I don't know. And that's not just with big, rare words but with words like "glowering" or "fervently" that are very commonly used. These are words that I understand when used in context but would not know reading the word alone.
Your vocabulary will start expanding right away.
I also skim the dictionary for common words I don't know which helps a lot but requires more memorization.
And for your grammar, you should start to get a good gist of it just by reading. But for sticky ones like when to use a semi-colon, find one good grammar book and stick with it. You don't need a dozen. Learn everything inside one and you're good to go.
Improving your grammar and vocab. will definitely help you and practically a "must" so start reading up.
Write Like You're On Fire
Start writing now. Don't wait till you memorize the whole dictionary or have read all the classics of your favorite literary genre. Write. And do it whenever you can.
Not only will you notice your improvements from reading more and updating your vocab./grammar, you'll start to have a feel for your writing style. You'll start to "see" what's working and what does not.
Become an amateur writer now, don't wait.
A Few More Tips
Make the first three beginning writing tips part of your daily life. When you're ready, work on these writing tips below. Don't rush or feel overwhelmed, enjoy it.
* Think about your audience when writing. Anticipate their reactions.
* Don't write to show off, write to entertain. Be careful of putting in big words and complex sentences when short and simple works better with your audience.
* Read other works which will help you see how different genres use varying methods and styles, very interesting.
* Let a friend or family member see your work. Ask them to tell you one thing that bothered them the most and one thing that they hope to see more.
* Keep a notebook/paper and pencil with you. Write down ideas when you have them. Don't wait till you get home or "have time".
About the Author
Number 3 is a amateur writer that does not hesitate to share and learn how to write better. Her site Hip Ideas for Children Stories offers story ideas and topics to inspire creative writing.
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