Key Points when writing an article

[Bob]

Know where your article will be published and what is your targeted audiance - e.g. if you are writing for teen's magazine, you can write in a very informal style, and even use slang. But, if you're writing for Travel magazine, you must follow formal register guidelines, and be quite descriptive.
Whichever register you choose, make sure it is consistent throughout the whole article.
Always include appropriate title - interesting title always cathes reader's attention.
In the first (opening) paragraph, introduce the topic of an article. Use clear thesis statement.
Be as clear and informative as possible.
Engage the reader’s interest throughout.


These tips are all from my website. I hope you wouldn't mind if I include a link here: Article Writing Tips (http://www.myarticlereview.com/2008/04/article-writing-tips/)

[DanielScocco]

Cut out all the unnecessary paragraphs, sentences and words.

Good tips Bob.

[kurian]

writing ultimately boils down to your target audience!

[Ali]

Good tips, Bob, I'm particularly with you on being consistant in use of register. For things like "engage the reader's interest throughout" though, it's easier said than done! I think I'd add to this with things like:
- Use short paragraphs (unless inappropriate for the publication, eg. an academic journal).
- Split up material with subheadings
- Include images, bullet-pointed lists and "pull quotes" (a large quote drawn from the article) to make the piece more visually interesting.

Of course, I realise some of these are down to the editor not the writer -- it depends how much control you have over the publication process. There's a big difference between writing an article to submit to a print magazine, and writing a piece for your own website or blog.

Best,

Ali

[--Deb]

Amen about the clear thesis. It drives me nuts when I read an article and can't figure out what it's ABOUT in the first paragraph....

[Roger]

I agree that knowing your audience is essential.

But, the importance placed on audience is intensified at my work (writing for a website), and I'm not sure if it has gotten out of hand a bit. My boss is statistics and analytics crazy, and he uses these statistics and analytics-- he claims-- to know our audience inside out. But my concern is the reliability of the said statistics, and also that with so many different kind of statistics and analytics available online now, that writing is in danger of becoming more a science (addressing a catalogue of statistics) and less a creative process.