NEWSLETTER

Vol. 1, Issue 4, Page 2

Released:  March 31, 2003

 

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Feature Article

------------------------------------------------------------ A Top-to-Tail Article Format Guide by Susan J. Letham ------------------------------------------------------------ Writing free-to-use articles is one of the best ways to gain experience, name recognition, and publishing credits. If you market you can also write to establish yourself as an expert in your field, bring visitors to your website, and make more sales. If only it was that easy... Novice writers unknowingly make fatal mistakes when writing and formatting their articles--mistakes that make it hard for an editor to consider their work. This article is a top-to-tail guide to how YOU can avoid the pitfalls and make it easy for editors to publish your writing. ------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Get your settings right ------------------------------------------------------------ Success begins even before you hit the keyboard. - If you compose your articles in an editor, switch off the     HTML and use the plain text setting. - Choose a non-proportional font. Non-proportional means     that all the letters take up the same amount of space     width-wise. The non-proportional font in most programs is     Courier or Courier New. - Set the line width to 60 characters, and save your file     with hard line breaks at the end of each line. This     ensures that your article appears neat and tidy and that     lines don't break in unwanted places. - If you compose in a word-processing program, set the font     to Courier or Courier New, 12 point. Set the line spacing     to single spacing. Create a reusable 60-character line     template like the one below so you know where to hit the     enter key to set line breaks. ..........|.........|.........|.........|.........|......... 0        10        20        30        40        50       60 - You'll need to hit the 'enter' key twice to create a wider     space between paragraphs. - Turn off the 'notepaper' option. Your articles should have     a plain, white background. - Use only black text. Don't use colored text options. - Remember to select the plain text option in your e-mail     program when you send your article by e-mail. This will     preserve your formatting. ------------------------------------------------------------ 2. Include a header box ------------------------------------------------------------ Busy editors skim-read a lot of articles in the course of a day. Around ninety percent end up in the waste bin right away, because they simply don't fit a publication's needs. Editors are grateful to every writer who includes a header box and make this part quick and easy for them. A header box provides an editor with article information at a glance. It lists the article details and your contact information. If you're writing for promotion--i.e. free articles--remember to list your conditions of use. This lets the editor see THAT your article is free to use and in what circumstances. Here's what your header box could look like. ............................................................ Title:  Type the Title of your Article Here Author: Enter your name in this line Words:  Include a word count here E-mail: your.name@yourprovider.com URL:    www.name-of-your-website-here.com Date:   Optional Conditions of use: This article may be freely published as long as (1) the article is not altered in any way, (2) the author information at the end of the article remains intact. If you use it, please notify your.name@yourprovider.com ............................................................ ------------------------------------------------------------ 3. Keep your title and by-line short and sweet ------------------------------------------------------------ Right after the header box, use two lines to type the title of your article and your by-line. Limit your title to one 60-character line. Line 1: Type the Title of your Article Here Line 2: by Your Name Don't include the following in or below the title or byline. - Copyright information - Website URLs - Job titles or qualifications (Owner of..., etc.) These three items of information don't belong in your title or byline. There are other places in your article where you can legitimately include information about copyright, your personal background, your products, and your websites. ------------------------------------------------------------ 4. Write real content ------------------------------------------------------------ Readers read articles to find solutions to their problems or improve their performance in some way. Make your content helpful. As we saw further up, ninety percent of articles an editor skims are off topic, but that doesn't mean the remaining on topic ten percent will be accepted. Of the articles that ARE relevant to readers' needs, more than half are sure to be candy floss--sugar sweet and puffed up with hot air. The articles may contain a lot of words, but often little to no useful information. Candy floss content raises awareness and interest in a topic without offering facts or solutions. Candy floss states THAT something is good, vital, important, advisable, but not how to go about getting a tangible result, achieving a positive outcome, or taking a practical step toward success. Good content goes further than the THAT and WHAT of a topic, it gives the reader some kind of HOW-TO-go-about-it as well. Tell your reader how to solve a problem, or what to do to gain a practical advantage. That's the reason readers read articles, and why editors choose them for publication. ------------------------------------------------------------ 5. Keep advertising out of the body of your article ------------------------------------------------------------ An article is not a testimonial. An article is not a sales pitch. An article is not a advert for your product/service. Yes, you may be writing free articles to gain recognition for your product or website. Even so, there's a legitimate place for your ads at the end of your article. The content in the body of your article should serve your readers' needs. It needs to: - explain an issue, - solve a problem, - improve their lives, - teach them a new skill, - add to their knowledge, or - entertain them. Don't describe the product features of "Instant Graphics Maker (tm)," tell your readers about the wonderful results they'll achieve if they use the right graphics program. Everybody wants to be right, right? Walk through a brief how-to. Describe outcomes, point to examples, then use your resource box to let them know that you sell "Instant Graphics Maker (tm)," and include a link to your website. ------------------------------------------------------------ 6. Keep your structure simple ------------------------------------------------------------ Readers read e-zines to find useful information quickly. They don't read attentively at first, instead, they skim an article to see if it contains anything of use to them. Only when they've decided that they need what you've written will they settle down to actually read. Help your readers find the facts fast. Make your title reflect the article content. - How to bake a coffee cake - Writing Query Letters - Ten Tips for Article Writers Use topic sentences at the beginning of your paragraphs. A topic sentence is a clear statement of what will follow in the paragraph. If your article is well structured, reading down the topic sentences will tell the reader the basic facts of your article. The rest of the paragraph material will contain deeper explanations. ------------------------------------------------------------ 6. Use language an average reader will understand. ------------------------------------------------------------ The Web is a global medium. that means you can't assume your reader speaks English as a native language. Web usability experts recommend you use the vocabulary of an average US 8th grader, and avoid jargon, slang, and local idiom. - Use short sentences of 10-20 words. - Write paragraphs of 2-5 sentences. - Use short, simple words. - Prefer words of 2-3 syllables. - Prefer Anglo-Saxon words. If you know for sure that you're writing for specialists and academic readers, you can disregard this point and write at a suitable level for your readers. ------------------------------------------------------------ 7. Add your copyright at the end of your article. ------------------------------------------------------------ - Copyright Your Name - Copyright 2002 Your Name - © Your Name - © 2002 Your Name ------------------------------------------------------------ 8. Include a footer box ------------------------------------------------------------ Further up I said there was a legitimate place for personal information, qualifications, and advertising. This is it. The footer box--also known as your resource box or author box--should provide your reader with interesting and relevant information about you, your skills, and your product at a glance. Note that you won't usually be allowed to include marketing information in the footer box of an article for which you are being paid. If you offer articles as free-to-use content in exchange for free advertising, your footer box is the place where you can legitimately do your marketing. The length of your footer box should be in proportion to the length of your article. Remember that free-to-use articles are supposed benefit both author and editor: you want your benefit--the free advertising--and the website or e-zine owner wants his benefit--the free content. Both parties need to feel that they are getting a good deal. Here are examples of what your footer box could look like. a) Article of up to 500 words Use a three-liner like this if you've written an article of 500 words or less. ............................................................ Your Name is a business writer and marketing consultant who specializes in web and sales copy. http://www.write2thepointcom.com ............................................................ b) Article of 500-1.500 words. A six-liner like this is appropriate for articles between 500-1.500 words. ............................................................ Your Name is the owner of ImaWriter Desktop Publishing, at http://www.name-of-your-website-here.com, offering a variety of low-cost and "you'll-owe-me-one" services to those long on vision but short on funds. E-mail:  your.name@yourprovider.com Website: www.name-of-your-website-here.com ............................................................ c) Article of 1.500-3.000 words. You can say a little more in your resource box if you've written an article of 1.500-3.000 words. ............................................................ Your Name has ten years experience in Corporate Marketing; Brand and Product Marketing; Field Marketing and Sales; and Management. Through her newsletter, site, and marketing services she helps businesses integrate traditional and Internet marketing strategies, For a step-by-step approach to developing a Web site marketing plan, read Your Name's book "Title of the book here" at: http://www.name-of-your-website-here.com ............................................................ d) Article of more than 3.000 words. For articles of more then 3.000 words, you can use up to ten lines plus a line for your (one) e-mail address and a line for your (one) URL. ------------------------------------------------------------ 9.  Proofread your article ------------------------------------------------------------ Skilled editors expect to have to correct one or two little typos or spelling errors in your copy. We're all human. We all miss something somewhere along the line. The focus words here are 'one or two.' Editors are busy people. They don't have time to proofread and correct your articles for you. You may also have added something to your conditions of use that prohibits changes being made. Experienced online editors are familiar with differences in spelling and syntax in the main varieties of English and will recognise them as such. But if your article contains too many mistakes, they may cast doubt on the validity of your content, too. Be professional. Check your copy before you send it out. ------------------------------------------------------------ 10. Send a 'good' e-mail ------------------------------------------------------------ We looked at settings in point one. Apply the same settings to your e-mail program when you send out your articles. - Turn off HTML and use the plain text (ASCII text) setting.     This will automatically switch off the styles, notepaper,     and colored text options, use a non-proportional font,     usually Courier or Courier New. - Copy and paste your article into the BODY of your e-mail.     Don't send attachments unless you've been invited to do     so. Tip: E-mail receipts and visiting cards are     attachments, too. Turn them off when you submit articles.     Editors tend to delete e-mails that contain non-invited     attachments UNREAD. - Choose a good, clear subject line. Let your subject line     tell the editor what the article is about even before he     opens the e-mail. - When you send out your articles, make it clear that your     e-mail contains an article submission and what kind of     article it is.     Subject: Article: Ten Writing Tips     Subject: Recipe: Chewy Coffee Cookies     Subject: Recipe Article: Candied Melon Cake     Subject: Article Submission: Grooming your Puppy That's it! Follow these steps and you'll stand yourself in good stead with most online editors. That, of course, will gain you a good reputation and increase your chances of being published. © 2002 Susan J. Letham Susan J. Letham is a British writer, multimedia author, and Creative Writing lecturer. Visit Inspired2Write and sign up for quality writing classes and competent 1-on-1 coaching. URL: http://www.Inspired2Write.com E-mail: susan.letham@inspired2Write.com Subscribe to Inspired2Write Newsletter (published monthly) mailto:Inspired2Write_Newsletter-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

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