An Article Writing Guide For Bloggers (Explained)

Writing an article can be intimidating, especially if you’re new to the game. The good news is that there are lots of ways to make your writing better. Even if you’ve been writing for years, it’s always a good idea to try out these tips and tricks!

Takeaways
1. Learn the essentials of article writing.
2. Discover tips and tricks for bloggers.
3. Improve your writing for online platforms.
4. Understand effective article structures.
5. Enhance your blog content for success.

Get The Dull Stuff Out Of The Way First

The first part of getting readers engaged is to get the dull stuff out of the way.

You can do this by answering questions like:

• What is it? (or Who is it for?)
• Why are you writing about it? (or Why should anyone care?)
• How does it work? (or What are some examples of how you use it?)

For example, when I wrote my article on how to test your website’s speed, I answered all those questions in the first section. This helps your reader understand what they’re going to learn and why they should stick around.

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Write In Shorter Paragraphs

When you write, use shorter sentences. Short sentences make it easier for readers to process what they’re reading. They also give your articles a conversational tone that makes readers feel like they’re talking directly with the writer.

If you have longer paragraphs (more than four or five sentences), break up the paragraphs with comma separators. A paragraph break is an empty line between two paragraphs on the same page of your article. 

This helps separate thoughts and create a visual separation between different parts of your article. You could also consider using a different font size or color to differentiate each thought in your post that way, readers can easily see where one idea ends and another begins!

Use An Active Voice More

When you’re writing an article, it can be tempting to use the passive voice. You may have learned in school that this form is more formal, but it’s not correct usage. 

This means that your writing can be confusing and hard to read if you don’t make sure to use the active voice whenever possible.

The active voice makes sentences clearer because we know who is doing something (the subject) and what they’re doing (the verb). If a sentence sounds complicated or ambiguous, chances are there’s a problem with how many things are being done and by whom. 

For example: “The dog was kicked by John.” The reader has no idea if John kicked himself for missing his car keys again or if someone else did it on purpose! In contrast: 

“John kicked the dog.” Now we know what happened without any confusion about who was responsible for causing pain to poor Fido!

When possible, try using active verbs instead of passive ones when describing actions taken by people or animals in your writing.

You’ll automatically sound more professional while also keeping readers engaged in what you’re saying rather than leaving them wondering whether dogs have legs capable of kicking themselves!

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Don’t Use A Lot Of Adverbs

You’ve probably been told that adverbs are bad and should be avoided. That’s true, but only sometimes. 

Because they end in “-ly,” adverbs are easy to spot and remove from your writing without changing their meaning or intent. However, sometimes an adverb is necessary (especially when you’re describing how things happen). 

For example, if you say: “He walked quickly down the hall,” you’re telling the reader he moved at a certain speed (quickly), but if you say: “He strode angrily down the hall,” it means he was moving quickly because he was angry about something else happening. 

This can be confusing for readers who aren’t familiar with this usage of “strode.” So what do we do? We use both words! The first example tells us how someone moved; the second lets us know why they were moving so fast.

Keep A List Of Words You Have To Look Up

If you come across a word you don’t understand, look it up! Use the dictionary or Google to find out what it means. If nothing else, this will give you a good idea of how to use that word in your writing.

If you’re looking for more ways to use a word in your writing (other than just as an adjective), it’s time to consult a thesaurus. Look up synonyms and related words to discover other ways this word can be used. 

The great thing about a thesaurus is that it will also tell you if two words mean essentially the same thing a great way to learn from context without having someone explain it all to you!

Keep An ‘edit Journal’

To make sure that you don’t miss anything, keep a separate document with all your edits. Keep it organized by topic or by date, but whatever you do, don’t mix them up! You’ll also want to keep this list categorized by editor and author. 

If you’re working with multiple editors and authors at once, you may want to keep track of which word count each person is working on so that later on when you’re writing your final draft in Word or Pages (or whatever tool you use), it’s easy for everyone to know who did what.

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Write Tight And Accurate Title Tags

Title tags are the most important part of your article, search engine optimization, and click-through rate. They’re also the most important part of your bounce rate. 

This is why writing tight and accurate title tags are one of the most important things you can do when writing an article.

The title tag has one job: to accurately describe what the reader will find on that page. It should be specific.

But relevant to as many readers as possible so that when someone searches for it on Google or Bing (or another search engine), they get a result that contains exactly what they were looking for and nothing else.

Don’t Always Start Your Articles With A Question

As a blogger, you will want to use questions as a way to engage your readers. Questions can be used as a way to start an article and they can also be used at the end of an article. In addition, questions can be used in between sections of blog posts or articles.

The key is that you need to make sure that the question is relevant and appropriate for the context of your blog post. 

It should not feel like it comes out of nowhere or doesn’t fit into what you are saying because then it just makes people think about things that aren’t relevant (at least not yet).

Use Lists Inside Your Articles

For example, you could write a list of the top 5 reasons why you love your mom. The reader will easily be able to understand what you are trying to say, and it’ll break up the text as well.

If you want to highlight important points, then use numbers in your list. Let’s say that this is number one: “You set me up on my first date.” Then let’s say that this is number two: “You helped me when I had bad grades.” Now we have a list with two items inside it!

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If You’re Writing A Long Article, Keep Your Sentences Shorter Than Average

That’s because longer sentences take readers longer to understand and process. When readers reach the end of a sentence, they need to process what they’ve just read before continuing with the next one. 

If there are too many complex words or long, winding sentences, this can be frustrating for readers and lead them to leave your content without reading further. You want them to keep going!

So if you’re writing an article that’s more than 1,000 words long (say it’s 2-3 pages), try keeping your average sentence length no longer than 20 words (ideally 18). 

If this seems impractical or overly restrictive at first glance (perhaps because many of us have been trained not only as academics but also as writers and journalists), consider how much easier it is for readers when we write shorter sentences: 

Our brains don’t have to work so hard trying to decode what we’ve written; our eyes aren’t bogged down by excessive punctuation marks; we can move through our ideas more quickly while still allowing ourselves room for elaboration when appropriate; 

And perhaps most significantly of all, it allows us time between ideas so that readers can take breaks from reading without feeling like they’re missing something important in the story being told!

Start With A Quote If It’s Something Inspirational, Or Relevant To The Topic You’re Writing About

Sometimes, it’s a great idea to include a quote at the beginning of your article. If you’re writing about something inspirational or motivational, you can start with a quote that is relevant to the topic. 

Quotes are also helpful for illustrating an important point in an article. For example, if you’re writing about how social media should be used for self-expression and not as an outlet for negativity.

Then quoting someone saying something along those lines would help make that point clear to readers.

Another thing quotes can do is give readers a sense of authority on their topics: if they feel like they know what they’re talking about based solely on what has been said before them (even if this isn’t true).

Then there’s more chance that your audience will trust whatever else comes next!

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Conclusion

Blogging is a great way to share your knowledge with the world, but if you’re going to be successful at it, you need to know how to write articles that people will want to read. 

The tips here should help make your writing more interesting and engaging while helping you reach your audience.

Further Reading

How to Start a Blog: A comprehensive guide on getting started with your own blog, covering everything from choosing a niche to promoting your content effectively.

How to Write a Blog Post with Examples: Learn the art of crafting engaging and informative blog posts, supported by real-life examples to inspire your writing.

How-To Writing Guide for Content Marketing: A helpful resource that dives into the essentials of content marketing, focusing on writing techniques that will captivate your audience.

FAQs

How can I optimize my blog for search engines?

Optimizing your blog for search engines involves several strategies such as conducting keyword research, creating high-quality and relevant content, optimizing meta tags, and building backlinks.

What are some effective ways to promote my blog posts?

Promote your blog posts by leveraging social media platforms, engaging with your audience, collaborating with influencers, participating in blogging communities, and utilizing email marketing.

How do I maintain consistency in my blogging schedule?

To maintain consistency, create an editorial calendar, plan content in advance, allocate specific time for writing, and prioritize quality over quantity.

What are the key elements of a well-written blog post?

A well-written blog post includes a compelling headline, engaging introduction, coherent structure, valuable content, visual elements, and a clear call-to-action.

How can I measure the success of my blog?

Track important metrics such as website traffic, engagement rates, conversion rates, time on page, and click-through rates to assess the success of your blog and make data-driven decisions for improvement.