Let's Talk about Writing Style

Writing Well for the Web

Here are a few pointers for achieving a comfortable, easy-to-read writing style:

• Be Yourself. Write Conversationally. It's the most natural way to write -- try writing the same way you speak to a friend. You'll end up being more concise, clearer, and more engaging. Use You instead of I or We or They.

• Write Short, Tight Paragraphs. OK, so you wrote naturally. Great. Now go back and edit your work so it says what you want using the fewest words possible (i.e. without changing the original meaning). It's not as easy as it sounds, but it's a good technique to use when publishing on the web.

• Chunk the Information Into Bite-sized Bits. This one's really important when writing for the web. People don't read -- they skim. Nobody likes to scroll through a long narrative looking for the "good stuff."

  Take a look at what you just wrote. Draw a line between each unique "thought." Write a headline for each thought (even if the thought is just one paragraph).

  Better yet, avoid narrative paragraphs whenever possible. Look at what you wrote again -- are you listing or comparing information? Try using a bulleted list or a table instead. It's a lot easier on the eye.