undamentals of creative writing

These days, web writing is a thriving industry because we depend on the internet for everything. Somebody has to write all those web pages, all of that content, and the billions and billions of words that make up the information highway. That said, what sets your words apart from the rest? Why should people bother to read your online writing when they literally have millions of other options at their fingertips? The answer lies in the fundamentals of online writing. When you have these keys down, you will be able to create online content that stands out, gets noticed, and impacts your readers positively. It matters because online writing is a different beast from every other type of writing. You may borrow some techniques from other areas, like the fundamentals of creative writing, but, ultimately, this medium needs to speak to not just any type of consumer, but the online one. [bctt tweet=”Create online content that stands out, gets noticed, and impacts your readers positively. Learn the fundamentals of #onlinewriting” username=”ExpWriters”] Why the Online Reader Needs Tailored Writing Here’s what we know about the online reader: They’re bouncing around from webpage to webpage. According to data from Chartbeat, 55% of people spend 15 seconds or less reading a webpage. If your writing doesn’t intrigue your audience from the first few sentences, they won’t stay to read more. More often than not, they don’t read web writing closely. Research from Dejan Marketing found that only 1 in 5 people will read your content word-for-word. The rest skim and scan pages, looking for the major points. They do this for various reasons, but the top two include impatience to find the answers they need, and avoidance of text that looks too long. Online readers are often searching for answers to their questions and solutions to their problems. The research above proves this is true: 55% said the main reason they don’t read full content is they’re looking for quick answers, not a long read. These types of reading behaviors are fundamentally different from the habits of people who read physical books, for example. If your nose is in-between book pages, you don’t mind blocks of text, and you probably read every single word in front of you. Meanwhile, online readers take in content and information in a different way, so we have to tailor our online writing to make it as easy as possible for them to digest. [bctt tweet=”Online readers take in content and information in a different way. Here are the reasons why they need tailored #onlinewriting” username=”ExpWriters”] As long as you have the fundamentals down, it’s not hard to fit your words to the web. For writing in general, think of it as another tool in your toolbox – a way to grow your skillset and flex your writing muscles. Ready to learn the 5 fundamentals of online writing? Let’s go. The 5 Fundamentals of Writing Online Get to the Point (Use the Inverted Pyramid Style) A.A.F. – Always Avoid Fluff (Spell) Check Yourself Format for Scanners, Write for Readers Create Content That Matters (Map to Stages of Buyer Awareness) The Fundamentals of Writing Online: 5 Keys to Engage and Impact Online Readers 1. Get to the Point (Use the Inverted Pyramid Style) If we’ve learned anything thus far, it’s that most online readers want answers now. They want the cliff notes so they can skim or speed-read straight to the information that concerns them most. While some people DO still read content in full, they aren’t the majority. That said, we don’t want to alienate anyone from reading our online content. To appeal to the impatient skimmers, the in-depth readers, and everyone in-between, we can rely on the inverted pyramid style of writing. Amy Schade for the Nielsen Norman Group has another name for this technique: writing for comprehension. This means you begin your blog or article with the most important information right off the bat. There is no teasing, no dangling the carrot, and certainly no beating around the bush. This is a KEY fundamental of online writing. As your article continues, you order your points from “need to know” to “nice to know”. The least important information wraps up the end of the piece. Look at this example of a blog from the Nielsen Norman Group. It begins with the main points and tells you exactly what you’re in for with a mini summary. The points that immediately follow tell you important details (what a customer journey map is and why you might need one): The final points go into further detail – it’s stuff you don’t NEED to know to understand journey maps, but is NICE to know if you want more information. This writing technique originated with early journalists. The idea was to give readers the most important details of a story, first, so they could understand the main point without having to read further (unless they wanted more details). If your main point was unclear in your piece, this was called “burying the lede” – a major no-no. However, giving away the most important information at the beginning doesn’t mean you’re scot-free to do whatever you want after that. The rest of your blog or article should still contain good supporting information. That leads us to our next point. 2. A.A.F. – Always Avoid Fluff Using the inverted pyramid style of writing does NOT mean you front-load your blog or article with all the juicy bits, then slack off for the rest of the piece with filler. That’s why the second fundamental of online writing is A.A.F. (Always Avoid Fluff). What is fluff/filler? In writing, this is the use of repetitive wording, unnecessary details, meaningless phrases, or other diversions from the main topic that serve only to pad your word count. Here are a few examples of filler phrases in action: Concerning the matter of the test, she passed with flying colors. At this point in time, that’s not an option. Sally doesn’t … Read more