I am a programmer, SEO and small time writer mostly confined to the web world. I will share with you some tips that I have learned from experts in my field and paint them with some personal experiences. If I manage to hold you till the end of the page that will be MISSION ACCOMPLISHED for me. So stay tuned.
A Catchy Headline
We must justify in the first line why the reader should read our seemingly endless content. For that we must have a headline strong enough to create interest in the paragraphs that follow. What works most of the time is a list (top 10 holy shits of 2009) or suspense ( the Holy Grail of Web Writing) or absurd claims (I know what you did last summer).
Show Your Passion
People will read till the end only if you can create a passion for the topic you are discussing. For that the reader needs to see your passion for the same topic. Why else do you think books of real adventurers sale more. Make the content you write appear as if you did it and not anything like - "I heard it somewhere else". Fell the adrenaline rush yourself and the same will show in your readers.
Short and Simple
An excellent internet article need not be a piece of literary achievement. What can get you a Nobel may not get you a dozen customers. Keep your language simple and sentences short. Our visitor must not strain his brain at any point of time to get the meaning of a phrase / metaphor / similie. The sentences shold not be so long that he gets losts among them.
It won't hurt if you break your paragraphs for more clarity. Any paragraph longer than 6 lines gives a visual impression of lot of content that may seem like a mountain to be scaled. So break the mountain into boulders.
Don't Lecture; Converse
Talk to your reader. Discuss the topic at hand. Make it personal between you and the reader. Seek opinions while you are expressing your own. You like it when I am talking with you, don't you? Whenever you can, express your emotions in text. (*looking at my nose tip*)
Finsh With Style
Most of the writers ( includes me as well) find it hard to end a write up. Mostly every write up starts up with an idea and you immediately visualize a beginning. You proceed further in your train of thoughts and get so passionate that you decide to put it to text. Excellent. But not many of us wait till they visualize the end to begin writing. The result - an abrupt end. The end should be some thing like - "I am Optimus Prime, and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars: We are here. We are waiting."
Whoa! You stayed till the end. Thank you. You rock.
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