WRITING BASICS

If you can use the basic journalism tennants:

What
How
Why
Where
When

then you just have to write around 100 words for each bit.

The 30 Day Challenger that posted the above tip to the 30DC forum also suggested that Google Reader is AMAZING for keeping up to date with news items and new articles.

MORE WRITING TIPS - from another generous 30DCer

See what you think:

* Think of three things you want to tell someone about your topic. They might be three things about an article for a blog post, or three things to look for when you want to buy XXX, three nifty benefits to getting involved with YYY. I hope you get the idea.

* Write an introduction paragraph. Mention your topic, and list the three things. “I’ve recently gotten involved in the XXX business, and found that a lot of people are promoting things that are not what you want. I’ve found that when you’re into this, you need to look for A, B, and C.” Pad it out to about 100 words.

* Write a paragraph about Thing A. Explain it, tell about the benefits. Give it another 100 words.

* Write a paragraph for Thing B and another paragraph for Thing C. So you have four paragraphs so far.

* Write one last paragraph to wrap things up. Mention your list again, and stress the importance of knowing what you’ve told them.

Something you run into a lot in the talk about article writing is the formula of “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, Tell it to them, and then tell them what you’ve just told them.” And since the length of article most people want is 350-500 words, this formula breaks it into easy-to-reach parts.

IF ALL ELSE FAILS - TEMPLATE - from another generous 30DCer

I’ve prepared a template for anyone who wants to write a do-it-yourself (DIY) article. Please feel free to use this template, amend it and make it your own. I hope it helps, and if it does I will try to find the time to write a few more templates.

A few notes on the template:

1) where it says “keyword phrase” you usually want to use your exact keyword phrase. Of course, sometimes it won’t fit properly into the wording of the sentence so you may have to modify it so that it sounds right. As long as you have your exact keyword phrase in the article title, first sentence and final sentence, you’ll be in accordance with the 30DC method.

2) I’ve given four potential article titles. Obviously you choose only one of them.

3) This template has 330 words as is. Once you fill in the blanks you should have a 400 - 600 word article.

FILL-IN-THE BLANK TEMPLATE FOR DIY ARTICLE

Article title: Five Tips for _______ (keyword phrase) Success
Article title: Getting Started in _________ (keyword phrase)
Article title: Time to __________ (keyword phrase)?
Article title: Save Money by ________ (keyword phrase).

If you’re __________ (ready, keen, determined) to _________ (keyword phrase e.g. make your own sausages), there are some important things you need to know before you begin. Just follow these five tips for __________ (e.g. (keyword phrase success; getting started in keyword phrase; having fun with keyword phrase; saving money with keyword phrase).

1. A important factor when you start to ___________ (keyword phrase) is making sure that you __________ (tip #1). The reason why this is important is because __________. If you don’t ____________ (restate tip), then you run the risk of _________ (what might go wrong).

2. Another important consideration for _________ (keyword phrase) is where you __________ (tip #2, e.g. buy your plans, get your materials, set up your workspace). It’s critical that you ____________ (the recommended way to do it, e.g. buy from a reputable supplier; have good ventilation) because ____________ (why it’s important). If you make sure that you _________ (the right way to do it), then you’ll be fine.

3. You don’t have to ___________ (a common misconception that people might have about this activity) in order to _________ (keyword phrase). All you need to do is _________, and make sure that you ___________.

4. Instead of complicating ___________ (keyword phrase) efforts by __________ and _________ (expensive or hard ways to do it e.g. buying a commercial oven; buying expensive business cards), try it this way: ____________ and then _________ (the alternate way e.g. use your home oven; get free cards from Vistaprint). In fact, if you ____________, then you will find that _________.

5. Have you considered ___________ (a novel idea, e.g. setting up a wholesale account at a local supplier; sharing expenses with a neighbour)? It’s not as difficult as you might think. What you need to do is ____________.

So if you really want to __________ (keyword phrase), follow these tips to __________ (a benefit e.g. save money on; make money with; enjoy your; please your family with your) __________ (keyword phrase).