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Want To Submit More Articles Faster?
Judy Cullins ©2002
Submitting articles to top websites and ezines two or more times a week can yield 15 or more subscribers to your own ezine each time. Read by thousands, even hundreds of thousands, your articles also bring people to your Web site to buy your products.
Knowing these benefits, you want to create and submit as many articles as you can. At times, you have the articles complete, but don't have anyone handy to edit them. While it's best to get at least two other edits from business associates, you can edit your articles yourself with a little help.
Use this checklist to edit your own work:
Start your introduction with a question or startling fact. You must hook your readers with something that reaches their emotions.
Make your introduction only a few sentences. Your readers want to get to the heart of your article fast. They want easy-to- read quick tips. Long stories can bring a yawn to your reader.
Make all of your sentences short. Since standard sentence length is 15-17 words, make most of your sentences under that number. Complex sentences and multiple phrases make the reading tougher. Make it easy for your readers to get the point fast.
Avoid dull, slow passive sentences. Start them with a subject, then follow with a verb to avoid passive construction. The coach marketed her business and books through submitting articles online is an active sentence. The coach's books were marketed online through submitting articles is passive. Drop linking verbs such as "is," "was," "seemed," or "had." Replace them with power, active verbs.
Instead of "She is beautiful," you could say "Her beauty compels you to stare at her."
Aim for compelling, clear copy. Write for the 8-10th grade reader. Always think "What's in it for them?"
Use specific nouns and names. General references don't engage your readers' emotions. Let them see the size, color, shape.
Rather than say, "Write your book fast to make lifelong income," say "Write and finish your book fast so you can take that long vacation to a Caribbean island such as Tobago." Money isn't a specific pull, but a vacation is.
Let go of most adverbs. Words like very, suddenly, and sparingly, tell instead of show. Use adverbs only at Christmas shows how often.
Let go of adjectives. Instead of a super-intelligent person, you can say a genius.
Appeal to the senses of sight, sound, and emotions. Telling is not a effective. Instead of "Buy this book today because it is so useful," say, "Would you like to double, even quadruple your Online income in three months?" Use a question like this on your Web site home page as a link. Where to? A benefit driven sales letter about your product!
Cut redundancies. Don't talk down to your reader with too much repetition. Be willing to part with your "precious" words. The first edit usually reduces the words by 1/4 to 1/3.
Don't use pompous words. Use the shortest, most well- known word. Instead of "utilize," try "use." The more syllables in a word, the harder to get the point fast.
Keep the subject and verb as close together as possible. Don't make your reader work to get the meaning.
Use the present or past tense of the verb rather than the –ing form. Instead of she is singing, say she sings or she sang.
To emphasize or dramatize, put your point at the end of a sentence, the end of a paragraph, or the end of a chapter. These positions hook the reader to keep going.
Cut clichés. Once, original metaphors, clichés age and become trite. Instead of "Birds of a Feather Flock Together," you can say, "Birds of a Feather Need to Fly Away From Each Other."
Keep your conclusions short. Sum up a few points and repeat a top benefit.
