Five of the best writing tips

Most people are lazy readers. If you want to be read keep your writing simple and follow these rules.

Write right:

1. Think about your reader
Keep their image before you as you write.
What would interest them? Write to arouse their interest, or stir their imagination.
If you don’t understand the reader, the reader will never understand you.

2. Plan and outline
Write an outline, then a draft.
Put your main points in a logical order so your ideas flow from one point to the next.
Amplify your outline – put ‘flesh on the bone’ .
Pretend you are talking to your readers. So write as you would speak to them.

3. Write crisply
Use simple words and short sentences. Make your writing lively. Use strong positive words and active verbs. Share your emotions – be enthusiastic.
Write to express NOT to impress.

4. Lively pages
Make reading easy by leaving plenty of white spaces to break up your text. Use different types and plenty of headings.

5.Edit ruthlessly
Remove all unnecessary words and phrases, jargon and clichés. Make you meaning clear with no ambiguous statements. Explain unfamiliar terms and ideas without an explanation.
Chop and change and rearrange.
Read it aloud until your writing sounds right to your ear.
Check and recheck spelling, grammar and punctuation.

Geoffrey Moss

“The shorter your words and sentences, the easier they are to read and heed.”