What a question. There’s a glut of books written on the subject, and a wealth of courses designed around it. So I’m not going to go into the ins and outs of every grammatical rule and stylistic structure.
All I’d like to get across is that ‘good’ writing is not subjective. There are nuances, subtleties, and darn obvious techniques to good writing.
I’m just going to give a few pointers on what good writing looks like for articles and blogs, which make up a large proportion of my work. It gives you an idea of the standards I’m looking to hit in my work, so you can decide if I’m the right writer for you.
Here goes…
Easy to read
First, and most glaringly obvious, it should be easy to read.
But that’s so obvious, why bother even saying it?
Well, everyone knows this in theory. But sometimes it’s difficult to carry out in practice.
We’re often too close to our own subject matter – what makes sense when we write it, can sometimes seem a little opaque to someone reading it cold. It’s easy to slip into jargon. Or forget to explain a logical step from one idea to the next. Or sometimes, there’s just a clearer way of explaining a point and you hadn’t thought to write it that way.
Either way, it can take some time and thought to craft a blog or an article that is genuinely easy to read.
A few pointers though to give an objective standard to it. ‘Easy-to-read’ means:
- Short sentences (no more than 20 words).
- One idea per sentence.
- No more than four lines per paragraph.
- Everyday words
- Thorough explanations of novel ideas, acronyms, and industry-specific language
Fun to read
If we’ve ticked off ‘easy’, then the upper echelons of good writing require a bit of fun.
Now don’t recoil in horror at the thought of putting ‘fun’ into thought leadership, technical articles or blogs. It doesn’t need puns, jokes, and witty portmanteaus. But if you’ve got those in your armoury, then by all means use them!
It just needs to be not boring.
How do we do that?
Use some surprising language. Try a simile. Break the fourth wall and have a chat with your reader mid sentence. Ask a question. Pepper it with a little creativity and personality.
Those things help the reader glide down the page. It should feel like a light conversation with a friend. Not a dense lecture in bio-mechanical engineering.
Explain more than you think
Our reading brains are different to our writing brains.
When you’re writing, you’re doing some deep thinking. You’re engaged in every word, and every idea. You’re critiquing your logic, and your phraseology as you go along. You’re painstakingly crafting a masterpiece.
When you’re reading, you’re in a rush. You’re gobbling up the information as quickly as possible.
Readers don’t have time to stop and think about each sentence, the way you do when you’re writing it. So help them out a little. Explain more than you think you need to. Use phrases like “that means…” and “in other words…”
If it’s an important point, say it a couple of different ways. It doesn’t bore your reader. It helps them understand the information more quickly, which is exactly what they want to do.
Make it scannable
Content writing 101. Make it scannable.
If you’re anything like me, you look at a piece of content and quickly scan through the whole thing to get the gist. If it looks good, I’ll read it in full. If it seems dull or irrelevant, I move on.
So:
- Use informative subheadings
- Put some text in bold
- Use a few bullet points
- Throw in some of that quirky language we discussed earlier
- Format it with standalone sentences, and short paragraphs.
Be ruthlessly logical
Make a point, explain it, and then move onto the next point.
Too often, writers try to conflate ideas. Or they rush the explanation and come back to it in a roundabout way later.
That’s why common copywriting structures like P-A-S are so successful. They articulate the Pain point, Agitate it with some further explanation, and then explain the Solution. Our brains enjoy this structure. It makes sense to us.
Your ideas need to flow logically from one to the next. If you’re writing in a rush, it’s easy to skip a logical step. But the best writing is ruthlessly logical in every sentence, every paragraph, and every idea.
Have a point! A clear, useful point.
Your article must have an overarching point.
Pick a question to answer. That’s usually a good start for a title. Then logically weave your way to the answer. But you must get to an answer. You can’t leave your reader with the question “so what?” or “why should I care?”
Making sure you answer those questions will give your article an angle. It’s a thread that runs through the article. It keeps a reader’s attention, and brings them to a conclusion. That’s a satisfying read, and builds your reader’s trust.
Don’t start writing until you know what question you want to answer, or what point you want to make.
Make it Google friendly
Yes, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is important. But being Google-friendly is now (thankfully) just as much about good writing as it is about keywords.
Before you start writing, think about what somebody is going to type into Google to find your article. Are they asking a question? Make it the heading of your article. (And of course, answer the question in the article).
The key thing is to have a headline that speaks to the searcher intent. Something like “What happens at an Extradition hearing?” or “What happens when your T&Cs conflict with a supplier’s?” Those are things someone might type into Google. Static headlines like “Extradition hearings” or “Terms and Conditions” are too vague to get traction.
If you’ve heard of Google’s latest algorithm, you’ll know about E-E-A-T, which stands for Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness. Following these guidelines will helpfully also lead you to good writing. I’ll do another blog about EEAT, because it’s quite a meaty subject and deserves a little more attention.
Want to get your hands on some ‘good’ writing?
If that sounds like a style of writing that works for you, please get in touch. I always strive for the highest standards, and I’m open to feedback.
It’s often a bit of an iterative process until we find the style and voice that works for you. But if you’re happy with that definition of ‘good’ writing, I’d love to write thought leadership, articles, or blogs for your business. Email me at kath@clariorcopy.com.