Page 194 - New Grammar with a Smile 6

Writing

12 an Article

An article is a piece of writing that is written for a large but known audience. The
main motive for writing an article is that it should be published in either newspapers,
magazines or journals so as to make some difference to the people reading it and the
world beyond.

It may be the topics of interest of the writer or it may be related to some current issues.
The topic can be serious or otherwise. The same goes for its tone and language.

For writing an article, here are some points you should keep in mind:

• The reader is identified.
An article is like a conversation with the reader. Your article must engage the
target reader right from the start.
• It has to get attention.

Your article must have a catchy title. The title must hold the interest of the
readers beyond the first few seconds.
• It must have a byline. The byline on a newspaper or magazine article gives the
name of the writer.

• It has to be interesting.
For an article to work, it has to be engaging enough to read all the way through.
Add humour, real life examples, or quotes.
• It has to be easy to read.
Your language is not supposed to be too formal. It should not be like an essay.

Use subheadings to break up the text and make clear paragraphs. Write in a semi-
informal, conversational style. Organise your ideas before you begin writing.
The planning stage is vital for this. Spend 5-10 minutes brainstorming ideas and
choose the best three or four. Think what your subheadings might be and then
write a short introduction that lets the reader know what to expect.
Keep in mind that you want the reader to continue reading, so don’t tell them
exactly what they will read. This is not an essay! In an essay you usually restate
the question, explain how you will answer it and maybe say why it’s important. In
an article, that will kill the reader’s interest.

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