Tips For Writing a Blog Worth Reading

Blogs can be a powerful tool both in business and personally. You don’t have to be the strongest writer or most eloquent expert on the subject at hand, because blogs are a learning process.  We write until we exhaust a topic and perhaps delve into new points, looking for feedback along the way.

Perhaps you never studied writing and you have never read a book from cover to cover since your school days; that does not mean you’re bound to struggle with writing. In fact, studies have shown that reading, albeit a book, article, or glimpsing at a blog can improve a writer’s style ever so slightly. However, after studying writing, there are a few techniques and stylistic choices that can improve your writing on and offline.

Show, Don’t Tell

There’s a golden rule that every writer has been told since they first put pen to page (or, more appropriately, fingertips to keys): “show, don’t tell.” Many writers are plagued by this simple phrase because it can often be difficult to grasp the difference between “showing” and “telling”.

Telling means that you are simply writing in a matter-of-fact style (i.e. The ball is red; My business has a large sales and customer service department; We make and develop websites). All of these examples are fine grammatically and they accomplish just what a sentence should – to inform the reader. However, notice the weak nature of these sentences. They lie flat on the page and leave the reader feeling nothing more than the movement of their eyes from left to right.

“Showing” is the ability to grasp and maintain the reader’s attention by giving apt details. A simple way to do this is to think about the subject at hand with all of your senses (i.e. The red rubber ball had a fine, protruding zigzag groove; WEBii’s staff includes a variety of experienced, helpful, and concerned individuals who take pride in their work; Our company develops contemporary, electrifying websites that will place your business at the forefront of the Internet). It’s adjustments like these that will change your sentences into statements, into something you can be proud of and the reader will have enjoyed reading.

Brevity

While “show don’t tell” is the golden rule for any strong piece of writing, brevity is still pivotal to any piece. Blogs, especially, need to be brief (more brief than a fictional story or a book). Some people spend all day sitting at a computer reading whatever’s in front of them for work or pleasure. This can cause bad posture and waning vision. This is the point where proofreading becomes a key component of writing. If you have a difficult time getting to the end of your own piece, then go back and make the necessary corrections. That said, even if you are passionate about your business or cause, you should never make the experience of reading your blog the equivalent of “pulling teeth.” Get to the point, expand with enough detail to either start a discussion or answer a question, and conclude.