Nearly everyone that has written or is going to write an article will come face to face with a problem. The problem is the topic for the article. Sometimes a writer will just have been hit with a great topic and other times they will have to sit down and think of a topic for a great article.

There is still a problem though, it is writing the article. There are so many questions a writer might ask themselves, how long should it be? Should I include pictures? How should I present it? These are just some of the questions I ask myself when I am writing articles.

The Topic

Now there are many ways that a writer might think of a topic. They might go for a walk or watch T.V. but you have to find the right way for you. Personally I will either bounce on my trampoline or sit in my garden. When I am in either of these places it is quiet and I have all of the space I need (Well, most of time).

The key to finding a place where you can let your mind wander is to think of the things or places you like to most. Now I am not saying that you will have to go overseas or drive somewhere to get your ideas, I just mean somewhere peaceful close to you home.

To find this place near or in your home you have to just wander around looking for any possible places that you like. Once you have found your place just sit there and open your mind to all of the possible topics you can think of, most of the time it won't take that long. For this article I thought of possible topics for five minutes.

The Title

Great! Now that you have your topic you need to think of a gripping title that suits your article, most of the time your title will come to you with the topic. If it doesn't then don't stress out or have a mental break down just think of your topic and what you are going to write in your article and it should just come to you.

It might help if you have a notepad or a piece of paper and a pen with you when you are trying to think of a title. All you have to do is write down all of the possible titles that you can think of for your topic and pick the one that is most likely going to get the most viewers. Go to the help section on the Triond website and click on the publication link and look at the title section if you are having problems.

Remember that your title should be unique to your article and should draw attention when people read it.

The Description

Now the description is a sentence or two that briefly describes what your article is about. It should be short and sharp. It usually helps if you just think in your head what your topic is about. If you write descriptions this way just write down every sentence that you think of and pick the best out of them.

The Article

The article of your topic should be a least one and a half pages long without pictures. Now this doesn't mean use big sized font as you want quality not quantity. This way there is more for viewers to read and then you are more likely to get a comment or a like. Always divide you article up into paragraphs this way it is easier for viewers to read it.

If want you can include sub-headings which are headings before you change what you are writing about, most of the time they should be two words. If you are still wondering what sub-headings are just look at this article and look at the words in bold. The one for this section is The Article. Sub-headings should be related to the section that they come before.

Try to use interesting language as it will bring viewers back for more. Look up the words homonym, synonym and antonym on Google and try to use them in your article. I have only recently been introduced to these by my English teacher and have been using them in most of my work.

Pictures

In online writing you will see that some writers use pictures in their articles and will be wondering why they are in the minority. You see, including pictures in your articles will engage viewers into your work and you will often find that you will go back to articles that include pictures than articles that don't. Write your article without pictures and then include them where they are necessary. Just make sure that the picture is relevant to your topic before you include it.

What Inspired Me

I am normally inspired by a writer by the name of Liane Schmidt. Her article called “How to be a Triond Superstar” inspired me to write this article. I would just like to thank Liane for inspiring me.

One of the best tip for writing for the web would be simplicity. There is a need for you to write in simple language your readers would understand. Filling your article with bombastic words may deter some people from finishing your article, especially if they don't understand what you're trying to say. Leave flowery expressions to artistic writing such as poetry and prose. Your readers will appreciate your simplicity and enjoy your article more.

Short Sentences and Paragraphs

Keep your sentences and paragraphs short and sweet. Each sentence has to be precise and to the point. On the web, long sentences and paragraphs will make your article page look cluttered and lengthy. No one will read it.

Keywords

A good set of keywords is important so that your articles will appear in search engines. This will send traffic to your article without much effort. You can use Google's Keyword Tool External to find suitable keywords for your article. Make sure you use them in your title and each of your paragraphs for better ranking in the search engines.

Attention-Grabbing Title

Your title will give a first impression to your readers. It should entice people to click your article and read it. Your title should evoke a sense of curiosity among the readers to want to know more. For instance, instead of having "Losing Weight" as your title, a better title would be "5 Great Tips on How to Lose 10 Pounds in a Week!" Such titles will inevitably attract more readers.

Content

Opening paragraphs needs to be engaging, giving your readers some ideas on what you will cover but at the same time not revealing too much to them. The body of the article should contain well-research content relevant to the topic. Finally the last paragraph should summarise all key points while the last sentence should capture the imagination of the reader and leave the reader thinking.

Length

Reading from computers can hurt the eyes due to the glare from the computers. Thus online readers have short attention spans when it comes to reading online articles. That is the reason why articles need to be short and simple. I would say that a reasonable length would be between 250 and 500 words. Although sometimes I write longer pieces if I have more to say.

Bullet Points or Numbering

In order to organise your material and make it easier for readers to scan your article, the use of bullet points or numbering is pertinent.

Format and Style

The format of your article very much depends on the type of writing material you are writing. For instance, an instructional article would differ in format and style from a review. It is also important that you write in a style which will suit the site and the type of reader they want to attract, and at the same time a writing style you are most comfortable with.

Bold

Bold key points and keywords. It helps your readers to capture the gist of your article.

Soul

Depending on the kind of articles you write, there may be a need to add feelings and emotions into your writing. The words you use in your writing should be "felt" by your readers. Putting your heart and soul to it will raise your article from an ordinary status to a great one.

Topic of Interest

Write about what interests you. Writing topics of your interest is more enjoyable, thus making it easier for your ideas to flow. You will be more inspired to write more.

Timeless

Make your article timeless. The longer articles are online, the better they can rank in the search engine. There is also the advantage of having regular traffic and pageviews for your article.

Photo

Use at least one photo in your article. Photos help keep your readers interested and a great way to promote your article with social bookmarking sites such as Digg.

Edit

When you have finished writing, make sure you edit and check for grammar and spelling mistakes. You also need to edit any awkward sentence structure, if needed.

Sleep on It!

After that, sleep on it and then reread your article the next day. There may be things you missed out and wanted to add, or other mistakes you would want to correct.

I hope these tips are useful to you as it is to me. I'm trying out some of these new tips myself when writing a new article, especially about the tip on the importance of establishing keywords. That's the most basic tip and yet, often missed out by established writers. Hopefully, with these tips, your articles will be a hit!

The reason I've become super interested in writing articles lately is after I produced an article called "7 reasons why you should talk to strangers". My best article so far.

My article got 16000+ views (tip: StumbleUpon) in 1 month. That seems ace to me. That's just less than $30 now. I know that's not a lot, but what about as time goes on and that article gets more popular and plus the benefits from me writing more articles like this one?

This sounds cheesy but I just love the feeling of tapping my fingers on the keyboard and producing something others can see comment and share their opinion on it.

I'm going to tell you a little bit about myself so hopefully you can relate and see where I'm coming from, writing articles and how to do it effectively. Don't know what to write about? I'll help you with that.

A Bit About Myself

I'm Chris, 19 at the moment and go to college (ICT, 4 years). My high school grades were crap, I was absent a lot, learnt a bit but nothing really important. I've learnt more from reading on the net and observation in the real world. I don't have a job and am looking to get one but for now I'm writing articles. I've written pretty crappy articles and some good articles. My English has improved over time and I think I'm pretty good at writing now.

So What?

My point is that you don't need to be told you're clever or smart by your friends, family, me or the authorities. My guess is that you probably are really smart in a certain area or areas of your life, it could be anything. Self belief and dedication is what you need. Thinking of doing something? Have an idea? You have to do it in the moment or you'll lose that inspiration and motivation to do it. Of course, excuses will crop up but it's how you deal with them and how you get over them. I know this and am no genius - I still make excuses from time to time.

What Should I Write About?

I personally think the best way to write an article is obviously writing about something you have a lot of experience with. You might even be unaware because you do these things with very little thought (subconsciously). Do you play games online? Write about it. Do you love writing? Write about that, kind of like how I'm doing. What kind of value can you offer to people? Writing is offering value in itself. Maybe you ski, sing or are a photographer. It could be a made up story, share your imagination.

What do you enjoy doing? Earn a bit of money on the side by writing about it.

How do I Produce Quality Articles?

Actually know what you're writing about, use good English spelling and grammar. If you're spelling and grammar is poor then you might want to work on that. I've always been a good speller. Quality articles come from writing a lot. Get through a couple of bad articles if you have to. I've read articles that I wrote a couple of years ago which I read again and realise I've improved.

Don't fall into the trap of thinking you have to write a lot either. The more you say the more people have to think, it's easier to get distracted or bored. Saying less makes your message more powerful. This doesn't just apply to writing either, it's very powerful in everyday face to face communication.

This doesn't mean you shouldn't write a lot. If you have a lot of good to say then say it but don't add things that aren't necessary. Also, don't repeat your points unless you're wording them in a different way to hammer home your message.

But I Don't Have the Time

Are you sure about that? Set a useful habit of writing an hour every day. If you can't do that, do it for two hours every week on a Sunday or something. Make time.

Good luck if you choose to write.

If you've read this please "thumbs up" and leave a quick review on StumbleUpon or Digg this. This will help spread value I want to offer.

Praise and criticism is welcome.

We all know that writing more articles for Triond gets you more money. But, have you ever thought if the article you wrote will give some value to people who are reading it.

I think that we should all focus on providing value to our readers. Considering the fact he (the reader) is spending time to read and get some benefit of our article should be great motivation.

After all, it's not about the money. It's about the value we're providing to people. The more value you provide, more trust you gain. More trust you gain, you have more people that want to read your articles.

A great question would be to ask yourself: How will they benefit from reading my article? How will their life be better? After reading my article, will they get something valuable from it? Something they can use and apply immediately or help them?

Think about it. There is a very powerful lesson in all this. By providing value, you provide a benefit for the reader and for the editors of Triond who, of course, want to have quality content on their sites.

So it's win-win situation. Now, before you write anything, just before you write, ask yourself: How will this provide value for my reader? Good luck!