Most people hate even the thought of having to write papers or articles.



They feel like it is way too much work trying to first think of what to write about, then

try and actually write about it. Many people think that no one is going to read it

anyway so all the time they spent was trying to write was for nothing.

The sad truth is: to many people, reading articles is just as difficult. Many articles that

are published these days are so incredibly boring and hard to read that you wonder

if the person even has the right side of their brain. (The creative side) But isn't the point of

articles to be read?

Articles are supposed to provide interesting and useful information for others

to read. But if watching water boil is more interesting than reading your articles, then no

one will ever read the articles you have written, so your time and effort go completely to

waste.

Now, articles should be written, because people can gain very useful information

from articles written from other peoples unique perspectives. So someone has to

write the articles, and they need to make them interesting so that people will

actually have the desire to finish reading the entire thing, without it being a

burden. The truth is, writing an interesting article doesn't have to be all that

difficult or strenuous.

There are certain components your article must have in order to capture and keep

the readers attention and if you know what these key components are, then you

will have no problem writing an article that will keep people interested the

whole way through. The other thing you need to remember is to write about

something you know about.

Don't try to write on nuclear physics if you are a janitor. You won't be able

to write an interesting, or accurate,article. If you know about the subject

that you are writing about, then you will have no problem writing an article.

In order to make sure that your articles are read and enjoyed, I will now share

with you 6 tips that will get your articles read and enjoyed.

1. Provide an Attention-Grabbing Title or Header.

If your title is garbage, no one is even going to start reading your article.

You need to entice your reader to read more by peaking their curiosity and by

using emotional triggers.

Take my title for instance: It starts with "Article

Marketing for Dummies", this peaks the readers curiosity. Then I have "6 Tips"

this is an emotional trigger that gets you interested and you want to know

those 6 tips now. So my title is designed to entice the reader to actually go

and read my article. (and it obviously worked because you are reading my article

now).

You can also use words like "Powerful", "Secret", "Discover", "Guaranteed",

etc. These words are huge emotional triggers that get people to read your article.

2. Use Short Paragraphs

When people see one big long blob of text the words just seem to get jumbled in

their minds. If this happens they will most likely find it confusing and too much

work to read the text. The reader will disregard the text and move on to other,

more readable articles.

Take this article as an example: My paragraphs are short, there are no long sections

of text. I try to keep every paragraph only a few lines long. This way it is much

easier on the eyes and it much easier to follow, meaning readers are more likely to

read the whole thing. (and you're still reading aren't you?)

3. Use Numbers or Bullet Points

Using numbers or bullet points points out the important parts the reader needs to

digest. Using numbers or bullet points also help the reader to remember the most

important parts of the article. If you provide a certain number of tips then just

number them. Then the reader can find the key points that you most likely hinted at

in your title if you did it right. This also lets the reader know that the article

is related to the title and they will continue to read.

I also have used this technique in this article. As you can see I have the 6 tips

numbered so you can find them easily. Since many people scan through the article

quickly before reading the whole thing, they can see that the key points and things

they need to remember are to: Provide Attention-Grabbing Title or Header,

Use Short Paragraphs, Use Numbers or Bullet Points, Use Sub-headings to

Sub-Divide your Paragraphs in the page, Keep Them Interested From Start to Finish,

Utilize Stats and figures. Now if the reader wants to know how to do these things,

they will read the rest of the article.

4. Use Sub-Headings to Sub-Divide Your Paragraphs

Using sub-headings lets your reader know where you are going with your article. They

make the transition from one paragraph to the next smooth and easy. You will most

likely not lose your readers attention because they know where your article is headed

and since you wrote about something that people actually want to read (right?) they

will continue to read your article.

I have not used sub-headings in this particular article, but if you examine my article

on search engine optimization then you will notice that there I used sub-headings in that

article.

5. Keep them Interested from Start to Finish

Right from the beginning get the reader interested. Give them a little bit of information

to get them interested, but don't reveal it all, force them to want to read the rest. Use

descriptions and metaphors to make your points and help your reader to imagine what you

are talking about. Use real life experiences if possible. This lets the reader know that

there actually was a human writing the article and they will remain interested throughout

the entire article.

I have used my article as an example for these different tips, giving you a real life example

of what I am talking about. This helps you to see what I am talking about. I also have

used descriptions such as "more boring than watching water boil". These keep you interested and

add a little bit of personality to the article.

6. Utilize Stats and Figures

By inputing stats from surveys and using different figures makes you sound authoritative.

Do not make it incredibly formal, and make sure that the stats and figures fit right in

so article just continues to flow.

I am sorry to say that currently I do not have an article that I have written as a good example

of this, but I will be releasing one shortly entitled "Why 99% of Affiliates Fail", so look out

for that one.

If you utilize these 6 secrets to getting your articles read in your article writing, then you

will guaranteed keep your reader interested in your article so that they will read the entire

article, which should be your goal. Generally at the end you will want them to do

something related to what you discussed in your article, so if they appreciated your article they

are much more likely to do whatever you want them to do.

So what do I want you to do? I want you to go write some articles! Go provide some great content

for other people to read! Share your knowledge! You learned how to write an exciting article, now

go and use that information, otherwise you just wasted your time!

Shawn Horwood