Quality and Substance

Quality work gets you ahead in life, regardless of your occupation. It amazes me how many writers seem to believe this does not apply to them! Writing, like all things requires your best effort. You may not be perfect today, or tomorrow, but the more you work at it, the better you will be. Striving to improve on these things everyday will eventually get you where you want to be as a writer.

Compare your work to the work of someone who writes articles that you enjoy reading. How do you compare? Is the language you use, the phrases you choose, the grammar, the readability as good as this person's? If not, then...you need to work on that, don't you?

How about the substance of your writing. Is your subject matter interesting? Do the things you have to say about that subject bring value to your readers? Would you read about this subject if someone else wrote about it? Does it have a valid message, or is it just daily ramblings? Will it stand the test of time as useful information?

A few things that might help in both of these endeavors are:

1. Read your own work before publishing or submitting to any website or other platform. If it does not "flow" as you read it yourself, then it will not be readable to others.

2. Proofread your work carefully and meticulously. Even if you notice errors after publication, go back and fix them. That is why there is an "edit" and "update" button.

3. Have a friend read your work to you, or read it aloud yourself to another. Sometimes "hearing" what we have written makes a huge difference.

4. Cite sources when possible. This will give your work a much more authoritative feel, and instill in your readers a trust in your knowledge that will keep them coming to you for information. If your source is your own personal experience, state that, and tell exactly what that experience is.

5. Try to write "evergreen" articles that will always contain valid information. If you cannot do this, perhaps because you enjoy "trendy" subject matter or current events, then at least try to update your information when trends change, or new events and information are brought to light.

These are just a few of the things you can do to improve your writing today, tomorrow, and always. There is much more to come, so do stay with me.

Based on my personal experiences as a writer, editor, and administrator.