Writing how-to articles
Why should I think about writing how-to articles?
Millions of people spend hours of their day on the web. They want to know various things, from how to contact their favorite celebrity to how to build a fence in their backyard. The competition for the attention of these people on the internet is immense and fierce. There are literally thousands of websites devoted to almost any subject you can think of. But in looking up these websites, an interesting thing happens. You see that many of them are not of a very high quality. Many of them just keep repeating the same information over and over. If you want to build something in your home, you want concrete, simple, readable details, and not information that points you vaguely in one direction or another. Writing how-to articles can be a source of supplemental income, if you're good enough. A little time spent on the web can show you what is good and what is bad when it comes to writing how-to articles.
How should I get started in writing how-to articles?
Find out what people are looking up most often. There are various websites that show what people are searching on the most. You can craft your articles to meet what is most popular at the time. You can also stick with the tried-and-true, that is, subjects like home repair, arts and crafts, plumbing, yard work, painting, and so forth. Lastly, you can go for subjects that you yourself are interested in. This will give you the advantage of having a little passion and knowledge before you begin. You can always tell when you're reading an article by a writer who's truly interested in the subject of the article, as opposed to one who's merely doing a job. How-to articles that read as if they've been written by enthusiasts are rare.
I've chosen a subject to write on; now what?
Once you know what you want to write about, you start doing the research. You want to spend time really reading about your subject, on the internet and in libraries, in newspapers and books. You should write a general outline as you research, and keep track of the points you want to make and the things you want to bring up. This will help you immensely later on when you sit down to write the actual how-to articles. Research is sort of like building a framework, and the article is like fleshing it in. In your how-to articles, you want to be as detailed and as clear as possible. Repetition helps; saying the same thing in various ways. Bullet lists, numbered lists - these are also immensely helpful when it comes to reading how-to articles. You want a clean layout and a clear organization scheme. Start with a general overview, and then get more and more specific as you go.
Is writing a long article different than writing a short one?
In writing a long how-to article, you'll want to organize it differently than you would a short one. You'll want to keep the reader's interest, and this can be done by telling stories, using interesting illustrations to make your point. A short history of the subject of your how-to article may be appropriate. Or, you could decide to do a long and short how-to article at the same time. That is, you could present a brief overview of all of the topics you're going to cover, giving important details about each. That way, a person who didn't have much time on their hands could get the gist of the article without having to go through the whole thing. After your overview, you would expand on the points already made, presenting readable and pertinent information on the subject of your how-to article.
