Article Writing - The Elements of an Article

Now that you're committed to writing articles, writing at least one article a week, and not giving up too soon. The elements outlined here are required by each article directory to which you submit your articles once they are written.

I write my articles in Notepad following this "template" then copy and paste the elements into boxes for each element on the article directory's submission page.

Title

What title will you use for your article? Sometimes I come up with a "working title" to get me started but will change it or improve it slightly before submission.

While many writers use headings like "Ten Ways to Increase Internet Traffic," it is best to use your keyword(s) at the beginning of the title rather than the end. This title would then be changed to: "Increase Internet Traffic - Ten Methods You Can Use Today." This title places the keyword(s) "Increase Internet Traffic" at the beginning of the title while calling the reader to action - to start using these methods today.

Article summary

The article summary is generally 2 or 3 lines that tell the gist of the article you are submitting. This should include your keyword(s) along with a call to action or what the reader will find if he/she reads the article in its entirety. Readers who are looking for information or for articles to include on their own sites will read the title and the summary before choosing whether or not to read the entire article. The article summary should be short and to the point while compelling the reader to read the entire article and possibly include it on their own site, thus increasing the exposure of your article.

Keywords

The keywords to include here are the words that a web surfer would search for to find the information in your article. An article on increasing traffic might use the keywords "increase traffic," "work at home," "marketing tools," and other keywords that you use as your ten steps.

There is usually a limit on the number of keywords that you can include, so be sure to insert your most important keywords first.

The article

Now you add the body of your article. Again, check that your article does not exceed the maximum number of words or characters allowed by the directory. If you exceed the maximum number, your article may be automatically rejected without any notification.

Some directories allow html in the body while others do not. A great article on the basics of html will be posted in a day or two. Html is not difficult once you understand the basics. In article writing, the main html tags you will use will be to make text bold or italic, include numbered or bulleted lists, and to include web addresses in your posts. There will be little need to use anything beyond these basics, but their use will give your article a little more pizzazz and readability.

About the Author

Often this is called your signature or author bio. Whatever it is called, this part is where you tell about yourself and provide links to the places you want the reader to visit, whether it's your online business or your blog or some other site.

I suggest reading other articles to find out what other authors have included and decide how you want to represent yourself. Also, most directories provide guidelines that you must follow when including your web or email addresses. Some of them do not allow affiliate links in the author bio, so be sure not to include these or your article might be rejected without notice.

In addition to the elements included here, you must read each directory's guidelines to ensure that you are adhering to their policy. Directories are not obligated to publish your article. Even if your content is good, they will most probably reject your article if their guidelines concerning html, word or character length, and other items are not followed.

As mentioned earlier, you can save yourself time and effort in article submission if you type your article in Notepad and include the title, the article summary, keywords, the body of the article, and your author bio to cut and paste into the element boxes on the directory's website.


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