Top 7 Tips to Guarantee Your Article Gets Published

There are thousands--maybe millions--of articles Out There that are free for the taking. So why should a publisher or webmaster use yours?

Here are seven ways to make your article stand out from the crowd:

1. NEVER, EVER forget--"What's in it for them?"--"them" being the webmasters and publishers using your article.
   
   Will it inform, entertain, and provide value to THEIR visitors?
   
   
2. Title. There's nothing wrong with a solid, informative title (like "Top 7 Site Promotions that WORK"). Especially if you're writing on a "hot" topic. Such a title is search-friendly, easy to recognize in a list of bookmarks, and easy to write.
   
   But a creative title can grab attention, pique interest, and reinforce the message of the article. Two of my most popular articles have been "A Visit to the Cave of the Underwear Gnomes" and "The Internet F-Word". Maybe the titles had something to do with the attention the articles received.
   
   
3. First paragraph. The first paragraph sets the tone of the article, and should build on the attention and interest generated by the title.
   
   There are two more reasons why you need to pay special attention to the first paragraph. First, most article databases display the first paragraph along with the title as a "sample" of the article.
   
   Finally, many search results will show the first few lines of a page. So if a webmaster places your article on its own page . . . you get the idea.
   
   
4. Mechanics. No mispelled words. No typos. Readable grammar and punctuation. Unless you're writing a formal, scholarly piece for an academic audience, keep it casual. Contractions and slang are OK. But keep paragraphs and sentences short and readable.
   
   (Sometimes when I write a "sentence fragment" like "No typos" I can almost see
   Miss Rhodes, my blue-haired eighth grade English teacher, floating above the laptop screen, harlequin glasses dangling from the silver chain around her neck, red pencil in hand, shaking her finger, frowning . . .
   
   HAHAHAHAHA. I LOVE writing online!)
   
   
5. Keywords and keyword phrases. Try to include both singular and plural versions, as well as common phrases. (Whenever possible, make sure some of those keywords appear in the first paragraph).
   
   
6. Information. Once again, what's in it for THEM? A list of tips? A few paragraphs of how-to? A nice hyperlinked list of where-to? Good, solid content will ALWAYS find a welcoming home. Not only in ezines and on websites, but in bookmark lists, forwarded in emails, and in the memory of your readers.
   
   
7. Entertainment. Let your personality shine through. (Wouldn't Tip # 4 have been a lot less interesting without the brief visit from the Ghost of Miss Rhodes?)
   
   So shoo away the Ghosts of English Teachers Past and get busy writing those articles! We'll be looking forward to reading them!

c. 2004 by Judy (Wogoman) Cox, chief freebie-gatherer and organizer at
http://www.freechristianresourcecenter.com

Original content and hundreds of handpicked free Christian resources.