How to Avoid Common eHow Article Writing Mistakes

Member

By deepthinkin
User-Submitted Article

Article Rating:

(26 Ratings)

Learn the common eHow writing mistakes

Writing for eHow is fun, informational, and great way to hone your writing skills. By taking a few minutes now to learn how to avoid the most common eHow article writing mistakes, you can make your articles the best they can be and help eHow become THE go-to website for learning how to do just about anything

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

writing skills
spell check
eHow account

Step 1

Use upper and lower case letters

~Use upper and lower case letters where appropriate.

TYPING IN ALL CAPS MAKES IT APPEAR YOU ARE YELLING; which is not inviting to a reader.
Step 2

~Use full spelling.

Typing your article as if you are texting is unprofessional and will turn off a fair percentage of readers.

Also if you're using an acronym, spell out what it stands for before using it throughout your article. Don't assume everyone knows what your acronym stand for. For example: Department of Transportation (DOT), you can use DOT freely in your article after you've spelled it out.
Step 3

Big blocks of text are hard to read

~Keep your paragraphs and steps short and sweet.

Long, run on paragraphs and sentences gives the appearance of a lot of words in a big block of text. Most readers are looking for their information in small, digestible chunks with actionable steps.
Step 4

Use spell check

Check and double check your spelling; especially in your title!

I've seen way too many simple spelling errors and/or typos in titles, or the mistaken use of a homophone with a very different meaning. Examples: Bowel instead of Bowl; Wrtiting instead of Writing; Mary instead of Marry; Improve instead of Improv...you get the idea. If a title has misspellings or the wrong word used, how likely are you going to take the article seriously or read it at all?
Step 5

~Use proper punctuation.

Readers don’t want to struggle to understand the article they’re reading; don’t let the lack of punctuation be the reason they left your page.
Step 6

~Know what you’re talking about.

Have your facts straight, and don’t guess. Your steps should be clear, concise and correct. When you don’t know your subject, it comes across in your article and that’s a sure fire way to get your reader to click the back button.
Step 7

~Stick to “G” rated photos.

You don’t know who will be reading your article. Keep it clean.
Step 8

Use a dictionary if in doubt

~Know the difference between: there, their, and they’re, as well as your and you’re

There = as in defining a place or at that place; ie: The piano is over there.
Their = possessive; ie: Their cat is lost.
They’re = contraction for they are; ie: They’re late to the game.

Your = possessive; ie: Your hat is on the table.
You’re = contraction for you are; ie: You’re going to be late if you don’t hustle.
Step 9

~Look up your topic on eHow

Before you write your article, check to see if it’s already been done. If your topic has numerous articles written on it, think of something else to write unless you can offer unique information, angle or twist that is lacking in the previously written articles.
Step 10

~Learn How to Notify eHow Friends of Your New Articles

See link in resources below.

Comments

mymukki said

Flag This Comment

on 11/5/2009 Very good article M, you practice what you preach :-)

askanna said

on 10/29/2009 Thanks for writing an article about common mistakes eHow writers make. I am still working on #10, I appreciate the know how from a seasoned eHow writer.