How to be a good and effective writer.

Do you want to be a good writer? Are you bewildered as how to write? Are you wondering at the topics to be chosen? Then you are not alone. Everyone who wants to write faces such a mental block, one time or the other. There are times when I wonder what to write about and when I chose the topic, the contents will hem and haw before I could write the first sentence.

1. You should have a good control over your grammar and you should be able to write without grammatical faults and spelling mistakes. However effective your article might be, your writing will be ignored if you cannot write proper English.
2. You should not wander away from the subject and meander about without coming to the main content of your article. This can be done only when you have a good knowledge about the subject you are writing.
3. Proof read your article again and again. I take an hour to finish an article, but it sometimes takes me more than an hour to proof read.
4. When thoughts about an article come to your mind, write it down. Do not store it in your memory as you will definitely forget it. When you write it down, it is there in front of you for your reference.
5. Do not be too particular about the way you write your article. Just write down what comes to your mind about the subject you are writing about. Do not look for grammar or sentence formation as it will slow down your writing. It is your proof reading which is going to rectify all the mistakes and any mistakes can be corrected then.
6. Do not proof read as soon as you finish your article. Your mind would be static with the thoughts which went into writing the article and you will not be able to make much progress with the correction. When you look at your article the next day, you will be able to see the mistakes you have made and you will also be able to add new thoughts to it and make it more readable and knowledgeable.
7. It is not enough if you write grammatically correct; your way of writing should be catchy and attractive to read.
8. Write short sentences and short paragraphs as it makes your article easily readable to the viewers.
9. Think from the angle of the viewers. What do they want? If you are able to give them what they are searching for, your success as a writer is very near.
10. If you are writing about some historical event, or about some real life story, you should research well before you write. You will lose the trust of the viewers if your articles are full of blunders about the date and place of the historical incident or the real life story.
11. Valid quotes always attract the viewers and add value to your article.
12. Images make your article look attractive and eye catching. This is the aspect I lag behind and as I am technically not that proficient I am still learning.
13. Be ruthless in cutting down unnecessary words, sentences or even paragraphs. A neat and compact article makes good reading than tons of words which is all babble and holds no meaning or strength to the article.
14. Chose an apt title which arrests the attention of the viewers.
15. Do not use bombastic words which a normal reader can never understand.
16. Always read loud when you proof read as you will be able to spot the mistakes more effectively than when you read in your mind.

When you are able to write good English and about topics that interest the viewers your work is half done. When you have a good flow and know the trick of leading the viewers along the path of your thinking, your work is three fourth done. If you are able to arrest your viewers to read your article from start to finish, your work is fully done and you can proclaim yourself to be a good writer.