All Newshounds know the old adage: Never Bury The Lead. In the pre-blog paper based publishing world, page space holds a premium. All writers know their magnificent 500 word story could get hacked down to a mere sentence or two on a busy news day. If the shortened version can not stand on its’ own, the piece will be killed entirely. That’s why news writers are concise. The survival of their by-lines depend on it.
In addition, readers are fickle. They scan headlines searching for something of interest, but statistically only read beyond the lead about twenty percent of the time. This means as a writer, if you want to be read instead of dead, you’ve got to grab em fast.
To construct a proper post, open with a sentence explaining the point lickity-split, then follow it with three supporting ideas, and close by re-stating the lead. When you are done, write a headline that boils it down to a short phrase. Do not stray from this formula, and your blog will be a success.
Opening with a strong lead and a clear title has the additional benefit of building trust between the writer and the reader. People don’t like to be hoodwinked or led down the garden path thinking they are reading about one thing, only to find the story curve off into a completely different direction. (Not unlike my dear aunt Tootie does when she comes for Thanksgiving dinner and talks about cousin Myra who married that fella from the bayou who ate a bat last Easter after little Jenny got saved.)
If you tell readers exactly what you are writing about, they will come back for more. If not, you’re doing your blog more harm than good.
How many times have you found yourself surfing the web only to come across a confusing post? You read the headline, scan down a paragraph or two and still find yourself thinking “What exactly is this about?” You then look to the sidebars for clues, and maybe even stick around long enough to investigate their “about” page to figure it out. Ultimately you click off, unsatisfied, and unwilling to return.
Maybe that post had a point, and maybe it was a good one, but the reader will never know because the writer killed his “cred” when he buried the lead.
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
reat advice thank you. I will try to keep to 3 supporting ideas.
I tend to go on and on.