10 Commandments of Writing for the Web

  1. Thou shalt break up long pieces of text with bullets, for it is easier to scan that way.
  2. Thou shalt use short sentences, even if it feels thou art using more periods than commas. Punchy maketh for better reading.
  3. Thou shalt bow down and worship thine spell checker.
  4. Honor the inverted pyramid style of writing. It hath helped journalists for decades for good reason.
  5. Useth not more than one idea per paragraph. Readers never readeth carefully enough to catch more than one.
  6. You shalt not make wrongful use of verbs. Choose active verb construction rather than passive.
  7. Thou shalt cut everything you write in half. Shorter articles art better.
  8. Thou shalt use highlights, such as bolds and hyperlinks, to call attention to important words.
  9. Thou shalt not be creative with sub-headings and instead use clear ones. They aren’t the place for cuteness.
  10. Useth lists and numbers to organize ideas into an easy-to-read format (cf. 10 Commandments).
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