online writing
DESCRIPTION
Its a simple collective presentation explaining how a journalist from website should work....TRANSCRIPT
Online Writing (Part I)Be Simple & Be Smart
- Samrat Phadnis
Introduction
Introduction
Introduction
What makes Difference? Do’s & Don’ts Skills to develop Use of technology
Topics of Discussion
Story telling If a story can be told differently Use of simple tools Value Addition
What is Writing?
Writing is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols. (Ref: Wapedia)
Purpose:
To inform To express To convey message
Story Telling
You have something to inform You have something to express You have some message which
must be/can be conveyed to some one.
You have something which will be helpful to someone
Modern Forms
Print Radio TV WEB/ONLINE MOBILE
Online Story Telling
Difference
Print & Online
Formally written and passively read
Informally written; chunked out
It's linear Non-linear
Narrative Interactive
Dated Dynamic & Current
Presents a continuous view
Involves Readers
Online Story Telling
Online Story Telling
Online Story Telling
What is Good?
What is Good?
Interactive
Interactive
Interactive
Breaking News
Learn from others From Print Books:
Tell readers where they areProvide a convenient map of the work (TOC, index)
Provide a title page Let users mark their spot and
progress Show users how long the text is Break the text into standard pieces
(chapters)
Learn from others From Newspapers:
Keep the front page fresh Tell human stories Tell them what you're going to tell
them, tell them, then tell them what you told them
Keep writing short, muscular and active
Provide surprise and a sense of discovery
Learn from others From Comics:
Social relationships do not depend on bandwidth
Completion is a powerful tool for engagement
Tell a story with pictures Keep dialogue crisp Tell a human story
Learn from others From Movies:
To think of character as response to conflict
Figure out whose story it is Provide tension and release Break story into fractal units
(acts/scenes/beats) Give the story a dramatic arc
Learn from others From TV:
Keep visuals interesting Make screen graphics readable Tell a story with pictures Online cannot compete as a rich
media experience
AvoidAvoid Using Because It’s… Solution
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Rude. The burden isn’t on users to figure out our Web site. No one will come back.
If you don’t know the exact date, use some sort of safe, far out, or relative time. E.g., “This information will be updated after an hour/20 minutes.” But be sure you do it, or explain then why not.
Avoid
under construct-ion
Bad form. If pages (or sections of) aren’t ready, don’t post placeholder links or pages.
If it’s truly critical information, instead of a link to a nonpage, indicate clearly when users should come back (see above).
Avoid
Welcome to our Web site.
Irrelevant. Miss Manners doesn’t serve tea online.
Leave it out.
Click here to enter our Web site/skip intro
Uninformative. This doesn’t tell anyone what the link is, except that it’s a link.
Craft link text that states what the link is. This will also help anyone with assistive technology who’s looking only at links.
One Step Ahead
We read differently from screens and must write differently for them. Here are some points to bear in mind when writing for the web.
Good Web Writing
Hit your reader with the salient points at the top of the web page.
Write short paragraphs: White space helps web display so write in 'chunks' - 30-word paragraphs separated by a line space works.
Good Web Writing
Write simple sentences: Use one idea per sentence and keep sentences under 17 words.
Use the present or present perfect tense.
Good Web Writing
Be direct: The web is friendly. Use 'we' and 'you' instead of 'the insured', 'the applicant', 'the society', and so on.
Be positive: 'the web works well' rather than 'the web doesn't function badly'.
Good Web Writing
Structure the site, and its tone of voice, for the people whose needs and expectations you hope to satisfy.
Summary
Try asking yourself the following questions:
What is your site for?
Who does it aim to attract?
How should you address your audience?
