Become a Master Writer With 15 Powerful Writing Tips

Fifteen years ago, I was studying for my advanced English certification exam. English is not my native language.

The trickiest part of the exam was the essay: You had to write at least 400 words in 30 minutes! It was impossible!

One way to reach the word count quota was ‘catchy phrases’ — a lot. Also, you scored extra points for using fancy words like ‘juxtapose’ and ‘serendipitous.’ Examiners loved them.

Naturally, I adopted that writing style. I also used it when I started blogging. Little did I know that it was a bad idea! Because:

• My writing style aimed to impress the examiner.
• But with online writing, the goal is to express ourselves concisely and powerfully.

Below I suggest 15 writing tips that will upgrade your writing.

Let’s dive in.

Tip 1: Create smaller paragraphs

Your paragraphs should be at least 3–4 sentences long. Max 5.

Many people have a short attention span. If they see a monstrous paragraph, they may skip your post.

Try to break your thoughts into smaller chunks. Thus, your writing piece will be more coherent and easier to read.

Tip 2: Delete the opening ‘I’ statements

• “I firmly believe.”
• “I think”
• “I consider”
• “I sense that”

Because you are the author.

Your writing reflects your ideas, and the readers know it already. You don’t have to repeat it.

Plus, removing these statements will declutter your text.

Tip 3: The first and last statements matter

Don’t start a section with a long, complex sentence. Especially the whole article!

Start it with small declarative sentences. They hook the reader right from the start.

The same is true for the ending. Keep the ending statement brief and rich in meaning.

Tip 4: Avoid beginning sentences with ‘this’ and ‘there’ when possible.

That’s because they clutter your writing flow.

Also, they distract your readers from the real meaning of your sentences. Let’s see an example:

• There are tasks that must be done ->Some tasks must be done.
• This is because the weather was bad yesterday -> The weather was bad yesterday.

Sometimes, removing those words requires refactoring your sentences. For example:

Distracted driving is a significant problem today. There are many people, teens and adults, who continue to text while they drive. This is only part of the problem.

Let’s try to remove them:

Distracted driving is a significant problem today. One part of the problem is people, teens and adults, who continue to text while they drive.

Your text is now smaller and more condensed. Readers are encouraged to immerse themselves in your writing if your point is clear.

Tip 5: Delete ‘filler phrases.’

For example:

• As a matter of fact, this car is expensive -> This car is expensive.
• In other words, you will love this place! -> You will love this place!
• You should balance your mood at all times -> You should balance your mood.

You can substitute some phrases with simpler words:

• In terms of price, the house was good -> The house had a good price

With some experience, you would be able to recognize those phrases and make your writing more elegant!

Tip 6: Simplify complex phrases

The English language has numerous complex phrases. In online writing, we can use their simpler versions. For example:

• Due to the fact that -> because
• In order to -> to
• Taking all the above into account ->, to sum up
• Taking all the above into consideration ->, to sum up
• On the other hand -> however, nevertheless, etc.
• As a consequence -> thus, hence, etc.

Tip 7: Beware of these words: ‘just,’ ‘that,’

90% of the time are useless.

• He said that he would never do that again -> He said he would never do that again.
• I wish she would just go away -> I wish she would go away.

Tip 8: Delete useless adverbs

• Basically
• Essentially
• Absolutely
• Really

They clutter your writing and don’t provide any significant value.

Tip 9: Replace the combo ‘very’ + adjective

One of the most frequent mistakes.

We often use the word “very” in front of an adjective to strengthen it. However, “very” is a weak word. Here’s what we can do:

• Even in the shade, it’s a very hot day.
• Even in the shade, it’s a scorching day.

In this case, choosing a more specific word makes better sense.

Tip 10: Avoid passive voice

Active voice makes your writing more declarative.

Your arguments have better flow, and reading becomes more pleasant. The verbs become more powerful.

Plus, using an active voice also helps trim unnecessary words.

Tip 11: Use dashes when necessary

I’m talking about the dash symbol ( — ).

We can use it to compact our messages or merge two small sentences. For instance:

You should try the new Macbook M1 chip by Apple. It’s faster, but a little expensive.

You can rewrite this:

You should try the new Macbook M1 chip by Apple — faster, but a little expensive.

Again, the message is now more impactful. Be careful, though:

• Don’t overuse them. Too many of them make your writing informal.
• Don’t confuse them with the hyphen symbol (-).

Tip 12: Make your formatting consistent

Formatting is an integral part of your writing style.

Also, formatting should be consistent across a single article and throughout your whole collection. For example, since I write data science and programming articles, here’s what I do:

• I use bold for the central term that my article introduces. For example, I would use bold for the term “Recurrent Neural Networks.”
• I use italics for less important terms (but crucial for my articles).
• When I mention acronyms for various terms, I use bold for the first letters. For instance, SGD stands for Stochastic Gradient Descent.
• In programming tutorials, when I refer to variables, I use the code-inline format, e.g. avg_temp , num_of_passengers .

Most common mistake: Please, don’t overuse the bold!

Tip 13: Use a table of contents

From my little experience, most writers prefer short or medium-sized articles.

And that’s okay since readers are easily intimidated and don’t reach the end. However, some ideas or messages cannot fit in a 1500-word article— or break into more parts.

The best course of action is to use a table of contents at the beginning. Thus, your readers will be able to navigate your article with ease.

Now, pay attention: The last two writing tips are best practices on how to use the aforementioned tips.

Tip 14: Write first, refactor later

It’s impossible to implement these guidelines during writing.

Most tips aim to make your writing more compact. The optimal way is to pour your thoughts without choking your creativity. Then, re-examine your draft with fresh eyes and start improving it!

Unless, of course, you are a pro! Experienced writers can produce quality articles with only a couple of tries.

Tip 15: These tips are not carved in stone!

I tried to make those tips as generic as possible.

However, there are numerous types of writing: Each type has its own characteristics. Therefore, it is only natural that some writing types can have some leeway!

For example, when I write a scientific article about a Deep Learning paper, sometimes I break my first rule! Some paragraphs may take longer than five sentences if I want to explain maths, equations, etc.

Bonus Tip!

If you want to learn more about freelance writing and become a master writer, feel free to check my new E-book Writing Guide!

I have put a lot of hard work and research into it, and I truly believe it would be a valuable addition to your collection!

Closing Remarks

The above tips are versatile and can be applied to 99% of online articles. They work for everyone!

Of course, you still need quality and experience to become a truly accomplished writer!

These guidelines will bring you closer to your goal: They will sharpen your writing and make your messages clear. That leads to increased engagement!

Thank you for reading!

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