by Máire O’Dwyer

‘I try to leave out the parts that people skip.’

This wise statement is attributed to American novelist Elmore Leonard. People write to be read. This is true for all types of writing, whether a novel, article, blog, report, advertisement or textbook. We write because we have a message that we want to get across to a particular audience.

If someone is reading your work, they have made a choice to do so. They may need advice or information, or want to be entertained, or they may simply be interested in the topic. This article sets out nine simple guidelines to capturing and keeping readers’ attention. Of course, writing is as varied as the people who write, so there is no ‘one size fits all’, but the guidelines can be applied to most types of non-fiction writing.

Make it easy for the reader

Make it easy for the reader to read and understand your document. This is the most important rule of all and encompasses many of the others. The reader should not have to search for the meaning – your message should spring off the page. Readers want text that guides them through, and sentences that can be understood on a first reading. The reader has chosen your text, and it should be welcoming and accessible. Don’t make your reader work any harder than they have to.

Plan your structure

Good structure is vital. Think of making a journey through a complex landscape without a map – this is what reading a poorly structured document is like. We can think of the document structure as the map that guides your reader through.

Children today are often taught to write using mapping diagrams. This idea of a visual of a document connecting related ideas can be used with many types of formal document. The need for clear structure applies to the document as a whole as well as to individual sections and individual paragraphs.

Keep the reader’s attention by using headings to guide them through the document, especially if it is lengthy. Long blocks of text will cause readers to lose interest. Keep paragraphs to three to five sentences. Make sure that the reader knows where they are at all times – where in the paragraph, where in the section and where in the document. If the reader gets lost, their attention may wander and ultimately your message may be lost.

Know what you are trying to do in your writing

Before you start writing, ensure that you are clear as to what you want to do: are you describing a factual event, writing to persuade or influence, writing an analysis, writing to educate or inform? It could be a combination of these. The clearer you are in your own mind as to what you are setting out to achieve, the clearer the end result will be.

Keep related material together

Discuss each topic, as far as possible, in one place only. Readers may be confused if you come back to a topic you’ve already dealt with. If you must repeat a topic, make sure to comment in some way, such as, ‘As previously mentioned’. There should always be a good reason for repetition, for example, expanding on a general idea introduced earlier, making a comparison, or reiterating in a conclusion what you’ve already said.

Use simple, clear language

In most types of non-fiction writing, simple language in a clear style is the best way to get through to readers. This applies from books for young children to highly expert writing in an academic field. Some of the best writers use surprisingly simple language. The standout guide to clear writing is The Complete Plain Words by Ernest Gowers, first published in 1954 and never out of print since.

Be concise

Research has shown that our attention span is reducing all the time. This gives added importance to the guideline to use, in general, a short, clear writing style. An average sentence is considered to be twenty to twenty-five words. Even in academic writing, which tends to contain sentences with multiple clauses, sentences of over forty or so words will make the reader work. If this happens, look for a suitable place to break up the sentence.

The point here is to make every word work. Every word in a sentence should have a function. If a word has no function, it’s just padding and can be removed.

Experienced writers advise writing freely when working on the first draft of a text. The focus is on getting the gist of the content down on the page. However, when redrafting or editing, the focus switches to how to say something in the best way. At editing stage, we can remove redundant words or phrases, and in general simplify our message.

Another aspect of conciseness is avoiding overwriting, which is writing that is wordy, repetitive and hard to understand. Sentences and blocks of text are often too long, words are poorly chosen, and the text contains redundancy. Metaphorically, this type of writing is sometimes likened to wading through treacle – essentially, readers may give up due to the effort involved.

Get to the point early

A long preamble to an article or shorter document may turn readers off, especially if it’s only slightly on-topic. Readers are reading your text based on a choice they’ve already made – they’re interested in a headline, or they need to get certain information, etc., so get to the point quickly.

Make transitions smoothly

Transitions are how we move through a text, from paragraph to paragraph and section to section. Make sure these are smooth and logical. A section should contain only material that’s relevant to that section. An abrupt change of subject can jolt the reader and cause them to lose track of the flow of the argument.

Write to allow scanning

With so many people reading on-screen nowadays, reading has evolved toward scanning. Scanning can be described as ‘a quick review of text with the intention of taking in as much information as possible in order to make a decision as to whether to read more closely’. Write to allow scanning by using a clear structure, numerous subheadings, lists for complex material, and short paragraphs.

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Máire O’Dwyer is an editor and writer based in Dublin. She set up her editing business Perfectly Write Editing & Training in 2013. Clients include international and public sector organisations, publishers and academics. Her book At the Coalface: A family guide to caring for older people in Ireland was published by Orpen Press in 2020. Get in touch or see more at www.perfectlywrite.eu.

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of AFEPI Ireland.