What Makes Great Writing? 11 Secrets You Must Know

“Hi, Na’im. I sent the article I wrote for my client to him, and he told me it was too superficial and lacked structure, with many incorrect data. Please, tell me what makes great writing. Sir, I ensured I write engaging content with storytelling to fascinate readers, but the response I got from my client wants me to give up.”

Are you like her? You don’t need to do too much to deliver great writing. Writing is an essential skill that has the power to communicate ideas, evoke emotions, and inspire action. Excellent writing is clear, engaging, and captures the reader’s attention. So what are the secrets to great writing or what makes great writing?

Understanding the targeted audience

The one secret to good writing is understanding the recipients of the message. Getting this right will set the tone for the content. Also, it will help in your communication with them as you understand their pain point, desire, and interest. Additionally, you will decipher whether to address them in a language they can easily pick or write like professionals that only experts will understand. For instance, the way you will write about an ovulation tracker app for women of marriageable age will be different from how you write the same message for mobile app developers. Therefore, take your time to understand your targeted audience.

Good writing anticipates reader questions

After understanding the target audience and what they want, your content should be tailored to meet their needs. People don’t read because you are a good writer; they read to satisfy a particular need. Therefore, your writing should answer the reader’s search intent – a secret to excellent writing. 

Therefore, when writing content for the readers, query your content for questions like, what does this mean for my readers? What questions are they asking my content solving?  Am I giving them the answer they want or expressing myself enough for them to grab the points? Your content must answer these questions. Therefore, define the core message of your content and ensure they understand without stress.

Clarity and simplicity is a recipe to great writing

Clarity and simplicity are critical to excellent writing. Clear and straightforward language ensures the readers understand the message without confusion. To achieve clarity in writing, you should use concrete, specific words and avoid jargon or overly complex sentence structures. Additionally, using the register of the niche you write will help deliver the message better. For instance, a crypto writer will use words such as bull, bear, tokenization, DCA, NFT, and other industry-specific terms in the content. 

As a general rule, ensure you write for a ten-year-old to understand – this will ensure that your message is clear enough. However, you may wonder if you need to write an overly-simplistic message to a group of professionals. This is where understanding your targeted audience comes in.  

Storytelling

Storytelling is a powerful tool in writing that can help to engage the reader and create emotional connections. A great story has a clear structure, vivid imagery, and well-defined characters. By incorporating storytelling into your writing, you can bring your message to life and leave a lasting impression on your reader. Look at the introduction of this article as I tried to write it in a relatable manner. 

A story about a past occurrence in the industry will help you communicate your point better. For instance, if you are writing about a service that will prevent scams in the financial sector, a story about a famous financial brand that lost a huge figure to scams will help drive home your point. Additionally, you can write about your bad experience before getting a better result to explain why your product will be better. To get a story idea, look at your journey and find something or statistics that your audience will love to read.

Voice and style make great writing

Voice and style set your writing apart and give it a unique flavor. Your writing voice is the personality you bring to your words, while your writing style is how you put those words together. To develop a unique writing voice, you should focus on being authentic and consistent and strive to write in a way that is true to who you are. 

You know, many freelancers have asked me whether AI will take their writing job, and I said no. One of the reasons is voice and style. Most companies have a unique voice, which their writers always strive to maintain. I am sure those brands would not throw their writers away even if voice and style were the singular purposes. Read how AI can make your writing better.

Emotional connections make great writing

Similar to voice and style, emotional connections are an essential component of excellent writing. By creating emotional connections with your reader, you can make your writing more powerful and memorable. To create emotional connections, you should use vivid imagery and description and tap into universal emotions such as love, fear, or hope. When your audience realizes you understand their pains and desires, they become more connected to you and ready to give you their money to do business with you. For instance, an expectant mother going through pre-labour pain will be connected to content writers suggesting posture or exercises that relieve her pain.

Imagery and description

Imagery and description are potent tools in writing that can help to bring your words to life. By using vivid imagery and description, you can create a sense of place, time, and mood and make your writing more engaging and memorable. 

To enhance your writing with imagery and description, focus on using concrete, specific details and avoid abstract language. For instance, 76,000 people attended the convocation ceremony, equivalent to a full Manchester United stadium. Look at it; many people may not be able to visualize 76000 people, but they must have seen how crowded and full a stadium could be. 

Grammar and mechanics

Grammar and mechanics play a crucial role in excellent writing as they help to ensure that your writing is clear and concise. Common grammar and mechanical errors to watch for include subject-verb agreement, pronoun usage, and punctuation errors. To improve your grammar and mechanics, you should regularly read and write and study the rules of grammar and mechanics. Additionally, use editing apps, such as Grammarly and Hemmingway, to help in the editing process. 

Good writing needs rewriting and revisions

Revisions and editing are integral parts of the writing process. Revisions and editing help ensure that your writing is clear, concise, and free of errors. The revision and editing process should include multiple rounds of editing, focusing on different aspects of the writing each time. Tips for successful revisions and editing include taking breaks between editing sessions, enlisting the help of others, and using editing tools.

Data and statistics are elements of good writing

People have seen numerous opinions about a concept and have doubts growing daily. Therefore, employ data to make them trust your message – it gives credibility. Even if you want to use opinion in content, give us data on why you feel your opinion is correct. 

Good writing is like mathematics

When solving math questions, you follow steps and logic; this is the same with writing – there is logic and structure. Information is scattered everywhere; good writing presents an idea in a simple and clear logic for readers to grab. For instance, the introduction should be written to give a clear argument for the content. At the same time, the body should explain the side of the argument to provide a logical and appropriate answer to the search query. 

Conclusion

What makes excellent content is a combination of clarity, storytelling, voice, emotional connections, imagery and description, grammar and mechanics, and revisions and editing. While there is no single formula for writing greatness, with practice and perseverance, you can improve your writing skills and curate writing that is powerful, engaging, and memorable.