How to write an article on Medium
A guide and overview on how to write an article for the internet.
If this is your first time writing an article, you might be wondering: How long should my article be? What topics should I write about? Will a lot of people read what I’m writing? Don’t worry, I’ll tackle everything one step at a time.
How to find the best topics to write about
Finding the best topics to write about is one of the most important parts of your writing career. Whether you’re writing blog posts, guest posts or articles for SEO purposes, you need to find topics that people want to read about.
But how do you know what people want to read about? Here are some tips for finding great topics:
- Look at what others are writing about.
- Write down everything you know about the topic (and then some).
- Compare the top 10 articles on Google for your topic with each other and see what they have in common (this is called “competitor analysis”).
- Ask yourself, “What would I want to read if I was a reader?” This is an excellent way of getting ideas for new content!
The ideal length
The ideal length of an article depends on the subject and your intended audience. If you want to write for a general audience, aim for between 500 and 1,500 words. This is a good length because it’s long enough to cover the topic thoroughly, but not so long that readers lose interest.
If you’re writing for a niche or specialist audience, then you’ll need to find out what they expect from articles in their publications.
There’s no hard and fast rule about the ideal length for each type of publication. Some magazines may have a word limit for all their articles, but many don’t specify a particular word count at all.
Keep it fun — for you
Writing an article is a great way to get your name out there. But it’s not always easy to find the time or motivation to write consistently. If you’re like me, you’ll have days where you feel like a million dollars and days where it feels like you’re dragging yourself through mud.
Even when you’re feeling good and ready to write, sometimes it’s hard to know what words and ideas will come out on paper (or screen). The best way to learn how to write an article is to read other articles and get good at it.
