Get documents about "Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet Blogging
Document Sample
Unit 1
Introduction to a blog:
"Blog" is an abbreviated version of "weblog," which is a term used to describe web sites that maintain an
ongoing chronicle of information. A blog features diary-type commentary and links to articles on other Web
sites, usually presented as a list of entries in reverse chronological order. Blogs range from the personal to the
political, and can focus on one narrow subject or a whole range of subjects.
Many blogs focus on a particular topic, such as web design, home staging, sports, or mobile technology.
Some are more eclectic, presenting links to all types of other sites. And others are more like personal journals,
presenting the author's daily life and thoughts.
Definition of a blog:
A blog (a blend of the term web log)[1] is a personal journal published on the World Wide Web consisting of
discrete entries ("posts") typically displayed in reverse chronological order so the most recent post appears
first. Blogs are usually the work of a single individual, occasionally of a small group, and often are themed on a
single subject. Blog can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.
The emergence and growth of blogs in the late 1990s coincided with the advent of web publishing tools that
facilitated the posting of content by non-technical users. (Previously a knowledge of such technologies
as HTML and FTP had been required to publish content on the Web.)
Although not a must, most good quality blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even
message each other via GUI widgets on the blogs and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other
static websites.[2] In that sense, blogging can be seen as a form of social networking. Indeed, bloggers do not
only produce content to post on their blogs but also build social relations with their readers and other
bloggers.[3]
Many blogs provide commentary on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries; yet
still others function more as online brand advertising of a particular individual or company. A typical blog
combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability of
readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are
primarily textual, although some focus on art (art blog), photographs (photoblog), videos (video blogging or
vlogging), music (MP3 blog), and audio (podcasting). Microblogging is another type of blogging, featuring very
short posts.
Generally speaking (although there are exceptions), blogs tend to have a few things in common:
A main content area with articles listed chronologically, newest on top. Often, the articles are organized into
categories.
An archive of older articles.
A way for people to leave comments about the articles.
A list of links to other related sites, sometimes called a "blogroll".
One or more "feeds" like RSS, Atom or RDF files.
How to setup a blog:
If you have an interest in sharing your thoughts and interacting with others on theInternet, you may wish to
learn how to set up a blog for beginners. All you need to get started is an email address and something to say.
A blog (weblog) is a special type of website that displays entries or posts in reverse chronological order. The
most recently written post appears at the top. The posts themselves consist of text, images, links to other
websites and, typically, a means for readers to leave comments about the post.
Blogs can function as online diaries, soap boxes, journalistic ventures or internet scrapbooks. They can cover
any number of subjects from pop culture to politics to what you had for lunch yesterday.
There's more than one free blogging service that can have you up and running in under five minutes. No
technical expertise needed. Keeping the blog active and growing your readership takes much longer and requires
a commitment to the project.
Features of a blog:
Successful blogs all have one thing in common: they strike the perfect balance between a good user interface
with intuitive functionality and great content. You can have the best content on the web, but if your blog isnt
designed to keep readers moving through it or doesnt allow visitors to easily search through posts to find what
they are really looking for, your blog isnt doing all it can for you. So, lets take a peek under your real estate
blog hood and see what needs to be there.
1. Post Search Tool
There are a bunch of blogs I visit daily that either dont have a search tool or have hidden their search
tool below the fold (meaning I have to scroll down to find it). A post search tool is site search that
allows visitors to easily search the site for the content they are after. If you carefully craft all your
content to be engaging and educational, why would you hide it from visitors? Thats what you are
doing if you dont have a post search tool or you dont clearly display it above the fold.
TIP: The most intuitive place to display your search tool is in the top right hand corner of your blog.
2. Easy RSS subscribe system
Subscribers are the bread and butter of your blog, so make it easy for them to subscribe to your
site. Prominently display your RSS subscription signup above the fold (meaning towards the top of the
page so users dont have to scroll to find it). Just about everyone recognizes that bright orange RSS
logo, so always use a standard RSS logo- it makes people feel comfortable. Offer multiple
subscription options. Allow more tech savvy users access to the raw feed while those less comfortable
with technology can subscribe via email.
3. Most recent post list
Display a most recent post list on the home page of your blog so visitors can easily get to your most
recent posts and spiders can easily find the new inner pages they would like to crawl. While your blog
may already have excerpts or entire posts of your most recent articles, having a single area on one of
your side bars with just the titles of your most recent posts can increase visitor retention and page
views.
4. Most popular post list
People visiting your blog for the first time need to be directed to your most valuable posts. Providing a
single area on one of your side bars with just the titles of your most trafficked posts can not only
increase visitor retention but also increase subscriptions since it shows the true value of your blog.
5. Social bookmarking Chiclets
Chiclets are those tiny social network bookmark icons on blogs that allow you and your users to easily
submit your post to social news and network sites like Digg, Reddit, Furland NewsVine. By allowing
users easy access to social news sites you can increase your posts submissions and drive more quality
traffic back to your site through the social media sites. Chiclets are terrific marketing tools for
acquiring new readers and engaging the participation of your existing readers.
Read also: Promoting your blog with social bookmarks
6. Graphical Call to Action
One of the biggest mistakes I see real estate blogs making is placing a text link in the blog sidebar to
the front page of the Realtors website. Studies show that people are 70% more likely to click on a
graphical image (banner ad) than a text link. So, what your blog needs is a graphical button that
clearly spells out the value (home search or home value) and links directly to the search page or CMA
on the website.
Read also: What Pamela Anderson can teach you about calling readers to action on your blog
7. Lead generator
How are you goign to get the lead, if you don't ask for it. If you are expecting people to read your
blog and contact you, you are kidding yourself. Use a quality lead generation syste
like 1ParkPlace that allows users to search the MLS or get their home value but also requires them to
log their information so you can contact them later.
Read also: Driving qualified traffic to your site can improve lead generation
8. Ping services
Ping services automatically notify social bookmarking websites like Technorati and blo.gs each time
new content is posted. Blogs that use ping services, whether integrated into the platform like RSS
Pieces and WordPress or external, are crawled by spiders 82% more than sites that do not use ping
services. Dont you want your blog crawled more often so you can get indexed better in the
engines? If your blog doesnt have an integrated ping service, start using an external ping service
like Pingoat and Ping-o-matic
Read also: Web marketing in slow times
9. Sitemap
Sitemaps help both people and search engines navigate your site. Most blogs are capable of auto
generating a user site map and updating it continuously as you add content. To generate Google or
Yahoo sitemaps, you may need to use a special tool like the free NUAH tool listed below.
Example: RSS Pieces auto updated sitemap
Tool: Generate Google or Yahoo sitemaps
10. Comment spam filter
Commenting is an essential part of your blog because it creates community by allowing reader
participation. However, those of you that have a blog know just how annoying blog spam can
be. While many blogs use
Students blog:
20 reasons why students should blog
Blogging is such powerful learning material and students should blog.
Why? Here are just 20 reasons
1. It is FUN! Fun!….. I hear your sceptical exclamation!! However, it is wonderful when students think they
are having so much fun, they forget that they are actually learning. A favourite comment on one of my
blog posts is: It’s great when kids get so caught up in things they forget they’re even learning…
2. authentic audience – no longer working for a teacher who checks and evalutes work but a potential
global audience.
3. Suits all learning styles – special ed (this student attends special school 3days per weeek, our school 2
days per week, gifted ed, visual students, multi-literacies plus ‘normal‘ students.
4. Increased motivation for writing – all students are happy to write and complete aspects of the post
topic. Many will add to it in their own time.
5. Increased motivation for reading – my students will happily spend a lot of time browsing through fellow
student posts and their global counterparts. Many have linked their friends onto their blogroll for quick
access. Many make comments, albeit often in their own sms language.
6. Improved confidence levels – a lot of this comes through comments and global dots on their cluster
maps. Students can share their strengths and upload areas of interest or units of work eg personal
digital photography, their pets, hobbies etc Staff are given an often rare insight into what some
students are good at. We find talents that were otherwise unknown and it allows us to work on those
strengths. It allows staff to often gain insight to how students are feeling and thinking.
7. Pride in their work – My experience is that students want their blogs to look good in both terms of
presentation and content. (Sample of a year 10 boy’s work)
8. Blogs allow text, multimedia, widgets, audio and images – all items that digital natives want to use
9. Increased proofreading and validation skills
10. Improved awareness of possible dangers that may confront them in the real world, whilst in a sheltered
classroom environment
11. Ability to share – part of the conceptual revolution that we are entering. They can share with each
other, staff, their parents, the community, and the globe.
12. Mutual learning between students and staff and students.
13. Parents with internet access can view their child’s work and writings – an important element in the
parent partnership with the classroom. Grandparents from England have made comments on student
posts. Parents have ‘adopted’ students who do not have internet access and ensured they have
comments.
14. Blogs may be used for digital portfolios and all the benefits this entails
15. Work is permanently stored, easily accessed and valuable comparisons can be made over time for
assessment and evaluation purposes
16. Students are digital natives - blogging is a natural element of this.
17. Gives students a chance to show responsibility and trustworthiness and engenders independence.
18. Prepares students for digital citizenship as they learn cybersafety and netiquette
19. Fosters peer to peer mentoring. Students are happy to share, learn from and teach their peers (and
this, often not their usual social groups)
20. Allows student led professional development and one more……
21. Students set the topics for posts – leads to deeper thinking activities
This is surely powerful learning!!
Creating a blog:
Step 1: Start your favorite web browser.
Step 2: Type in http://www.blogger.com/ in address bar of your browser.
Step 3: You will be taken to the Blogger’s home page.
Step 4: Scroll down a little bit then page will be shown like following picture.
You can create a blog easily and quickly
in Blogger. There are three steps you have to do to create a blog.
Create an account
Name your Blog
Choose a template
Step 5: Now Click at “CREATE YOUR BLOG NOW”.
Step 6: You will be presented a first step to create a blog “Create a Google account”.
Step 7: If you already have a Gmail or Google Groups or Orkut account then first you have to signin by clicking at “Sign in First”
link. Then you will be presented Google account signing in page. Sign in to Google account by typing in there your Id and
Password.
Please Note : If you don’t have a
Google account then skip the step 7.
Step 8: If you don’t have a Google account then you have to create one. For this you have to fill the form as shown above type
in your Email address. You must have an email address then Enter a password and Retype your password. Your password
must be at least 6 characters long. Password and Retype password must be same. Now type in your Display name. This name
will be used as a signature of post. Type in Verification word in the given text box. Then read the terms of service by clicking
“Terms Of Service” link. If you agree with the terms of service then check the “I accept terms of service” check box. Then click
“Continue” button to continue the blog creation process.
Name your blog:
Step 9: Now you will be shown second step to create a blog that is Naming a blog. So you must think an appropriate a blog title
and blog URL beforehand.
Just suppose blog name is “Unique Technology Blog” and blog address (URL) “unicomtech”. Type in there your Blog name and
Blog URL and click “check availability” link. It is for just checking that somebody has already taken this URL or not.
If it is available then you can proceed further, and if is not then type in some other URL.
Step 10: If you want to host your blog somewhere else then Click “Advanced Blog Setup” link else click “Continue” to proceed
further.
Choose template
Step 11: Now after clicking “Continue” button you will be presented third step to create a blog that “Choose a template” here
you can choose a template for your blog from variety of template click “Preview template” link to preview your blog. If you
choose a template from here then also you can change it later.
Step 12: Click “Continue button” and you are done. Your blog has been successfully created.
Step 13: Now click “Start Posting” button to write a first post for your blog. Write a title of post and body of post. You can also
format your post by given formatting tools like bold, italic, underline, text color, size, font and alignment of the text then click
“Publish” button to publish your first post. If successful message appears then you have successfully post your blog post. Now
click “View blog” to view your blog.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Internet Blogging
Owning a blog and posting on it can be an interesting and fun way to share information with the world, but
what are the real advantages and disadvantages of Internet blogging today?
Advantages and Disadvantages
Many of the advantages and disadvantages of Internet blogging can be judged by the type of blog being
maintained. For example, some of the things that are advantages for personal blogs may actually be
disadvantages for business related blogs and sites. The quick and easy way that a blog can be updated is a
great advantage to bloggers – especially personal ones who want to be able to keep a daily log of events. This
ease, however, can lead to unreal expectations for business blogs – where visitors might expect them to be
updated each day, even if that's not possible.
Another advantage of personal blogs is the ability to vent your feelings, by simply typing in some text and
letting the whole world be able to read what is going on in your head. This same advantage can be a
disadvantage for a business blog as well. While writing in a blog that is business related, it can become all too
easy to start writing in a conversational tone, or to express some personal feelings towards your company that
might be misconstrued.
There are definitely some advantages to running a business blog, however. The easy way your blog can be
updated does mean that you will be able to post new information quickly – and get it to your customers and
clients just as fast. You will also be able to keep everyone informed of new policies, products and other
important info without having to send out massive emails or snail mail. You can also drive traffic to your
business site from your blog – by having links on your site as well as others'.
Just as there are advantages to having a business site, there are disadvantages to having personal sites. One
of the biggest is posting too much personal information. This can come in the form of putting in particular
information (your full name and address, for example) or “saying” something in one of your posts that you
may regret later. Although you can easily delete posts that you have written, blogs have a funny way of
staying in the memory of search engines – such as Google. It's important to never post something that you
might be afraid will come back to you.
The advantages and disadvantages of Internet blogging are numerous, but ultimately it is up to you to decide
whether or not blogging is something you would enjoy or profit from. Blogs are a great way to communicate
and experience the Web – if used correctly.
Unit 2
Web content writing techniques:
Writing for the web is another great freelance writing market. It’s already huge and it’s growing every day.
There’s so much web content out there that you need to make yours stand out. Here are four ways to make
your web content appeal to readers.
1. Descriptive Titles
The title of your article should tell the reader what it’s about. Some people like to use humor, while others
prefer to play it straight. It doesn’t matter, as long as readers know what to expect. Readers want to know
what’s in it for them. A good title will tell them. That’s one of the reasons that article titles with numbers in
them tend to do well. If your article is called: ‘Seven Ways To Land Your Perfect Partner’, then readers know
what they will get.
2. Direct Address
One of the things I love about writing web content is that you can address readers directly. It’s like having a
conversation with someone who is in the same room. When writing web content, your writing voice is often like
your speaking voice, and it’s a great idea to let your personality shine through.
3. Clear Language
With web content, you are writing for an international audience, and not everyone speaks the same first
language as you do. That’s why it’s best to stay away from obscure expressions and jargon and use clear and
simple language. You can also add examples to make it even easier for reader to understand.
4. Break It Up
If you want your web content to be user friendly, you have to make it digestible. That means breaking it into
small chunks, usually with one main idea in a paragraph. It’s also a good idea to make the article scannable by
adding a subheading for each main idea. That means that readers will be able to glance at the subheadings
and pick out the main ideas.
5. Summarize
If an idea is worth saying, then it’s worth saying again. A bulleted list that summarizes the main points is
another good way to make sure that readers understand your article. Here’s a recap of this article as an
example. To write a good web article:
Choose a good, descriptive title.
Talk to your readers as though they are in the same room.
Use clear language.
Make articles scannable, with one main idea per paragraph.
Add a summary.
Creativity in web browsing:
What do you think about the way writing on the Web is going, what with all the shorthand, abbreviations, and
symbols that have been introduced into the language? You know what I mean :) LOL. Do you think this kind of
communication is necessary and appropriate? I suppose it is in most forms, such as an email to a friend, chat
rooms, bulletin boards or even a cute Web page, but what do you think about business memos and
newsletters? If in my newsletter I used such things would you think me unprofessional and unsubscribe as
soon as possible, or would you think it was just in good fun and stay because of it?
My next question is, do you think creative writing online is a dead and dying art form? Is it true that most
people visit Web pages just to see the really cool graphics or JavaScripts that are there? Well, maybe.
Someone will only come to your site so many times if all you have there is cool graphics. If you really want
them to come back again and again, you will need some real content. This means learning how to write.
Because of all this, I want to introduce to you what it means to have "real" content. If you ever took a high
school or college course on creative writing, then you probably have a head start on this. You may already
know how to get going once you have an idea and how to keep it going. You still may have some problems
coming up with ideas but this really isn't as hard as most people think it is and neither is writing about
something you know about or at least think you know about. You must also take into consideration that writing
for the Web is different than writing a book or an essay. Most of the same rules apply, but some are very
different.
Getting Ideas
The first thing you are probably wondering is "What should I write about?" The answer is a simple "Anything
you know about." A lot of people just write about themselves and some go so far as to write
their diaries online. Others write pages about their family. Then there are those who just simply pick
some other subjects they feel strongly about and write about that.
Whatever you choose you must make sure that you will be able to update the content often. How often
depends on how much time you want to put into it and how many visitors and page views you want to have.
Some things that you can do are post a little something about current events in your life or something cute
your kids did each day or each week and ask them to post updates on their lives or children on your bulletin
board.
Similarly you can ask questions of your viewers of something you think they are interested in or passionate
about and give an in depth analysis of your view on the subject. Then allow them to post a rebuttal on your
bulletin board. A bulletin board is a great way to get people to come back to your site if for no other reason
than to see if someone responded to their post.
If you want to write about a subject you are interested in, make sure you have enough information that
someone looking at it will think, "This is the place I will always come for this information." You will want to
have several different pages and some links to other pages on the same or similar subject. Write something
about the subject once a week or more to keep the pages lively and worth coming to. If your site is about
flowers, then you may want to pick a different flower each week to write about, or you may want to explain
how to water flowers one week and how to feed them the next. Break your subjects down into one simple
subject so you will never run out of things to write about.
Keep It Simple
When writing your feature you will want to write in as basic terms as possible. Write as though you are writing
for someone who knows nothing on the subject. You will want to do this because in all likelihood that is who
will be doing the reading. No one knows about you and the things you do, like you do, and if you are writing on
flowers you can just bet that the person interested enough in the subject to read it doesn't know anything
about it. If they did, they wouldn't be reading it anyway. Why should they if they already know it? What I
mean is, if your visitor is an expert on watering flowers and that's what your feature is about, then he or she
would have no reason to read it. It's the person who knows nothing about watering flowers that will sit long
enough to read it.
That brings me to the next idea. Keeping it simple also means keeping it short. This is one of the major
differences between writing in hard copy, such as a book or magazine, and writing on the Web. The Internet is
a fast-paced place. People don't have time to sit around and read. They are more likely to read about what you
have write if your paragraphs and pages are short and broken down into simple easy to read sections. This
way your reader will get what you are trying to say without having to do a lot of reading.
Write using simple words. If your words are too complex, then your reader will lose interest and may never
come back. Of course if you're writing about JavaScript, then you must assume that your reader has a basis in
HTML, and you may then use terms that are subject appropriate.
Whenever you have the need to use a word that you feel your reader may not fully understand, it is always
beneficial to define the word for them. You can do this right in the paragraph itself, or you can put a note to
look elsewhere for definitions and place them separately, maybe at the bottom of the page or on another page.
There is a third way to do definitions. Because it requires JavaScript and is a little complex, I won't go over it
here, but I will tell you that it is a clickable work in your text that when clicked on produces a pop-up window
with the definition of the word in it.
Edit, Edit, Edit
There's nothing worse to a reader than trying to read something with a lot of typos or bad grammar. Nothing!
That's why you MUST proofread EVERYTHING you write. Then do it again. If you don't have a spell checker on
that editor of yours, then it's time to get a new editor. Also having a grammar checker wouldn't hurt.
After you are done writing your feature and before you upload it, read it over again. If possible, have someone
else read it. This way, if there is something you missed, they will probably catch it. If your writing has a lot of
errors, then people will be turned off to reading it and may not be inclined to read any more of your work later,
either. They certainly won't tell their friends to come look at your page.
Don't forget headings. If you want to catch the readers eye, then you should start each new section with a
catchy heading. Use something that will make them look twice. Instead of "Watering Flowers" say something
like "Watering the Wild and Willy Way". Then break it down into smaller parts all with their own little sub-
sections. This also creates the impression of shorter sections instead of one long drawn out article.
Only use abbreviations and symbols when appropriate. If you use too many, people may think you are a silly
person and not take you too seriously. Of course, it is all right to use some, because after all this is the
Internet, and it has become part of the Internet language, right?
In the end, though, we all make mistakes. So remember, if you make a mistake and don't catch it in time, you
can always go back and change it later. LOL
Different types of web information:
Business information
Organisation charts, networks of outlets and addresses, annual reports, press releases.
Example: Schiphol Airport.
Libraries and documentation centres
Online catalogues, specific (bibliographic) files.
Example: the Universsity Library (UL) website of EUR, or the Library of Congress.
Private persons
Personal homepages and uniquely individual collections with links.
Example: the homepage of a lecturer or professor.
International organisations
Partners, members, goals, publication overviews, statistics (often downloadable), links to related organisations
and/or individual members.
Examples: The World Bank or UNESCO.
Government information
Ministries, provinces, municipalities: overviews of directorates, departments, contacts, publication lists and
order information; explanations of the main outlines of policy; specific campaigns (e.g. a digital discussion
platform).
Example: the official site of the UK government.
Publishers
New publications, order information, information for authors (e.g. referee system). Examples: Publishers'
Catalogues, a website with home pages of publishers around the world; or Bibliofind: ‘More than 20 million
used and rare books, periodicals and ephemera offered for sale by thousands of booksellers around the world’.
Universities (Total campus information providers)
Overview of facilities, departments, e-mail addresses of staff, research and teaching programmes, rosters and
publication lists.
Example: the home page of EUR.
Societies, action groups and associations
Goals, press releases, publication lists, campaigns, links to related areas. Example: Greenpeace.
Planning your web writing:
Don't worry about how to write great content at the planning stage. Don't worry about using key
words or correct grammar, or even spelling. When planning writing, just focus on what you want to say.
Don't miss the 'what to say' stage and jump straight to 'how to say it'. It will take longer to write in the long
term, and the result will be poor.
Create a Plan
Write down objectives as headings. Under each objective, make a list of the points you need to reach each
objective.
Take each of those list items in turn and imagine your reader sitting in front of you. If this were a face-to-face
conversation:
Would they already have background information, or would they need a brief explanation?
What would they ask?
At would point would you stop to make sure they were satisfied before moving on to the next item?
At what point would their eyes start to glaze over?
Write down every thought and comment.
Now, take a look at your notes as a whole:
Are there any gaps?
Did you make any assumptions?
Have you included information as fact without saying what that fact was based on?
Did you include any personal opinions without making it clear that they were personal opinions?
Fill in the blanks, find your references.
Get Some Feedback
Hand the plan around and ask for feedback.
Pay attention to feedback, especially if you don't agree with it.
Now, put the plan away. Forget about it. Come back in a day or two and look at it with fresh eyes. You will find
something else to add or something to change - if you don't, you're not doing it right
Guidelines to write plagiarism:
Plagiarism is the act of using another person's ideas or writing as your own. Typically, when you write a
research paper, you use primary and secondary sources to support your original ideas and interpretations.
Consulting such sources and using them to help you write your paper is appropriate—as long as you keep a few
simple things in mind.
1. Paraphrase.
When you paraphrase, you summarize or restate an author's ideas in your own words. This does not mean that
you can change a few words and call the work your own. The example below shows the difference between a
plagiarized paragraph and a paraphrased one.
Original Paragraph: from "Hunting Hurricanes" by Susan Pilár de la Hoz
Among other equipment, hurricane hunters use a dropsonde. This is a small, round tube. It is dropped
into the eye of the hurricane. A parachute at the top of the tube opens and slows it down. The
dropsonde falls toward the ocean. It picks up information about the storm. It then radios this
information back to the plane.
Plagiarized Paragraph
Among other instruments, hurricane hunters use a dropsonde. A dropsonde is a small, round tube that
is dropped into the eye of the hurricane. A parachute at the top of the tube opens and slows it down.
As the dropsonde detects information about the storm, it radios that information back to the hurricane
hunters in the plane.
Paraphrased Paragraph
Hurricane hunters use a variety of instruments to detect information about a hurricane. One of these
instruments, the dropsonde, is a small, round device with a built-in parachute. When the dropsonde is
launched from the plane, the parachute opens, slowing down the dropsonde. As the dropsonde falls
into the eye of the hurricane, it transmits data about the storm back to the hurricane hunters in the
plane. (de la Hoz, par. 5)
Although the writer of the plagiarized paragraph replaced and deleted a few words and phrases, that person
did not summarize the original source in his or her own words. Additionally, the writer did not credit the
original source. By contrast, the writer of the paraphrased paragraph did both.
2. Put quotation marks around others' original ideas.
Sometimes, an author expresses an idea so well that you'll want to quote the passage in your report. Direct
quotations can be used to:
provide concrete evidence to support your ideas.
express an idea in a more precise or vivid way.
make a powerful statement.
Whether you're quoting longer passages, one sentence, or just a few short phrases—make sure you always
enclose others' words in quotation marks.
Depending on the length of your paper, you'll probably want to include direct quotations from several different
sources. However, remember to use them sparingly. Your report primarily should reflect your own ideas and
interpretations—not the ideas of others.
3. Always cite the source.
Simply paraphrasing or putting quotations around an author's ideas is not enough. In addition, you must
always credit the original source in the body of the text and in a Works Cited list at the end of your report.
Tip: If you're creating a multimedia project, you might want your report to include graphics or video clips that
you find on the Web. Just like online text, Web media elements are copyrighted material. Their sources must
also be properly cited.
The MLA (Modern Language Association) and the APA (American Psychological Association) are the two most
common styles used for citing sources. This tutorial focuses on the MLA style.
In-Text Citations
With the MLA style, you are supposed to cite the source in the body of your report and in the Works Cited
page. Immediately following the sentence, passage, or idea you've quoted or paraphrased, list the author's last
name and the specific page number (if one is included) in parentheses. Since most Web documents do not
have page numbers, you should provide the number of the paragraph you are quoting or paraphrasing. The
standard abbreviation for paragraph is par.
Example: Hurricane hunters use a variety of instruments to detect information about a hurricane. One of
these instruments, the dropsonde, is a small, round device with a built-in parachute. (de la Hoz, par. 5)
Works Cited List
Entries for online sources in your Works Cited page should include as much of the information listed below as
available.
Name of the author or editor (if given) of a professional or personal site, scholarly project or
database, journal, or magazine article.
Title (underlined) of the scholarly project, database, periodical, or professional or personal site. For a
professional or personal site with no title, use a description such as Home page (neither underlined or
in quotation marks).
For a journal, the volume number or issue number and the date of electronic publication or the latest
update (if available).
For a work from a subscription service, list the name of the service and—if a library is the subscriber—
the name of the library and its location.
The page (if available) or the specific paragraph number in which you found the information.
Name of any institution or organization that sponsors or is associated with the Web site.
Date you accessed the source.
URL of the source.
Unit 3
Writing for magazines and newspaper:
When it comes to writing for magazines and newspapers, the technique is quite different to that of
writing fiction and non-fiction books, and even writing for the web.
The Opening Line
The opening line of the article must grab the reader’s attention straight away. This is no different
to any other form of writing: a story must hook the reader in a very short space of time. The
difference? In article writing, this hook must be the first sentence, not the second or the third.
Another crucial point here is the length of the opening sentence. The word count needs to be no
more than twenty-two words for your grab line. This in itself is a challenge.
Sentence Style and Structure
Sentences need to be short in this style of writing. Similarly, paragraphs consist of only two or
three sentences. There’s a lot of what they call white space in articles, a technique that’s used to
break up the text, make it more appealing to read.
The Use of Quotes
An article is always more interesting to read if it includes quotes from someone with an expert
opinion on the matter. But when doing this, the writer must make sure that he or she has relayed
the quote accurately. It’s important to always check with the source to avoid the possibility of
misquoting. This sounds like common sense, but it wouldn’t be hard to make assumptions or get a
bit slack towards a deadline.
Language
In the examples read out at the workshop, and in further research I’ve done, it seems that the rules
of fiction writing go out the window in article writing. Adverbs and adjectives are scattered
throughout the text, as are metaphors and similes. Whereas in fiction writing, the emphasis is on
erradicating adverbs and not overusing metaphors which can distract the reader, this is not the
case in composing articles.
How To Query Editors
Sending off a query to a magazine or newspaper editor is different again to querying book
publishers. In the latter case, the writer must follow the publisher’s submission guidelines to the
letter. This could mean submitting a query letter and a synopsis, or a cover letter, synopsis and the
first three chapters, or even the full manuscript. If the guidelines aren’t followed, the publisher
won’t even consider the manuscript.
When a writer is contemplating having an article published in a magazine or newspaper, the
instinctive response would be to send off the article as a way of demonstrating the high quality of
work. Wrong. The advice in this workshop was not to waste time and energy producing articles that
might never be picked up.
So what’s the answer? Easy. Send a query letter containing the following information:
knowledge of the magazine’s themes and content and an idea that would suit the
readership;
a sample of writing
a writer bio, outlining credentials and past publications, if any; and
the writer’s qualifications for being able to write the proposed article.
The sample of writing referred to in the above list ideally should be the first two lines of the
article; the opening sentence (the grab line) and the first sentence of the second paragraph. This
demonstrates the ability to write and write well.
Some writers might feel terrified of submitting a query without having written the article. What if
the idea is accepted? Can I deliver the goods on time? But the general consensus amongst the group
was that sometimes writers need that little push to fire them up.
Expect Rejection
One thing that comes up time and time again in the writing world is to expect rejection. It’s normal
in this industry. The important thing is to keep on going; keep writing those query letters,
researching markets, coming up with new ideas. The more a writer’s name is seen by editors, the
better the chance of finally getting something accepted.
One interesting school of thought amongst writers who submit to magazines in particular, is to go
outside the magazine’s themes and styles. For example, some writers have struck gold when
submitting a fiction piece to a non-fiction magazine, but still following their main theme. Obviously
there is some leeway here with magazine editors. If something takes their eye and it brings another
angle to the magazine, they’ll snap it up.
Where do I find specific magazines and their articles?
To see articles from a specific magazine, go to the library's homepage, click on Find Articles and Databases and
then click E-Journals A-Z. This will allow you to search for a specific magazine title.
Once you find the title you're looking for, you will see whether Baker subscribes to the print edition of
the magazine and which Baker databases carry it in digital format. Choose a database that carries your
magazine, and when you click on it, you will be able to select an issue you are interested in or search for a
topic within that magazine.
If you are off-campus you will need to use your 14 digit Library Card number, which can be found on your ID
Card or inSOLAR.
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