How To Become a Better Writer: A Strategy for High-Quality Articles

Articles are a powerful medium to express ideas, share information, and influence opinions. Whether blog posts, personal essays, or Op-Eds, articles are a great way to break into the writing industry, develop a portfolio to showcase your skills, and generate more business. But with the rise of freelance writers—driven by the post-pandemic surge in remote work and AI—how do you create high-quality, unique content?

A Freelance Writer’s Strategic Approach to High-Quality Articles

High-quality articles provide accurate, relevant, and valuable information to your audience. The process to get there involves more than meets the eye. Before publishing, there’s brainstorming, researching, organizing, writing, and revising. As a freelance writer, here's how I craft high-quality articles that meet client goals and leave readers wanting more.

Step 1: Define the Goals and Objectives

There's a lot of information to gather before beginning to write. Contracts often include basic information like the deliverable, timeline, and pay but require additional details and context.

I sit down, gather everything I have so far, and ask myself what I know and need to find out to write the article. Important questions include:

• What is the goal? (e.g., drive traffic, generate leads, build credibility)
• Who is the target audience?
• What is the topic or theme?
• What is the format? (e.g., blog post, thought leadership)
• What keywords should be incorporated?
• Where will it be published?
• What additional considerations should I keep in mind?

Depending on the client, they may prefer you define and propose some or all of the information above. With new clients, there is an onboarding period during which I familiarize myself with their style, tone, and voice to replicate it consistently. I also clarify communication styles and preferences, establish checkpoints throughout the project, and identify any teammates or partners for collaboration.

Step 2: Gather the Right Information

Once I know what I'm working towards and how I will define success, I familiarize myself with the audience. After all, your audience is the end user of this content. Here are three things I do:

1. Understand their needs, preferences, and pain points to keep the article relevant and engaging.
2. Identify what problem I'm solving for them.
3. Conduct a competitive analysis to see what others are doing and find where to differentiate with a unique angle.

Then, I thoroughly research the topic of the piece. I open a blank Word document and copy/paste important pieces from various credible sources, such as reputable news outlets and magazines, peer-reviewed journals, government websites, and educational institutions. Quantitative data like statistics and figures help illustrate the main points. 

Step 3: Craft a Compelling Angle

Developing a storyline is my favorite part of article writing. It’s when I get to exercise creative freedom to offer value to the target audience. I often find myself surprised that the direction I end up taking differs from the one I initially thought.

My angle typically begins as a broad foundation that I finesse and tighten into a single, clear idea or opinion. I review my notes to synthesize what I researched in a way that starts to tell a story, creating a compelling angle that considers its relevance to my audience and why it matters. I delete extraneous information and rearrange relevant details to support it. To stay focused, I write it on a Post-it note and keep it next to me while I work.

Step 4: Develop a Detailed Outline

Next up is developing an outline. Although it may be tempting to skip this step, spending extra time here saves time later.

A good outline offers clear visibility into the piece's structure and flow. It has a strong thesis supported by solid points that logically build on one another. It doesn't need complete sentences but should have enough detail for a comprehensive understanding.

I break down the content into sections, listing critical points for each. As I go, I like to link my sources for easy reference, paraphrasing, and crediting the original author. I share the outline with my client for feedback and approval based on needs and expectations. This step is an opportunity to connect, offer transparency, and ensure alignment with the client's needs and expectations.

An Example of a Blog Outline

Here's the actual blog post outline I used for this article.

Step 5: Get a First Draft Down

Using my outline as a guide, I finally start writing. The more detailed my outline, the quicker I can complete a first draft. I get the key components of a well-structured article in place by converting the sections of my outline into paragraphs. I typically follow the structure:

• Introduction: Set the stage with context, tone, and the article's purpose. Hook the reader with a compelling first sentence that makes them want to read more.  Often, the last sentence of your introduction is your "thesis," which summarizes and foreshadows what the rest of the article covers.
• Body Paragraphs: Focus each paragraph on a single idea tied back to the main point, using evidence and case studies as examples to support that idea. Add smooth transitions between sections for logical and coherent flow. The number of paragraphs you will have will vary based on the assignment.
• Conclusion: Tie everything together with a clear takeaway or call to action, reinforcing the article's value. 

As I write, I think about style, tone, and voice, ensuring consistency and flow. After all, it's not just about what I write. It's about how I say it. I'm looking at my writing to make sure it has the fundamentals of good writing, including:

• Clear and simple language that's not too formal
• Proper grammar, including active tense
• Shorter, crisp sentences and paragraphs (typically 3-4 lines in one paragraph)
• Scannability, including small blocks of text, bullet point lists, bolder or italicized words for emphasis, etc.)
• Emphasis on the main point and encourages action (if applicable)

Once the paragraphs are there, I break up the content into subsections for readability and flow. Then, it's time to craft headlines—the reader's first impression. Unique and compelling headlines should meet the following criteria:

• Easy to understand, clear and specific, indicating what the story is about, and inspiring curiosity/action that draws the reader in.
• Aim for 5-10 words
• Use active tense.
• Avoid clickbait/overly catchy or clever.
• Things like asking a question, making a bold statement, or including numbers help create an impactful headline.

By now, I have a solid first draft. I don't always love what I've written, but reacting to something is easier than starting from a blank page.

Step 6: Revise, Revise, and Revise Again

At this point, I like to take a day or two away from the article and return with a fresh perspective. I revisit the original goals and objectives defined at the beginning to ensure the article satisfies them. I print out my draft old school style and read it out loud to listen to how it flows and sounds. I mark the margins and lines with edits, notes, and observations.

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I then return to my computer and edit to catch errors through content editing tools and enhance the readability. Grammarly is excellent for correcting spelling and punctuation errors, fixing wordy or run-on sentences, and detecting plagiarism. It’s suggesting I boost the readability score to at least 60-70.

Additionally, Hemingway provides a readability score and an estimated reading time for your article. See my score below for one of my drafts of this one.

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I make initial corrections and repeat the editing process as necessary until I feel it is in the best possible place. In my final round of editing, I focus extra on consistency of style, tone, and voice.

Step 7: Enhance Reach Through SEO and Formatting

As one of the last steps, I integrate various elements to maximize reach and engagement. There is so much content on the internet, but nearly 97% of published content drives no organic traffic. Additionally, less than 1% of searchers visit the second page of Google results. 

I am working on advancing my SEO skills, especially in making my content SEO-rich beyond keywords. Specifically:

• Incorporate primary and secondary keywords throughout the content.
• Enhance formatting, like adding bullet points, lists, and proper spacing.
• Find graphics, charts, and images to illustrate a powerful story and visually break up the text. Create basic visuals in Canva or find free or paid stock images through IstockPhoto, Adobe, and Unsplash.
• Check your word count. Longer-form content (1000+ words) typically performs better in search rankings.

I like to read the article again for a final time, and then I am ready to share it with the client. Depending on their feedback, I may need additional edits and revisions. 

Step 8: Publish and Promote Your Article

Once the client is happy with the article, it's time to publish. Once published, widen your reach by cross-promoting it via social media, email newsletters, and other channels. You can also deepen engagement by commenting.

Finally, I ask my client for feedback on the process and quality of the deliverable to reflect on what worked well and what I could do better.

One Writing Strategy of Many. What’s Yours?

This thoughtful strategy for approaching and delivering high-quality, engaging content is a great place to start. However, it's not the only way. Adjust your process based on various factors, including the client, the terms of the contract, your familiarity with the topic, whether you're ghostwriting, and so much more.

Even with a well-defined process, mistakes happen. A grammatical error or a technical word slips in, or words stray from the main point. Iterate as you go to stay committed to delivering quality content that meets your client's needs and captivates your audience.

After all, writing freelance articles is a constant learning curve—precisely what keeps this work challenging, exciting, and deeply fulfilling.

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