The beginning of the paragraph, like the beginning of the sentence, is the part that catches the eye.  Significant ideas that need to be impressed upon the mind of the reader belong at the beginning.  If his attention is arrested and held by the first group of words, he is likely to read on.  If the beginning does not attract him, he skips down the column to the next paragraph, glancing merely at enough words in the paragraph that he skips to “get the drift of it.”  An emphatic beginning for a paragraph will insure attention for its contents.

REVISION.  It is seldom that the first draft of an article cannot be improved by a careful revision.  In going over his work, word by word and sentence by sentence, the writer will generally find many opportunities to increase the effectiveness of the structure and the style.  Such revision, moreover, need not destroy the ease and naturalness of expression.

To improve the diction of his article, the writer should eliminate (1) superfluous words, (2) trite phrases, (3) general, colorless words, (4) terms unfamiliar to the average reader, unless they are explained, (5) words with a connotation inappropriate to the context, (6) hackneyed and mixed metaphors.  The effectiveness of the expression may often be strengthened by the addition of specific, picture-making, imitative, and connotative words, as well as of figures of speech that clarify the ideas and stimulate the imagination.

Sentences may frequently be improved (1) by making their grammatical structure more evident, (2) by breaking up long, loose sentences into shorter ones, (3) by using short sentences for emphasis, (4) by varying the sentence length, (5) by transferring important ideas to the beginning of the sentence.

Every paragraph should be tested to determine whether or not it is a unified, coherent group of thoughts, containing not more than 100 words, with important ideas effectively massed at the beginning.

Finally, revision should eliminate all errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.  Every minute spent in improving an article adds greatly to its chances of being accepted.

CHAPTER IX

TITLES AND HEADLINES

IMPORTANCE OF HEAD AND TITLE.  Headlines or titles, illustrations, and names of authors are the three things that first catch the eye of the reader as he turns over the pages of a newspaper or magazine.  When the writer’s name is unknown to him, only the illustrations and the heading remain to attract his attention.

The “attention-getting” value of the headline is fully appreciated not only by newspaper and magazine editors but by writers of advertisements.  Just as the striking heads on the front page of a newspaper increase its sales, so, also, attractive titles on the cover of a magazine lead people to buy it, and so, too, a good headline in an advertisement arouses interest in what the advertiser is trying to sell.