Web Writing

This is a concise course focusing on core web writing skills and principles, and taking students straight to the heart of this subject. The course is 4 modules long and includes 2 tutor-marked assignments; involving approximately 25 hours of study time.

It leads to the award of a Certificate of Course Completion.

This course is designed to help you develop the key skills and knowledge necessary to write effectively for the web. It is ideal for copywriters, journalists, marketing and communications professionals, PR staff, web designers and others who find themselves writing for this unique media.

Subjects covered include: distinctive features of web audiences, usability and accessibility, structuring information, web content, web page structure, web text, the art of blogging and maintenance issues. The course fee includes all course material, full tutorial support from an expert tutor, and course book: Writing for the Web, Crawford Kilian.

Research has shown that people do not read text on-screen in the same way as they read from a printed page, instead they scan the page and pick out key words. It has also shown that readers do not like long-scrolling pages, preferring text to be short and to the point. While web authors still need to follow the rules of effective English, It is important that they do not simply transfer their offline writing to the online world but adapt their approach to meet the unique needs of online readers.

Course Outline

Module One: Understanding Online Readers. Eyetracking studies. Reading from a screen. The viewing path. Planning page and site structure. Load times and speed of response. Types of website.

Module Two: Principles of Web Writing. Creating concise, scannable text. inverted pyramid structure. Understanding hyperlinks. The role of graphics. Organising content. Accessibility issues for writers. Site structure - storyboards and site design. Adding graphic elements.

Module Three: Key Writing Skills. Capture your reader. Writing with impact. Plain words - bringing clarity to your work. Understanding the design process and the writer's role.

Module Four: Advanced Techniques. SEO copywriting. Online documentation and manuals. Writing for the media. Press releases and online news services. Article PR. Blogs and Wikis.