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Walter Yu is a practicing civil engineer… a professional engineer, in fact, licensed to practice engineering in the State of California. Walter also has a passion for technology and social media. I think you’ll agree Walter is also a damn good writer as well.

7 Tips for Producing Snackable, Factual Content

-by Walter Yu, P.E., LEED AP

Being a civil engineer by profession, I’m used to dealing with facts and numbers.

Written communication in our industry is used to address a specific issue, leaving little room for commentary and opinion.

I apply this writing style to my civil engineering website while balancing the technical details with everyday language that readers can understand.

It is a win-win for readers, who are informed while being entertained – in this article, I will discuss ways to strike this balance.

Writing as a Learning Process

As Dr. WordPress pointed out in his post on how long it takes to write a blog post, factual posts take more time to research and planning but are often more rewarding for the reader – and the author.

Writing can be a learning process where you learn as you write. For example, my post on the Three Gorges Dam was a great refresher on a project I remember first hearing about in college.

This “go as you learn”  approach adds up over time – for example, posting weekly for a year adds up to 52 articles covering a group of categories on one topic. The posts can serve as the core content for your site and later be edited for use in products and newsletters.

With consistent effort, it is possible to become a relative expert in the field with a portfolio of articles to show for it.

Shaping Your Content

Writing factual content requires research to verify information and planning to best present your points. Commentary is used sparingly and more effective when offered from multiple viewpoints.

For example in my post on clean tech, I point out its promising future along with the likelihood that many of these technologies may not catch on.

With this in mind, here are 7  tips for producing snackable, factual content:

1. State the Facts: Lists are a great way of highlighting information – they quickly point the facts and numbers without losing the reader among a paragraph of text. For example, I often use lists when describing a construction project to give my readers a feel for its size and magnitude.
2. Write Like You Speak: Readers will get more from a casual, approachable writing style especially if the topic is confusing or dry. The Feynman Lectures on Physics are famous for their ability to explain various concepts in a simple, “sticky” (memorable) style.
3. Know Your Audience: More importantly, what is their level of expertise? If your audience is well-versed in your topic, then speak to them at that level. However, if your site gets much of its traffic from search engines, then your audience may require a more basic explanation.
4. Plan Out Your Main Points: Well-structured posts make their points more effectively and give them an organized, professional feel. Rather than indulge in a stream of consciousness, write  out an introduction, body paragraphs (main points) and conclusion before combining for editing.
5. Reduce the Jargon: Reducing jargon will allow your readers to better understand the points you are making in your writing. One trick I like is interpreting jargon in plain language – for example, if I am discussing “making grade” (excavating soil to its correct elevation) in earthwork, then my readers understand what making grade means (yes, after you’ve interpreted the phrase then use it without quotation marks).
6. Something Actionable, if Applies: One recent WIAW article (“Big Shakeout Coming in MMO Blogosphere – You ready for it?“) I particularly enjoyed outlined:
   1. Problems of the saturated blogging market
   2. Ways to counteract it
   3. Actionable items for readers to take.

   This 1-2-3 approach of stating the problem, diagnosing it and offering solutions is a powerful way of engaging readers.

7. Follow Good Examples: When in doubt about structure, length of a post or writing style, feel free to consult good examples. I refer to Cnet news from time to time since the site captures the snackable, factual style I am looking for. Formal online publications usually make better examples though there are plenty of bloggers whose style are suitable as well.

Conclusion

This is not a complete list for writing snackable, factual content, but it is a good start. Some skills, such as finding your personal writing voice, come only with experience.

With practice, the time it takes to write a post will shorten, and the process more enjoyable. As Dr. WordPress points out time and time again (in posts and newsletters), the only way to get started is by moving forward boldly without fear of failure.

For those of you who made it this far, I’ve got one additional (8^th Tip!) pointer:

Bonus: Tip #8 – Serial Posts: I learned about this from my friend Sean, who began a series of posts for  his awesome woodblock print making. Basically, captivate your audience by offering serial  posts with a narrative they can follow. In Sean’s case, he documents the triumphs and trials of  the printing process. The key part is planning out the series ahead of time, then queuing them  for publication once they’re ready.

Walter Yu is a practicing civil engineer… a professional engineer, in fact, licensed to practice engineering in the State of California. Walter also has a passion for technology and social media. I think you’ll agree Walter is also a damn good writer as well.

I can’t resist… Walter’s 8th tip is a brilliant use of lagniappe, a word I learned from reading William F. Buckley, Jr. Used sparingly, lagniappe gives a good piece of writing that special twist, locking into the reader’s mind. First comment giving me a definition of lagniappe gets a whitepaper of their choice.