Whether telling a story or providing information, writing needs to accomplish at least one of these things. If it accomplishes all three, then the better it may read to a set of interested eyes. One of the final things to consider in the revision process is summed up with the initials I.E.I.

Inform – Most of the time we spend reading is to be informed of information. The act of writing is to organize words into collected sentences in order to achieve an end result. Freelance assignments, technical writing, are all about information. During a revision process a writer should look at things from the perspective of a fresh reader. Will someone be informed by this content? Will the client see this as delivering information they are paying you to deliver?

Fact-checking is critical. Even more so today thanks to the deluge of delusional falsehoods being spread by click-baiters and their digital phishing rods.  

News stories must be informative of actual news. When I wrote articles related to music, I would reach out to the organization of the artist or to that artist directly to get a question answered. If I was going to post something, it needed to be 100% clear and true content.

Technical writers will tell anyone that part of their work is to ensure nothing is missed with whatever they are putting together. A freelancer who writes product descriptions is writing something technical for the average consumer. They are informing someone how something works. When I assisted a client with a food-related website, it was very important that I fact check certain things related to ingredients that I might not have been familiar with at the time. It required more research to get more information.

A non-fiction creative piece requires an equal amount of attention to information that writers give to an assignment. A story is rolling information leading to an eventual conclusion. The most seasoned fiction writers understand the need to inform at a masterful level. Best-selling fiction writers become best-sellers by producing informative stories that bring in the other two initials of what I’m talking about. They can inspire, and definitely entertain.

More to come. 

@WriterDann

`