Writing the Web

Web V Prose

In a dimly lit museum in Paris I once fretted over the text of an exhibit.  Though beautiful even in translation, the language did not convey much about the science that was on display.  I wanted hard, crisp answers to my questions, but they were not forthcoming.  Long, lyrical and philosophical text felt out of place in such a setting.  I moved on, unenlightened.

There is a parallel here between writing for a museum exhibit and writing for the Internet.  The Internet and the museum share many commonalities that dictate a different approach to writing than that of traditional historic prose, such as the graduate student research paper or an academic journal. 

But first the similarities.

Writing is Writing

The “Yahoo Style Guide” borrows significantly from the tried and tested Strunk and White’s “Elements of Style” in its recommendations for strong, clear, concise and direct writing.  Writing is writing after all and there are many common threads that relate to good writing, no matter what the application.  Here’s a selection from “Elementary Principles of Composition” 

Strunk and White	Yahoo
Make the paragraph the unit of composition: one paragraph to each topic	Build every paragraph on one idea or topic
Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence	Front-load the essential point.  Put the most important information – a topic sentence or a conclusion – first.
Use the active voice.	The active voice makes stronger statements than the passive voice..
Put statements in positive form	Stay positive.  Positively constructed sentences tend to be more effective than the same information stated negatively.
Omit needless words	Replace superfluous phrases
Express co-ordinate ideas in similar form	Parallel structure.  One example of parallel structure is starting each item in a list or series with the same part of speech
Keep related words together	Keep subject and verb close together
In summaries, keep to one tense	Pay attention to common grammar traps

In summary, both the traditional keepers of style and their web-based cousins agree that good writing should be clear, direct and efficient.  Readers should be in no doubt about intended meaning of the author and there should be no embarrassing errors in grammar, spelling, or structure.  Similar elements should be consistent and punctuation should be perfect.

Of course, not everyone agrees with Strunk and White about good writing, and no doubt Yahoo is likely to have its harsh critics too.  http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/24/happy-birthday-strunk-and-white/   

But that would be another story.

Platform Matters

If I am right that museums share much in common with the Internet when it comes to writing, then the greatest differences between writing for the Internet and writing traditional prose is the platform.  The Internet comes with a great deal of its own unique technical and design issues creating new challenges and responsibilities to authors.  It also has benefits and drawbacks as a medium for reading, which necessitates certain style choices that are non-traditional.  Consider the following points of variance.

• The hypertextual nature of the Internet requires additional maintenance to ensure that links are live and that search and navigational aids are sound.  Directions should be clear and there should be consistency in naming site elements.
• Since a variety of elements in a web site are brought together digitally, there is great potential for errors and coding mistakes, necessitating detailed technical proof reading in addition to regular textual proof reading.  
• Web sites often use graphics, photographs, and illustrations, adding an extra layer of complexity and requiring the monitoring of upload times and resolutions.
• The aesthetics of a web site also creates an extra responsibility for the author who must pay attention to page lay out, titles and headings, templates, relative text size, contrasts and other considerations.
• The Internet audience typically has a short attention span and prefers simplicity and scan-ability in a text.  This tends to exclude complex prose and encourages the use of organizational features such as headings, charts, and of course bullets!

Foucault’s Pendulum

Back in the museum I would have been a satisfied, enlightened and rewarded customer if the curator had approached the display with the same methods and considerations with which a web creator approaches a web site.

Writing Test

So, how does my writing measure up?

Ah, in need of toning, how surprising!

And yet, this fitness test, which excuses itself as a less than subtle tool for stylistic assessment also has no way of checking all those extra details that, after all, lie at the heart of the successful web page.  So, on with the verb pulls and the noun ups, but not until I've had a cup of tea.