Writer’s checklist

Have you met the reader’s needs?

Do you have a clear idea of who your reader is? (Remember: write for one person – your
audience shouldn’t be ‘everyone’).
Is the writing benefit-led? Are you offering clear value to the reader?

Have you brought out the lede?

Does the piece lead with the information that’s most important and newsworthy for your
reader? (Think: inverted pyramid).
Does it leave out the parts readers will skip? (e.g., boring background, ‘we’-focused
marketing guff)
Is there an obvious call to action? Is it clear what you want your reader to do after
reading?

Is the writing clear, concise and conversational?

Is every sentence under 24 words? (Run it through Hemingway App/Drivel Defence)
Does it use verbs rather than nouns? (e.g., ‘We agreed’ rather than ‘we came to an
agreement’)
Does it avoid unnecessary passives? (e.g. ‘We agreed’ rather than ‘It was agreed’)
Does it avoid flabby, legalistic phrases (e/.g. ‘for the purposes of’)
Does it use power pronouns? Does the word ‘you’ occur more often than ‘we’?
Is the language concrete rather than abstract? Does it paint a picture for your reader?

Is the text easy on the eye?

Does it use lots of white space? (One sentence per paragraph is fine).
Have you used headings, sub-headings and bullet points to break up the text?