Be read: Be original, memorable and accurate. (Writing a Good dooyoo Review)

Member Name: Bryn Pearson

Product:	Writing a Good dooyoo Review
Date:	18/06/01 (29 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: honesty gets you respect., memorable is good.

Disadvantages: if you say things that are blatantly untrue, you will be ignored., there are so many writers that it's ahrd to get noticed.

Getting your pennies on dooyou is not just about churning out review after review. Regular visitors to the site get to know who writes well and who doesn't. If you write dull or poor quality reviews, people will avoid you. Well, that's easy to say, but how do you actually go about writing something good?

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Getting it right: Good spelling and grammer are going to help people read your writing, but even more important is your content. You MUST write truthful, accurate reviews, because if you don't someone will notice.

To my horror the other week I found a review of "The Colour Purple" by Alice Walker, in which the reviewer claimed to have used this text in their dissertation and recommended also reading "Beloved" and "Sula" by the same author. (The reviewer has since ammended this review, to my relief.)

These two books are by Toni Morrisson.

The point I am trying to make is that if you write rubbish people will notice and next time they see something you have written, they may well ignore it.

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Be original - the more personal ie based on individual experience and wisdom your article is, the better. If everyone knows what you've written, why will they read it? Ops titled "pretty good" "Not bad" and that sort of thing will not encourage readers to think you are going to offer them something new. If the title implies that you are offering something new - "My trip to Florida - learn from my mistakes." "How I overcame insominia" then people will be more tempted. Titles are important, and you should make them noticable. The article you write should fit your title and should be as unique as you can get it.

There are some conventions about layout, introductions, conclusions - but style, content and insight are worth a lot more - plus a little technical innovatio
n won't do any harm.

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Be memorbale - if people can remember you, they may look out your reviews. Have a name people can remember - if you use an unpronouncable string of letters and numbers, no one will remember you. catchy titles, catchy comments in your reviews and a dash of humour re good ways of getting known. Some writers concentrate on an area they particularly know about - eg the internet. Sticking with one area can be a good way of building up a reputation and therefore getting regular readers. If you can't remember what you've written, the odds are that no one else will either.

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Obviously, you are here in part because the thought of getting paid appeals to you - there's nothing wrong with that. You should however offer something of decent quality in return for your money. You may not be the best writer ever, you spelling may wobble (mine certainly does) but you should get your facts straight and try to make it an interesting read. Remember that bigger is not always better -if I lose interest half way through an op, I am not going to give it a "very useful' rating. Style counts for a lot.

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