Five Tips For Writing Medical Articles

Whether you need medical articles for medical brochures, a blog or article submissions, it is very important to ensure that the medical content in your article is accurate, and of a high quality. Albert Einstein once said that, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. So is a lot”. If you wish to write medical content, you need to follow this advice to the hilt, as what you say or don’t say, may cause people more harm than good.

Below are some tips to help you write high-quality medical articles:

1. Be careful about stating facts: Doctors, dentists and other medical professionals know that medical knowledge is constantly changing with advancements in new technology. It is crucial for professional content writers to also understand the same, and be very careful about stating anything as an irreversible medical fact while writing medical articles. Most readers believe that medical articles have been written by medical experts, and blindly follow online medical advice without consulting a medical practitioner about their individual case.
2. Use proper terminology: Use the scientific or recognised medical name to describe a disease/drug, rather than a lay term, when you first mention it in your medical article. This medical name should be the word most commonly used in recently published, high-quality content, in English language medical journals. You can use lay terms, alternative names and synonyms later on, to help your readers understand the content better. This is even if you are writing medical articles for search engine optimisation purposes. Some sources you can use are WHO’s International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (for diseases); The International Non-proprietary Name (for drugs); and the Terminologia Anatomica (for anatomy).
3. Use ambiguous parts of speech: If various reliable sources show different information, and you are not sure about a medical fact, use vague parts of speech (adverbs, nouns etc.) to describe that fact. For example, if three medical sources state different time periods (three months, five months, seven months) for dental implants to fuse with the jawbone, you can write ‘In most cases, titanium implants generally take around three to seven months to osseointegrate with the bone’.
4. Conduct online research carefully: As accuracy is fundamental in any medical article, you should conduct online research only from reliable websites, such as those sponsored by an educational institution, medical organisation or the government. Some marvellous research sources for medical articles are the US National Library of Medicine, The American Medical Association and The American Psychological Association. Another good online source of information is The Web MD, even though it is not a professional medical association website. Avoid using Wikipedia or other doubtful websites that pop up in search engine results, when you search for a particular medical term.
5. Include a disclaimer: As legal action can sometimes be taken regarding medical content posted on a website, it is always important to include a prominent disclaimer telling readers that you are not a medical expert. This disclaimer is in addition to the legal disclaimer, generally displayed by medical practices on their website. For example: “The writer of this article is not a medical professional. Information contained herein has been collected from sources believed to be reliable, and every precaution has been taken to ensure its accuracy. The information provided here is for general informational purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for medical care provided by a qualified medical professional”.

Of course, if you want great medical articles without any hassle, you could always hire a professional medical writing company, like StarEdits, to help you out. The content writers at StarEdits have loads of experience in writing medical content, and are sure to do a good job for you. If you require high quality medical articles, just email us at info@staredits.com or fill in our Contact Us form today.

Fifteen Steps For Copy Editing Your Own Work

You may have just finished writing the manuscript of an exciting mystery novel, but you know you're not really done yet! It is now time to get the text spruced up, so that your writing sounds fabulous to the reader. This polishing of text into a finished readable product is known as copy editing.

Most professional writers know that their book, or rather the first draft of it, would be filled with grammar, punctuation, spacing and other errors. They know that it can be nearly impossible to catch all these errors by themselves, so they look for a professional copy editing company to help them out. Such companies have professional editors who work together with the writer, to improve their copy while keeping the original tone and expression of the writing intact.

However, today, many authors wish to do copy edit their manuscripts themselves. If you are a writer who wishes to do so, here are some tips to help you out:

1. Wait a bit: Give yourself a break of a week after you've finished writing your manuscript. Then write a synopsis of your work. Wait for a few days, before revising your writing, based on the synopsis.
2. Read the entire manuscript from beginning to end: If your manuscript is not too long, you can print out a hard copy in a medium font. This will help you easily notice hidden errors. 
3. Focus on various parts of speech: Select different nouns to describe the same thing. Consider using vivid action verbs, rather than passive sentences. Also, reduce adjectives and adverbs.
4. Use descriptive language: Instead of using adjectives and adverbs to describe something, use descriptive language. For example, instead of saying 'the river flowed rapidly', say 'the river flowed like an express train hurtling down a mountain'.
5. Use the dictionary: If you are not sure that a particular word means what you think it does, look up its meaning in a dictionary or on the web. You can also decide to use a different word, if you think it would say what you want better.
6. Check the structure of sentences: Try to shorten long sentences so that they make sense, or punctuate them appropriately. Sentences with few words should have a purpose, or else they should be combined with another sentence.
7. Active sentences: Try and substitute passive sentences with active ones, to make your writing sound more appealing, and reader-friendly.
8. Avoid sentence rhythms: Sentences with alliterations or assonance may tire the reader, so change them unless you are using them for literary effect.
9. De-emphasize emphasis: Avoid repeated use of scare quotes, italics and exclamation marks, unless they are part of the message you want readers to get. Such punctuation usually annoys readers, and gives your writing an unprofessional look.
10. Appraise your writing for its style: Use slang, humour or a conversational tone, according to the personality of the characters, and the theme of the book.
11. Do a word check: If you feel that a certain word has been repeated too often in your writing, cut it down, and replace it with synonyms or other text.
12. Check the plot structure: Look for structural flaws, and alter the sequence of plot elements to make your story sound more convincing. Here, you can add interesting new scenes or subplots, or remove subplots that do not add meaning to the story.
13. Check key words: This is the time to check if the names of characters, places and things fit. If you don't think they are suitable, change them to something more creative. Also, check if chapter headings fit the content of the chapter.
14. Read your manuscript aloud: While doing so, change any sentences that are too wordy or long; and remove any words that do not fit.
15. Send your book manuscript for publishing: Once you are done, read through your manuscript once again, before sending it for publishing.

Of course, if you are not self publishing your manuscript, you can consider sending it to a professional copy editor, who will polish it further. Professional copy editors have edited numerous manuscripts, and know exactly what publishers are looking for. They will give you useful tips on how to revise your writing, so that you get published.

StarEdits.com offers high quality copy editing packages and ghostwriting services. If you require professionally written/edited book manuscripts and articles, just email us at info@staredits.com or fill in our Contact Us form now.

Publishing Checklist For Self-Publishers

If you wish to self-publish, here is a handy checklist of questions you should ask yourself, before going to print: 

• Who will proofread and copy edit my manuscript? Select an experienced proofreader and copy editor, who can be trusted to do a professional job.
• Who will my book be sold to? Specify your targeted audience.
• Where are they? Find out the geographical areas where your targeted audience resides.
• How can I reach them? Use signboards, posters, direct mail and other forms of advertising to inform people about your forthcoming book.
• Get a professionally designed cover for your book. The cover is the first thing buyers will notice, so ensure that it is attractive and suits the theme of the book. Many great self-published books have been let down by bad cover design.
• Convert your manuscript into a professionally formatted eBook in both versions: .mobi (for Amazon) and .epub.
• Get an ISBN number. An International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a unique numeric code, which is assigned to each edition and variation (except re-printings) of a book.
• Price your book competitively. Check the prices of books in the same genre, before fixing the price of your work.
• Find out about distribution channels. Look for distributors/ bookstores in the targeted locations, who will supply/sell your books to the targeted audience.
• Get active online before publication. The Internet can be a great place to generate some interest in your book, and a fan following for yourself. Use social media websites, like Facebook and Twitter, to spread the word about your writing.

Now, you can start printing paperbacks. First consider a short print run, before printing books according to demand. Always ensure that a high quality printer is used during printing, as bad prints can put people off even before they’ve read the first page of your book.

If you are too busy to write or don't have a way with words, you can always ask us to ghostwrite your book manuscript for you. StarEdits.com offers high quality ghostwriting services, and copy editing packages for improving the quality of your written manuscript. If you require professionally written/edited book manuscripts and memoirs, just email us at info@staredits.com or fill in our Contact Us form today.

Article Writing - Lack Of Traffic Bothering You?

Have you ever found yourself going through your website statistics, and wondering why no one is visiting your website? Do you ever ask yourself the question, “When will I get the results I am looking for”?

Rather than getting irritated or upset with your low visitor count, think about solving the main cause of the problem: your lack of visibility. Below is a list of tips to help you enhance your article writing campaign, and solve your traffic issues:

• Article planning: If you want to write high quality articles in less time, a little bit of planning is sure to help. This planning should include idea generation, making a writing schedule, and creating an environment in which you can concentrate on writing.
• Be an innovator: Do something new instead of reinventing the wheel! Join forces with others, so that you can write more engaging web content, which will bring you the leads you need.
• Exercise your writing skills: Practice makes perfect, and just like an athlete, your writing also needs regular exercise. Hence, use your spare time to improve your knowledge and skills about writing. This includes subscribing to content writing newsletters and blogs, as well as watching writing-related web videos.
• Take advantage of social networks: Share the URLs of articles published in articles directories, on your social media profiles, like Facebook. This will boost the reach of your articles, and bring you more subscribers and leads.
• Be determined: Develop confidence in your writing ability, and include article writing in your daily work routine.

Remember, if you want to maximise your results, you’ll need to write and submit original articles to article directories today!

If you consider yourself a good writer and have dabbled in content writing before, you could try writing a few web articles yourself. However, if you don’t have the time for that, you could always get a professional content writing company to write a few great web articles for your company.

StarEdits.com offers high quality web copywriting services and corporate communications services. If you require well-written marketing copy and articles, just email us at info@staredits.com or fill in our Contact Us form today.