"Survival." That is Maud Hand's answer when asked how she got to be where she is today as an expert in web-writing. With sixteen years experience in commercial and public service media, as the editor for IDEASFACTORY Northern Ireland, and the workshop project manager of ORIGINATION: INSITE, Maud Hand has survived very well indeed.

And yet what keeps her going? "It is exciting to see a piece you've sweated over finally published online for the world to explore." She also gets energized when passing on her knowledge to others through workshops such as the one held at the Verbal Arts Centre on Thursday 10th November entitled "Creative Writing for the Web."

Searching for mobility

The workshop began with an exploration of various web-pages followed by a discussion of why or why not the students liked the pages. "A good website has a search function that works properly [and] it's easy to get around," says Maud. However, she went on to quote Jakob Nielsen, a pioneer in website usability, who says, "Good writing is the simplest way to improve a website." Therefore, the rest of the workshop focused on writing fundamentals.

Let's start from the very end

The format of an article is as essential as the content. Articles are easiest to read when broken into short paragraphs divided every now and then by a heading. "When writing a heading, find words that wake us up. Most of us are asleep - we bore each other!"

Maud also instructed the group to begin with the conclusion; to give the exciting information first followed by the background information. But above all, she advised to be concise and edt, edti, edit!

A critical element

Emma, a student from Thornhill College who is eager to jump into a career in journalism, found the course engaging and helpful. When asked what skills she learned from Maud that she would like to adopt in the future, Emma said, "Learning to have a critical eye and finding courage to suggest changes for improvement when necessary."

From the expert herself

For future journalists and those seeking careers in the creative industries, Maud gives these words of advice: "Aim high in a practical way and be grateful for what you get along the way."

Heidi Martin