Writing an article

This guide explains the rules, shows an original opening from our teachers and lists the habits that make articles dull.

What an article is

An article is written for a magazine, newspaper or website. It has its own voice and a clear angle on the topic. In IGCSE English it appears in directed writing: you get a topic and a readership, then write with a point of view.

An article does not speak to one person, like a letter. It speaks to many readers who can stop reading at any moment. Every paragraph must give them a reason to read the next one.

Headline, hook, voice and shape

Most articles start with a headline that shows the angle, often with a clever turn of phrase. Next comes the hook. This is the first paragraph, and its only job is to make the reader stay.

The body then develops one idea step by step. The ending makes the final point instead of just stopping.

The tone is semi-formal: livelier than a report, more controlled than a chat with friends. You can use rhetorical questions (questions asked for effect, not for an answer), direct address, humour and vivid detail. Your writing must still be organised and accurate.

Subheadings, bylines and length depend on the board and the task. Check them on our qualification pages and in the question itself.

A worked opening, written by our teachers

This is our own original writing, made for teaching.

Put Down the Phone and Look Up

A strange silence now falls over the dinner table. It is not the comfortable quiet of people who know each other well.

It is the hollow hush of four faces lit by four small screens. I noticed it last week at my own kitchen table, and I am ashamed to say I was one of the four.

We are told all the time that phones connect us. Perhaps they do. They connect us to strangers, to news and to a thousand things happening somewhere else. But sitting in that blue-lit silence, I began to wonder what they are quietly disconnecting us from.

Why does this work? The opening starts with a real scene, not a general statement.

The writer admits their own fault, which sounds honest. The last sentence turns toward the real argument, so the reader wants more.

Checklist for a strong article

• A headline that shows your angle.
• An opening that grabs attention and hints at your view.
• One clear voice from the first line to the last.
• Ideas in an order that builds, not a list.
• Real examples, images or short stories, not only general claims.
• An ending that completes the argument.

Common mistakes

The most common mistake is a flat opening. The first paragraph is slow and general, and it hopes the reader will keep going.

The second is a lost voice: the article sounds like a school essay, correct but grey. The third is a middle section where each paragraph repeats the same idea in new words.

The fourth is a rushed ending. The writer runs out of time and simply stops. Read your last article and find which of these four is yours.

How this links to your other skills

Article writing uses skills from other tasks. You need reading skills to understand the topic, voice control from speeches and reviews, and clear paragraphs for any long piece.

An article also lets you show a personality, so it is a good way to build your own writing voice. Explore our skills guides, see examples in our annotated model responses and try our practice tasks.

Next steps

Study the annotated model response for directed writing: article, then try the directed writing: article practice tasks. The skill guide writing an article goes through each step. If you also need to practise scene-setting, read our guide to a descriptive composition.

Many students get stuck in the same place. Their ideas are fine, but the opening is dull and the voice disappears by the second paragraph.

In 1-to-1 lessons, our teachers rewrite the opening with the student, then read it aloud to check the voice stays alive. We teach this in our First Language English tuition, from RM70/hr.

If you want to see where your article loses energy, bring one to a paid one-hour trial lesson. The teacher who would continue will mark it with you.

Next, visit our original practice tasks to write this form to a real brief. Our IGCSE English tuition page explains how lessons run. When you are ready, the paid one-hour trial is the first step.