by Barbara Whitlock

Created on: December 06, 2006   Last Updated: September 30, 2007

The Helium writing community discussed the important issue of what constitutes an article during Community Board discussions in December of 2006. Cries for clearer and improved standards rang loudly. Practical advice abounded. The guidelines rotated around two axes: content and form.

In terms of content, having "valuable" knowledge to share and/or a "point to convey" solidifies the article's foundation. Moreover, the focus must be specific enough to receive sufficient attention in a single article. That focus must be expressed clearly and completely. Supporting arguments and evidence, extended by examples, applications, and personal experience, provide the metaphor - the support beams needed to hold up a solid edifice.

The form of presentation must include a structure or composition. The most general directive, given by Helium's writing community, mandates that the design must be "understandable." Writers also shared several specific models. I've assigned some pet names to the approaches, for literary effect:

Model 1: The salesman analogy The writer must present an argument and/or focal point. Then the writer must "sell" that point, by persuading the reader of the author's perspective.

Model 2: The elastic analogy The writer introduces a point, supports that point with "explanatory material," and then stretches the discussion to include examples, applications, and personal experiences.

Model 3: The four-legged table analogy An article, like a table, gains support from four legs or support structures: (a) an introduction to the topic; (b) a clarification of how the author views the topic; (c) the body of the article; and (d) a conclusion.

While the writing community roundly denounced overly short, undeveloped sentence bits that falsely masquerade as "articles" on the site, writers suggest wide latitude in assessing a minimum/maximum length to articles, which rests comfortably with the diversity of Helium's writing community. Yet, an article must "stand alone," as an independent and complete discussion of a specific topic, leaving the reader learning something from the experience.

One writer broke up the word article to suggest a thoughtful guiding metaphor. The ending "icle" suggests a small part or aspect of something; combined with the root word "art," writers should consider their articles as small works of art.

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