Throughout your art career you will be faced with many writing projects — from a simple post on social media to an in-depth artist’s biography, artist’s statement or grant proposal. To help you, this article “Simple Basic Writing Tips for Artists” is exactly what the title suggests — you will find ways to make this necessary yet sometimes frustrating activity much easier.
At least 75% of my professional time is spent providing writing for and about artists so you’ll find a lot of advice. You’ll also find links to more articles to help you further. If you need my help visit this page.
Keep Your Sentences Simple, Short and Sweet
Your sentences should correspond with the ideas you are expressing. For example, when I’m writing art reviews, from the position of an arts writer or curator, I may choose to explain in-depth artistic processes. I can readily include art jargon and historical references. However, when you’re writing about your artistic process my advice is: shorter sentences are easier to understand than longer ones.
For optimum clarity the general rule is 20 words or less in a sentence. Keeping your sentences short this way will also help you avoid making grammatical errors.
Another tip is to vary the length of each sentence in each paragraph.
Write For Your Audience
Write according to the level of education and comprehension of the reader.
When writing about your art in a document that will be sent to an art writer, gallery owner or curator, check your facts. If you describe your art stylistically, it should be accurate. If you’re mentioning exhibitions, awards and periodicals, confirm names of jurors, galleries, and other details. Spell their names correctly
Many of your website visitors may consist of those who have never set foot in a museum or opened an art history book. Avoid offending them with complex language.
Keep in mind many readers have short attention spans, so you’ll want to get your important message across quickly.
According to online data, at least half of the individuals visiting your website are using smart phones and tablets. Reading this way is more difficult and not as comfortable as viewing text on a large computer screen. That’s another reason to keep your writing concise.
Also, choose fonts that are easy to read on all devices.
Write Paragraphs with Clarity and Continuity
Write coherent paragraphs. Emphasize one or two points in each.
Ideally, you’ll want to keep each paragraph around 5-6 sentences.
Avoid rambling or jamming too many thoughts or ideas into one paragraph.
In my article “Write Your Artist’s Biography With the Inverted Pyramid Style”, I emphasize the importance to placing your most important items are in the beginning or the written document. Then reinforce that point with your following sentences.
The first sentence in each paragraph should give the reader an idea of what will follow. Here’s an example of a first sentence in a paragraph: My trip to Greece, with its colorful Mediterranean sea and lush growth, inspired my new series of paintings. This sentence prepares the reader to expect more detail in which you will discuss the subjects and how you interpreted the scenes you painted. Read “How to Write Your Artist’s Statement”.
Alternate longer paragraphs and sentences with shorter ones.
Make sure your paragraphs transition easily from one to the next or if they are disjointed. Think of paragraphs as pieces in a puzzle — each separate and also connected.
Read Your Writing Aloud
In order to maintain a conversational tone, it helps to read your writing aloud as if you are speaking to your reader. Observe the sentence length and notice if you have to pause often. This will give you a clue that you may need to shorten the sentences.
Get Objective Feedback
I recommend you ask someone who will give you honest feedback about what you have written. Ask them if what you have written is coherent and if it retains their interest.
Be Versatile and Use A Thesaurus
Be as versatile and creative with your use of vocabulary as you are with your visual language. You wouldn’t want to create redundant and boring works of art with the same colors and shapes, so avoid using the same words. A thesaurus is your friend. There are many resources online including thesaurus.com and grammarly — a free download.
Read “Let Your Personality Shine Through When Writing About Your Art”
Ask A Professional to Help You
For important in-depth writing projects it’s not worth your time and effort to struggle alone. You may want to get a professional to help you. This choice is often well worth the investment. I offer writing services for artists. Primarily, I write Art Statements and Art Reviews for Artists.
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