Do you know how to write meta descriptions, summaries and abstracts?
Initial Thoughts on How to Write Meta Descriptions, Summaries and Abstracts
Tips & Tricks for Summarizing Text (The Common Core Readiness Guide to Reading)
I must admit that I am not great at writing engaging headlines – I know that there are formulas tested by the ad men of yesterday. When I remember, I use some of those formulas. However, writing meta descriptions are a chore for me, and in my opinion, they are more about search engine optimization and making Google happy.
Additionally, most of the times, if I am honest with myself, I do not invest enough time to craft the meta descriptions for my blog posts. However, something clicked for me today that will cause me to change my errant ways. I know that if I do a better job writing meta descriptions, I will increase traffic to my blog.
What You Need to Know About How to Write Meta Descriptions, Summaries and Abstracts
A while back, I started my informal liberal arts education, and to date, I have taken a few writing courses. In one of the courses, there are instructions outlined for summarizing text, and in another, there are instructions for writing abstracts. Summaries and abstracts, involve summarizing content, and so are meta descriptions, although abstracts and meta descriptions are more closely aligned.
When the connection clicked, I immediately realized all the implications for me. I read a lot and write many book summaries/reviews – what I call SummaReviews – for The Invisible Mentor blog. If I practice using the steps outlined in the courses, I will get better, not only at writing book summaries, but also meta descriptions.
Guidelines for Summarizing Text
When you are summarizing text, there are a few rules to be mindful of:
- Make the summary shorter than the original.
- Leave out some of the main points.
- Write it in your own words.
- Express the author’s (in some instances you are summarizing your content) facts and opinions accurately.
- Give your opinion on the work.
- Compress the same meaning in fewer words.
I would like to share the two processes with you, which are called the 5Rs and SQ3R. Are you curious about what the acronyms mean? I hope you are!
The 5Rs of Summarizing Text
- Reduce: Use fewer words than the original.
- Reject: Decide what to leave out.
- Reword: Use synonyms, so make a thesaurus your friend.
- Reproduce: Accurately reflect author’s facts and opinions.
- Repackage: Compress the same thought.
To use the 5Rs when summarizing content: Read the text so that you know and understand the material, highlight key points, write the shorter version in your own words using synonyms, and use connecting words so the summary is clear and flows smoothly.
Writing an Abstract – SQ3R
- Survey: Look at the table of content, the layout of the book, and the index. Look through the entire book to get the helicopter view of what the book is about.
- Question: When you read a book, there is a purpose for reading it. In many instances, you are reading to gather information and to further your knowledge on a topic. That means that you have specific questions, whose answers you expect to find in the book. Ask the questions that come to mind. Turn the topic of the text into a question – can you answer the question? Determine if you understand the material.
- Reading: Actively read the book, take detailed notes, ask the questions, go through the information slowly, read the information on any charts in the book, and look at the images to see how they aid the understanding of the piece of work.
- Recite: Repeat certain information that you are reading, so that you remember it, annotate the book, take notes, and highlight key information. After you finish a thought, decide whether to highlight it.
- Review: Tell yourself what you have learned from the book – the self-testing state. What have you learned that relates to prior knowledge? What are the key ideas in the book and how can you apply them? Did the book contain any surprising information?
Looking at the two processes, if you have to summarize a book, or longer text, this is the process that I recommend.
Survey: Look at the table of content, preface, foreword, introduction, the layout of the book and the index. You can quickly look through the entire book to get the helicopter view of what the book is about.
Question: When you read a book, there is a purpose for reading it. In many instances, you are reading to gather information, and to further your knowledge on a topic. That means that you have specific questions, whose answers you expect to find in the book. Ask the questions that come to mind. Turn the topic of the text into a question – can you answer the question? Determine if you understand the material.
Reading: Read actively, take detailed notes, ask questions while reading the text, go through the information slowly, read the information on any charts in the book, and look at the images to see how they aid in understanding the piece of work.
Recite: Repeat certain information that you are reading, so that you remember it, annotate the book, take notes, and highlight key information. After you finish a thought, decide whether to highlight it.
Review: Tell yourself what you have learned from the book – the self-testing state. What have you learned that relates to prior knowledge? What are the main ideas and how can you apply them? Was there some surprising information in the book?
Write: To write the summary, reflect on the five steps above, then Reduce, Reject, Reword, Reproduce and Repackage.
Thoughts on Writing Meta Descriptions
If you have to write a meta description for your blog post, even if it is not a book summary or review, go through the process of reducing what you wrote, deciding which main points to reject, choosing which keywords to highlight, reproducing your ideas and opinions then repackaging them in fewer words – one to two sentences.
If you do this consistently, you will write better meta descriptions. I will be trying this process myself, are you game?
Final Thoughts on How to Write Meta Descriptions, Summaries and Abstracts
When the two processes for summarizing information were designed, I am sure that meta descriptions were not on their minds. But innovation occurs when we take an idea and use it in a way that was not intended.
How do you summarize text? What do you take into consideration when you write a meta description for your blog posts?
How Avil Can Help You!
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