It's easy to write a lot about something, to throw a lot of words at it. It's harder, and much better for your audience, to write succinctly and present it in an organized and easy-to-access way.

"I would have written a shorter letter,
but I didn't have the time"
- Mark Twain

Web technology has the power to deliver information in a way that most closely parallels the way humans think (non-linear, interactive). Therefore, people will be able to cover more material quickly, and retain much more of it. To be effective, new media writers must understand how to use this powerful technology.

Don't think print: think interactive, think multimedia, think non-linear.

2.
Organize the information.

2.1
Use timeline/history/process organization.

2.2
Organize by importance.

2.3
Try other ways to organize information.
- Collect & study information
- Study good informational design (often called "information architecture")

3.
Structure it into smaller, interactive, nonlinear chunks. Create an outline/sitemap.

3.1
Balance interactivity & ability to "chunk" information with making information easy to find & access.

3.2
Balance the ability to "drill down" to access increasing detail with making the organization & structure easy to see, the information easy to get at. Don't force readers to drill down so deep that they drown

3.3
Tool: The site map is your content outline, the content outline is your sitemap

4.
Find an effective way to present it. Brainstorm with graphics people & tech folk & content experts.

Typically, the first folks through a project's doorway are the graphics & tech people, often with the writers coming in behind to "flesh out" what already exists. The best way to develop a good website is to have the writer, the graphic artist, and the code wizard develop the site together.

4.1
Just give it to 'em straight.

4.2
Story: from ancient traditions to modern times, stories have been used very effectively to elicit change.

4.3
Analogy/metaphor.

4.4
Explore other creative & compelling concepts.

"Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity."
- Charles Mingus

Short is good: clear is mandatory; simplicity is a virtue.

5.1
Consider who you're talking to.

5.2
Consider what you're telling them. What do you want them to do? To know? To believe? To buy?

"The journalist assumes you want to read what they've written; the copywriter assumes you have to be motivated to read what they've written."
- Mike Mogelgaard

5.3
Consider why they will want to read it. What's in it for them, for their group/team, for their organization?

5.3.1
What will inspire or motivate them to use the information you're presenting?

5.4
Sell the content (along with the site itself)

5.4.1
Much of the info we present is intended to make a job easier for people, or you're presenting information that will change them. You want them to know something, believe something, do (or don't so) something, buy something...

"Don't give a starving dog a rubber bone"
(where it looks good, but there's no meat).

5.5
Don't make a promise with technology & graphics & headlines (& metatags) and then not deliver because the content isn't presented in a compelling and clear way.

Resources:

Finding information on creating web content is scarce. There are plenty of books on coding & Web technologies & graphics, but little on developing good, compelling, effective content. Most that are on bookshelves & websites cover the mechanics, which we'll get to, but little time is spent on writing well for this interactive media.

Writing for the Web by Crawford Kilian

Webmonkey Crash Course in Information Architecture

useit.com: Jakob Nielsen's Website