Writing skills hold a lot of importance in the life of every individual as they are applicable in most areas of their lives and career. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the writing skills and it can be attained through these five ways:
1. Reading for writing:
The productive reading of best books will enable an individual in understanding the correct writing look. A habit of reading short stories, daily newspaper articles and magazines needs to be developed instead of reading massive encyclopedias.
The reading helps an individual in getting familiarize with different writing styles and ways to organize the piece of writing. The acquaintance with particular writing genre helps to improve the writing skills as well as communicate ideas.
Instead of just reading, an individual has to understand and immerse in the works of influential and great writers in order to learn the perfect usage of words. Reading also increases the vocabulary, nourish the imagination and build knowledge of an individual.
The works of different authors on the same subject can be compared to have the best knowledge about a variety of approaches. It is suggested that an efficacious and influential book must be read about three to four times to discover the layers of the meaning.
2. Improving the basics:
The feature of good writing is that the writing should be succinct and evocative. Adding the right adjective and verbs can develop a long-lasting dominant impression on the people.
The repetition of the words causes a break in the rhythm of sentences. In some cases, the use of strong words must be avoided in the dialogues as it makes it harder to read. Strong words should not be obscure or complicated. The words used must be appropriate with a precise meaning. The clichés must be avoided as they are too general.
The unfounded assumptions are the major cause of sloppy writing. The generalization and universal statement must be avoided.
The assumption without examining the case prevents the reader from exploring the possibilities of real life. The over usage of similes and metaphors loses the confidence from the writing.
3. Grammar:
The bad grammar is never overlooked by the readers as it disrupts the piece of writing. It decides the quality of writing. The attaining of the grammar skills is more of academic therefore many people find it boring. In some cases, many writers make a mistake of changing the tense in between the sentences which create confusion in the reader’s mind. Moreover, the common manifestation of bad writing is the overuse of the passive voice.
These constructions must be avoided with the exception in some cases. The passive construction gives a lighter touch to the writing. The features of good writing include simplicity, straightforwardness, and clarity. It requires the use of correct words which depicts exact expression.
The addition of long phrases which has no sense makes the reading difficult for the reader. One of the features of mediocre writing is the excessive use of adverbs. It clutters up the sentence. The writing must be capable of engaging the readers by developing their imagination.
4. Proofreading and Review:
It is one of the vital ingredients of a good piece of writing. The writing piece must be read thoroughly for at least three to four times as the mistakes are not visible on the first go. It can be read aloud as it helps an individual in proofreading.
The hearing of words exposes the potential flaws including the boring dialogues and confusing bits. The reading makes an individual think from the perspective of a reader instead of a writer.
The person should carry out proofreading as well as editing. Editing focuses on the content and it’s working whereas proofreading detects the errors in punctuation, grammar, formatting, and spellings.
Moreover, asking someone to proofread and edit the essay will ensure the writing to be free from error. The individual can take comments from others and then try to integrate it into the original writing style.
5. Practicing the skills:
It is suggested that the outline of the topic should be written at first. Then create a sub-outline which includes characters, plots, and settings. The individual must write down whatever comes to his mind which includes titles, subtitles, phrases, situation, and metaphors.
After having an outline, he should focus on the concrete details and pedantic word choice. The writer should try to support his statement with evidence in accordance with the genre of writing. Moreover, convincing sensory details can be provided to develop imagery.
It is quoted that “Practice makes a man perfect”, therefore it is essential that individual practices his skills in order to improve them. He is required to invest and dedicate some time for practice.
Just like the context of the writing, the quality of the context also matters. The enhancement in quality is led by improvement of writing skills.
I read a ton buddy. I read consistently and expose myself to skilled writers and become a better writer through osmosis like a sponge.