Tonight’s guest blog post is brought to you by Maria Castle.
Tips on How to Improve Your Writing
Everybody wants to improve their writing some way, whether it is to start a new career, improve their academic work, or to improve their job prospects. Here are a few ways that may help you to improve your writing. Not only will these pointers help you to improve the quality of your text, but also the impact that is has and your own habits when it comes to writing.
Write without stopping for extended periods
Practice writing without stopping for a certain period of time, allowing your fingers to move almost constantly. This may sound ridiculous, and of course, the result will be many grammatical errors. But there is something powerful in the act of writing in a continuous stream, which more closely reflects spoken word over written text; which may result in a marked improvements in your text quality and work output.
Write with confidence in an unapologetic manner
Do you want to have a positive impact to the people who read your text? You should be direct, passionate and inflexible. Take up a position and do not use a passive voice.
Write to one person as if you’re talking
Some people tend to write very broadly in an attempt to include a larger crowd in their target audience; however, it is more likely to bore them all. Target a character and speak to him/her personally, as he/she represents your target audience. Write as if you were talking to that person face-to-face. You will find that your writing will become more intimate and specific.
Use your internal voice and personality
The “voice” of the text is the element with which the writers reveal their personality. Readers should be able to look upon you as a real human being.
Understand that writing online is different
One of the most common mistakes when writing online is the use of long paragraphs. Reading from a screen is hard work that online readers are not willing to put in. Long paragraphs are even harder to read lead people tend to not bother. Consider paying for proofreading services until you are well versed in acceptable online and offline writing.
Take risks when you write
Part of the creative process requires the adoption of a mindset where everything is possible. The best writers explore these possibilities even when doing so will be frowned upon. From the addition of made-up words, to improper sentence syntax and vernaculars, the rules were made to be broken.
Tell your story aloud and translate it to text
If you have difficulty putting your thoughts on paper, then record your words. It is much easier to talk than it is to write. In this way we can get to the heart of what you mean to say, without being bogged down with trying to put it into sentences and words. When you have finished a chapter or made your point, you are able to write down what you said, and edit out the bits that did not sound very good.
Read aloud the finished article
Rarely do we objectively read our words. To freely analyze your writing you need to start reading aloud. If necessary, rewrite the text so that rereading it aloud sounds more natural.
Don’t learn from great writers
Do not expect to be a great writer if you are not familiar with the great writing, but do not be influence by it. Trying to do what the greats did is the first step towards being a hack. The scholars will not be discussing you in 100 years because your characters name is “Hugh Man”, or because you describe your main character as if you are describing a bear. The greats were great because they made their own style and exploited it. If you want to be great then you need to develop your own style.
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That was great. Thank you, Maria!
The article is contributed by Maria Castle. She is a writer for Scholar Advisor, an education portal that provides writing tips, guides and essay samples.
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Yvonne Hertzberger
March 5, 2013 at 11:43 pm
Great post. I especially liked the bit about “Don’t learn from great writers.” I was given very bad advice once by a winner of the Canadian Governor general’s Award. I had a 30 minute one on one critique of 15 pages with him. Following his advice would have been disastrous for me.
morgenbailey
March 7, 2013 at 9:04 am
Great to see you, Yvonne. I’ve passed on your comment…