ACADEMIC WRITING

and Professional Report

Definition:
• Academic writing is clear, concise, focused, structured and backed up by
evidence. Its purpose is to aid the reader's understanding. It has a formal
tone and style, but it is not complex and does not require the use of long
sentences and complicated vocabulary.
• Academic writing refers to writing done for several reasons. Also,
academic writing is used in many different forms.
• A broad definition of academic writing is any writing done to fulfill a
requirement of a college or university. Academic writing is also used for
publications that are read by teacher and researchers or presented at
conferences. A very broad definition of academic writing could include
any writing assignment given in an academic setting.
Finally
• Academic writing refers to a style of expression that researchers use
to define the intellectual boundaries of their disciplines and specific
areas of expertise.Like specialist languages adopted in other
professions, such as, law or medicine, academic writing is designed to
convey agreed meaning about complex ideas or concepts for a group
of scholarly experts.
Think about this!
• Hence, academic writing is often called professional writing
6 General Points to Consider in Academic
Writing
• Audience:
Considering your audience is something you should do before writing
your paper. If you are a student, your audience will be your instructor
who has definitely some expectations which you will have to meet.
Your audience may also be advisors, thesis committees, and journal and
conference reviewers. Taking your audience into account will affect the
content of your writing. For example, if you assume that your readers
are familiar with the subject you are writing about, you will not provide
much background information.
• Purpose:
Audience and purpose are interconnected. If the audience knows less
than the writer, then purpose is instructional. But if the audience
knows more than the writer, as is the case with students, the purpose
will be demonstration of knowledge and expertise. So you should be
aware of the purpose of your writing as it is a decisive factor.
Organization:
Organization is a matter of priorities and structure. Your audience has this
expectation that the information will be presented in a structured format that is
suitable for the genre of the text, so there are different patterns you should take
advantage of, because most readers are familiar with them and this helps
facilitate the conveyance of information. Other factors such as relevance,
coherence and flow, cohesion and texture, context and message should be taken
into account. Moreover, there are several established patterns of information
organization which all writers make use depending on the nature of their paper:
problems and solutions, comparison-contrast, cause-effect, and classification.
• Style:
You have to make sure that your writing is based on an
appropriate style. Style should be consistent and suitable both
in terms of audience and the message. Writing your research
report in an informal style would be a grave mistake. Also, you
should consider the fact that academic style differs from one
field to another, so by analyzing the papers in your chosen field
of study you will become familiar with styles used in your field.
(There are many stylistic features that will be discussed in detail
later.)
• Flow:
Another important factor is flow. It means moving from one statement in a text to
another. It is obvious that by keeping the flow and making clear connection of ideas
and concepts you will helps your audience to follow the text. One of the most
commonly used methods for establishing a flow is moving from old information to
new information. By stating old information first you can provide some brief
background information and then state your assumptions or conclusions and
establish a connection between them. Example:
Although it is believed to connect the world together, internet can have negative
impact on some cultures.
We will focus on linking words and phrases later on. These elements can help the
writer maintain the flow of information and establish clear relationships between
ideas and concepts.
• Presentation:
Before presenting your paper, ask yourself these questions: are
information flow and overall format good enough? Is your paper
grammatically accurate? Have you checked for spelling errors?
The Components of the Writing Process

• There are five major components of the writing process:

• 1.Prewriting
• 2.Writing
• 3.Revising
• 4.Editing
• 5.Publishing
• Prewriting
Prewriting is the process of gathering ideas and information for your
project. This could include:
General brainstorming
Doing background research at the library or online
Conducting interviews
Writing character sketches
Making an outline
• Writing
After you've thought about what you hope to accomplish with your project, it's
time to start actually writing the first draft. Every writer has a unique routine
for this part of the process. Some write in the morning, while others write just
before they go to sleep at night. Some people prefer to write in a home office,
while others work best in a coffee shop surrounded by other people. Many
writers prefer to write on a daily schedule to keep them motivated, but there
are also a number of writers who only work when inspiration strikes.
Regardless of your particular writing routine, remember that writing requires
both concentration and energy. Even experienced writers can seldom manage
to write for hours at a time. It's perfectly acceptable to allow yourself a small
break after an hour of uninterrupted writing.
• Revising
Many novice freelance writers make the mistake of thinking that once
they've finished a first draft, their work is complete. Unfortunately, your
first draft is seldom representative of your best work. Every professional
freelance writer understands that rewriting is one of the key parts of
the writing process.
• Rewriting [ revising ] may include:
Adding sections to provide more detail where it is needed
Removing sections that are repetitious or unnecessary
Replacing sections with more vivid prose
Rearranging parts of the piece to improve the overall flow
• Revising is often where critique groups can come into play, especially
if you're working on a longer project such as a book proposal. As a
writer, it's natural to be attached to your project. However, what
seems like brilliant prose to you may very well be confusing to the
reader. Having a group of people review your work will give you new
insights into what needs to be changed or improved. Even if some of
the criticism is hard for your ego to take, this will make you a much
better writer in the end.
• Editing
Editing involves checking over the smaller details that you've ignored
until now in favor of focusing on the overall structure of your work.
During the editing process, you are evaluating:
Grammar
Spelling
Punctuation
Word choice
Formatting mistakes
• Publishing
Publishing simply involves distributing your work in its finished format. For a
freelance writer, this is generally interpreted as distributing the project to the
client, sending off a query letter, or submitting a book proposal.
While the goal is to have your work met with enthusiastic reviews, rejection
is often one of the components of the writing process. A client may not like
the way you handled his press release or a magazine may feel your idea isn't
suitable for their audience. Don't let this keep you from pursuing your dream
of a freelance writing career. Consider their suggestions, revise your work,
and try again. In the end, your persistence will pay off.