Writing Skills

Indeed, learning to write may be part of learning to read. For all

I know, writing comes out of a superior devotion to reading.

- Eudora Welty

The first draft of everything is shit. - Ernest Hemingway

And as imagination bodies forth, the form of things unknown,

the poet’s pen turns them to shapes and gives to airy nothing a
local habitation and name. - Shakespeare
 WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

 Includes letters, circulars, emails, memos,

reports, notices, forms and manuals,
agendas, minutes of the meetings etc.
Everything that has to be written and
transmitted in the written form falls in the
area of written communication.
 WRITING – WHY SO DIFFICULT?
 Processing ideas in your head at same time
as trying to get down on paper
Reveals problems that can then disrupt
writing
Because it exposes our limitations of
knowing a language
 WRITING – WHY SO DIFFICULT?
 There is no one best way to write!
Individuals adopt very different
approaches depending on psychological
preferences e.g.
 ‘Skeleton’ structure, than ‘hang’ key

words/authors on it
 Ideas map (‘spider’s web’)

 Free-form/stream of consciousness,

then edit
WRITING SKILLS - How to improve
them
When you write, consider the following:
 Who is the audience?
 What format is required – essay or report or
reflection on experience?
 Academic styles of writing – writing in a logical
and ‘objective’ way Vs. writing from personal
experience
 Academic conventions – referencing and
plagiarism
 STEPS IN WRITING
 Preparation and planning
 Drafting
 Re-drafting and polishing
 Editing and proofreading
 Reflecting on feedback
 What Makes A Good Essay?

 Good structure: clear introduction, well

crafted middle, clear and appropriate
conclusion

 Clear argument: progression through ideas

with clear signposting

 Well supported by relevant evidence

What Makes A Good Essay?

 Well written: grammatical; correct spelling

and punctuation; good sentence structure,
paragraphing and use of linking words and
phrases

 Fully referenced using APA style, MLA

citation etc
 THINGS TO BE DONE

 Prepare well in advance

 Write a first draft, leave and come back to it

later

 Keep your focus on the question/ main points

 Edit carefully for sense, spelling, grammar and

punctuation
I hate wet and reiny days.
It rained a lot in 1816.... a lot - like everyday; the weather
in Europe was abnormally wet because it rained in
Switzerland on 130 out of the 183 days from April to
September. If I was Mary Shelley I might decide to write a
book too. Afterall, it was the onnly thing you could do
without TV or anything. She said that she "passed the
summer of 1816 in the environs of Geneva...we
occasionally amused ourselves with some German stories
of ghosts... These tales excited in us a playful desire of
imitation"  So, people were stuck inside and bored. Mary
Shelley decided to write a book becuase it was so awful
outside. I can totally see her point, you know? I guess I
would write a novel if there was nothing else to do.
The weather in 1816 Europe was abnormally wet, keeping many
inhabitants indoors that summer. From April until September of that
year, "it rained in Switzerland on 130 out of the 183 days from April to
September" (Phillips, 2006). Unlike today, one could not simply turn on
a television or click through the Internet in order to entertain oneself.
Instead, it was much more common for the educated people of the day
to spend time reading, discussing well-known authors and artists of
the day, playing at cards and walking in their gardens and walking
paths.
If you were Mary Shelley, the renowned poet, in the company of Byron
and others, you would amuse each other by reading out loud, sharing
a common interest in a particular book, and sharing with the others
your own writing. In her introduction to Frankenstein, her explanation
of how this extraordinary novel came to be was due, at least in part, to
the weather and the company (Shelley, 1816).  "I passed the summer
of 1816 in the environs of Geneva. The season was cold and rainy,
and ...we occasionally amused ourselves with some German stories of
ghosts... These tales excited in us a playful desire of imitation"
(Shelley, as quoted in Phillips, 2006).
 Types of Paragraphs/Write-up
• Analysis
• Definition
• Comparison & Contrast
• Explanation
• Argument
• Problem and Solution
 Writing a First Draft
• Think about a topic—an issue, a person, a
place, a process, etc.
• Create a general outline
• Try to get as many ideas as possible on the
topic
• Choose and note down the relevant ideas
• Do not bother about good introduction or an
emphatic conclusion at this stage
 How Can One Revise a Draft?
• Compactness of the Content
• Sequence of parts
• Conciseness and Clarity of Expression
• Agreement between text and any
illustration
• Format
 Guidelines for Revision
• Stay away from your first draft for at least
twenty four hours after its completion
• Get feedback from someone else who has not
seen the first draft
• Check whether each paragraph relates to the
main topic of the text
• Read aloud so as to get a feel of how your text
will sound to others
 Guidelines for Revision Cont..
• Check the Introduction and Conclusion
• Check the sources (if any cited in the text)
• Delete Sentences that do not contribute to the
main idea
• Make sure that the verb tense is consistent
throughout
• Ensure effective transitions between
paragraphs
 Guidelines for Revision Conti…
• Check for errors in grammar, spelling and
punctuation, typographical errors etc.
• Cohesion (clarity of thought) and Coherence
(Connectivity)
 Difference between a Notice, a memo and a
circular
• A circular is more widely distributed to the public. It
is usually distributed in the form of leaflets or flyers.
There is no targeted audience in a circular as it
usually aims to inform or attract the attention of the
public in general.
• A memorandum is more internal than a circular. It is
usually distributed within companies, institutions,
and organizations. To obtain more understanding of
a memo, get to know the proper memo format.
• A notice, on the other hand, can both be widely
distributed or otherwise. The main characteristic of
a notice is its specificity when it comes to targeting
only those audience that are relevant to the
information contained in the notice. For example, a
notice regarding a foreclosure of a property
concerns the public, hence it can be placed in a
paper of wide distribution. On the other hand, if the
purpose of the notice is to inform a certain
department of a company, then that notice must
only be sent to the head of that department
 Signal/Transition Words
• For examples: For example, for instance, to illustrate

• For organization or chronological order: The six steps

are…, next, finally first, secondly, third

• For additional points: Furthermore, in addition, also,

moreover

• For opposing ideas: On the other hand, in contrast,

although, however, ironically

• For similar ideas: Likewise, similarly, in comparison

 Signal/Transition Words
• For exceptions: However, nevertheless, nonetheless,
but, yet, still

• For emphasis: Above all, finally, more importantly,

most significantly

• For understanding: In other words, in essence, briefly

• For summarizing: In conclusion, to sum up, for these

reasons, in a nutshell
Thank You