UNIVERSIDAD CRISTIANA PADRE GASPAR GARCIA LAVIANA

Instructor/professor: Yerling Lagos June 15th, 2024

Subject: Writing I
Major degree: English
CONTENT: Introduction to writing
Different skills
Different types of writing
Strategies to write effectively.

General Writing Skills.

Main skills that every learner should practice. They help you write better sentences, structure
texts, and connect your ideas. General skills improve your overall ability to communicate in
English, even outside of writing.
Grammar
Covers the rules you need to write in English. Includes sentence creation, word order, parts of
speech, tenses, and more.
Vocabulary
Covers the words you need to write about different topics. Starts with general terms and
expands to cover specific jargon, idioms, etc.
Structure
Covers your ability to craft and link sentences in a way that others can understand. Includes
compound sentences with complex punctuation.
Organization
Covers planning and organizing texts. Starts with paragraphs and expands into subtopics or
entire tables of content for longer works.
Tone
Covers different ways to deliver information based on the audience. It can be formal, informal,
educational, entertaining, and so on.
Communication Style
Covers large changes in texts based on their purpose. Styles can be personal, descriptive,
persuasive, narrative, and so on.
Editing
Covers the practice of working with finished texts to improve them. Starts with proofreading
and can include changing large parts of the original.
Note-taking
Covers your ability to take useful and meaningful notes. Adjusting your speed and number of
details based on specific content.
Engagement
Covers different aspects of getting and keeping the reader’s attention. It can include
storytelling, creative writing, and other soft skills.
2. Business Writing.
Professional writing for work-related activities. Improve your general skills first, then write
about specific topics at the workplace. Business writing skills help you communicate clearly
and professionally.
Resumes and CVs
Covers creating a professional resume or CV and editing it to fit the job position you’re
applying for.
Correspondence
Covers a wide range of messages you’ll need to write at the workplace - emails, DMs,
references, and so on.
Presentations
Covers collecting information and structuring key points of a presentation for your colleagues
and clients.
Contracts
Covers writing a variety of formal business agreements. Includes employment contracts, terms
of sale, non-disclosure agreements, etc.
Reports
Covers structuring and writing different types of reports depending on your job position and
standards at your workplace.
Documentation
Covers internal or external communications. For example, writing a manual about your
product or creating standards for your team.
Accounting
Covers a range of topics specific to financial reporting and transactions. Precise writing that
relies heavily on statistics.
Sales Proposals
Covers your ability to write sales materials about products or services. Combines presentations,
correspondence, and contract skills.
Specific Materials
Covers different types of writing specifically for your business. Depends on your job, audience,
and market.
3. Academic Writing.
Writing in different fields of science and research. Focus on data, concepts, and ideas to deliver
objective information. Academic writing skills help you communicate in a neutral tone about a
wide range of complex topics.
Essays
Covers your ability to write essays of different lengths about various academic topics in your
area of expertise.
Summaries
Covers collecting concepts from papers, books, and other materials to summarize them in your
own words.
Planning
Covers outlining academic texts in order to understand key points and fill information gaps in
your writing.
Research
Covers collecting information and writing your own research. Includes referencing,
structuring, and editing papers.
Critical Writing
Covers critical thinking skills needed for examining your own or other people’s writing.
Analysis
Covers different approaches to writing analytical texts.
Education
Covers creating texts for instructing your colleagues and students. It can be domain-specific or
general education in your field.
Literature Review
Covers summarizing available literature for specific research needs. Can exist independently or
as part of other academic works.
Expert Opinions
Covers your ability to write about different topics within your area of expertise in formal and
informal contexts.

8 Writing Strategies to Write More Effectively

1. Don't Write Continuously for Hours on the End

It’s easy to say you’re going to dedicate the next four to five hours just to writing your
paper. Believe it or not, this is counterproductive and might cause you to spend more time
than you wanted writing.

Writing and generating ideas continuously taxes your cognitive capacity. Your brain needs
rest to think effectively. It’s no different than your brain needing sleep.
Moreover, if you’re working against a tight deadline, stress may kick in and you’ll get stuck
with writer's block .

The best way to prevent this is to take regular breaks. As an example, for every 50 minutes
you work, take a 10 minute break. We recommend doing something simple and fun,
like playing a game of solitaire or taking a quick walk.

You want to consistently refresh your mind so you can get back to writing fluidly again.

2. Read, Read, Read!

One writing strategy people tend to overlook is reading. How do you expect to write well if
you haven't been exposed to great writing?

Once you start reading frequently, you'll begin to pick up on certain patterns and habits of
different authors. We're talking about word choice, sentence structure, and new ideas.

After being exposed to different styles and rules, these habits and patterns will become
second nature to you as a writer. You'll be able to implement grammar and spelling rules
without thinking, and will quickly develop a personal writing style without having to stress
over it.

It's also a good idea to re read your own work. If you're too tired or burnt out, pop it into
a grammar checker to be sure everything looks perfect.

3. Identify Your Target Audience

If you know exactly who your audience will be comprised of, you'll be able to focus your
writing much quicker and easier.

It's important to identify a target audience for each thing you right. You may have a
general audience for your writing as a whole (ex: children, parents, students), but each
piece you write will probably have a more specific audience (ex: children under 10, single
parents, STEM students). This specific audience may change from piece to piece,
depending on what your topic range is.

Once you know who your audience will be, it'll be easy to decide on an appropriate tone
and method of communication.

When papers/essays/blog posts are written without a target audience in mind, they tend to
ramble, touching on things that may not be entirely relevant for the reader.

In order to write effectively, it's imperative that you understand who you're writing for.

4. Try Rapid Outlining

Many people skip writing an outline for their paper. They think that as they write, ideas
will flow and the paper will come together. Oftentimes, this process instead ends in
disjointed thoughts and arguments, and a low grade on your paper.

Outlining works! It forces you to think about your topic and how you will support it.
Moreover, it helps lead to a structured paper with logical and coherent points that support
your thesis.

To get over the outlining hump, we suggest trying rapid outlining. Take a piece of paper
(even a napkin works!) and try to outline your paper in 15 minutes. It sounds
unconventional, but it forces you to think about how you want to structure your paper.
Now you’ll have a foundation to either develop a better outline and write a better paper.

This method allows you to come up with a tentative plan without editing yourself or
overthinking, which can lead to mistakes and/or procrastination. At least with a rapid
outline, you have a solid starting point that you can always tweak as you work through it.
5. Ask 5 "Whys"to Come Up with a Topic

Coming up with a topic can be the hardest part of your paper. What should you write
about?

We suggest asking five “why” questions to explore potential ideas.

For example, if your topic is about Michael Jordan, you can ask why he’s considered the
best basketball player of all time. If it was his skillset, why was he so skillful? If his talent
comes from his work regimen, why was it so effective?

Asking questions helps open up new approaches to take. Keep digging in, and you’ll find
there are all sorts of different ideas to write about. Think of it like a chain reaction: once
you figure out one part of the story, another question reveals itself, begging you to
investigate deeper.

6. Keep It Simple and Direct

Good writing doesn't always mean rambling, fancy writing. Sometimes the best way to get
the job done is to jump straight to the main point.

If you want your writing to be effective (and we're guessing you do, since you're reading
this blog post), be direct. You need to make a quick impression in order to grab the
attention of your readers, and you need to be brief in order to keep that attention.

Play around with sentence structure. Use a bold first sentence. Think about how to turn
long sentences into shorter sentences. Put your ideas out there first (no beating around the
bush!) and back them up later.

Pro tip: Keep your adjectives and adverbs to a minimum in order to be more direct. Our
next tip will also benefit from this...

7. Select Powerful Verbs

One of the easiest writing skills you can master is honing in on word choice. Good writing
uses strong, dynamic words that convey a message very quickly.

If you struggle with finding the right words to use, try out an online paraphraser . The
paraphraser will recommend alternative ways to phrase things, suggesting new words,
tones, and syntax to keep your writing fresh.

Whether your work falls under the umbrella of creative writing or academic writing, one
thing is for sure: word choice is of the utmost importance when it comes to conveying your
message in the way you'd like.
8. Proofread, Revise, and Edit

If you really want to improve your own writing, you need to go through the editing process.
Whether this is by yourself, in writing workshops, or with a trusted peer one-on-
one, proofreading and editing are non-negotiable steps in the writing process.

Editing allows for your writing to improve. You (or a friend, or a host of online tools ) will
find errors or weak points by going through your initial drafts. Instead of looking at this as
a chore, think of it as an exciting opportunity to improve your writing!

During the editing process, you can take the constructive criticism you receive and use it to
improve your grammar skills, expand on your ideas, add supporting information, and just
strengthen your work overall.

It can be hard to be objective about your own writing, but if you're able to look at it without
bias, it will come out stronger on the other side.

Miscellaneous Writing Techniques and Strategies

So we've gone through all of the big writing strategies that will get your writing to be tight
and efficient. However, we're not done quite yet.

Here is a series of smaller, supporting different writing strategies that will help you as you
work through your early work.

1. Use Fewer Words and Phrases

This goes along with Tip #6, "Keep it simple and direct."

By cutting down on the number of words you use, your audience will be able to understand
your point quickly and with less confusion. Less really is more.

2. Reduce the Number of Negatives in Sentences

Double negatives are grammatically incorrect (not no one, not never, etc), but it's smart to
stay away from regular negative speech as well.

Instead of saying "It's not that I'm unhappy," try saying "I'm happy, but..."

This will help you be more direct. It can be confusing to use negatives when your
connotation is meant to be positive. Just say what you mean. It'll be easier for everyone.

3. Use Both Simple and Sophisticated Language

Those with strong writing skills are able to discern when a certain type of language will be
most effective.

While you don't want your writing to sound too choppy and robotic by using only simple
sentences, you want to write in a way that most everyone can understand (which means it
shouldn't be too intricate).

A lot of this has to do with word choice and sentence structure. Vary the types of phrases
you use to find your own style and keep your work engaging.

Final Thoughts on Writing Strategies

Whether you've just started writing or you're one of the more experienced writers, at least
one of these writing strategies should be able to help you make your writing more effective
(and we hope all of them help you to improve!).

Honing your writing skills definitely takes time and practice, but if you're truly determined
to make your own work the best that it can be, you'll get there.