Introduction
Since you are here, you want to know how toimprove your English writing skills. You are already aware how many resources the web has to offer – such as essay writing service, learning tips, memory skills, etc. But you want to achieve quick results without having to browse numerous resources. Well, we cannot offer you momentary results. What we can do, though, is provide you with a thorough list of tips. We believe that following them will allow you to achieve great improvement in your writing skills. So, let us begin with…
Read. Then Read Some More
This is always being suggested as a tip for English writing improvement. And that is for a good reason. It works! It will show you new vocabulary, it will offer you various ways to combine words. Reading introduces us to beautiful phrases and ways to express yourself. Once you are familiar with them, you can start applying those principles in your own writing. It’s not said that you should read, for instance, the classics. No, any book will do. The thing is – you need to read a lot. Even if it is simply blogs, articles, magazines, and stuff like that.
Avoid Specific Words
- Very
- Really
- Good
- Stuff
- Things
- Quite
- Got
Those are some words that you need to ban from your vocabulary. They are pretty much useless. They won’t express any meaning. If you remove them, you will be able to communicate the same thing but now more clearly and concise. It will also offer your readers a better flow of speech.
For instance, when you want to say that someone “runs really fast”, go with “sprint”. Or if you want to say “really pretty”, go with “adorable”.
Thesaurus
Now, we mentioned that you need to remove certain words. But we also need to put in some more words in your toolbox. Here we should mention the Thesaurus. With its help you can exchange the words you use too frequently and substitute them with more interesting ones. Don’t overdo it, though. If you use too posh words, then you can make the readers want to use a thesaurus as well. Try not to sound too sophisticated. Try to sound natural and target the text towards the audience of choice.
Know the Audience
It is vital that you understand what is the target audience. You need to write for those who will read the text you are writing. After all, when you want to do an article you will use a different language than if you wish to update your CV. What is different is what words are you choosing as well as what the tone of the writing is. So, think whether you need to go formal, or informal.
If you need to write a formal text, it will be complex, it will have longer sentences, and the points will be thoroughly discussed. The text doesn’t need to evoke feelings but needs to be less emotional. The words are usually expanded – such as, can not, would not, etc.
But if you are going for an informal one, you should try to add empathy and emotion. Here the language is simpler, and the sentences should be shorter. You can use abbreviations and contractions. You can also use colloquial language. When writing, imagine you are directly speaking to the person reading the text.
Go for Active Language
If you use active vs. passive language, you will be able to write more clearly and concise. For instance, if you use “The tree hit the passer-by”, this will be better than “The passer-by was hit by a tree”.
Yes, there are cases when passive language is needed. Those are instances when you need to talk as an authority or when you need to apply tact and avoid directly speaking on the subject.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Feedback
This is a truly important moment. However you may write, you will not understand where you are making mistakes and how to improve, if you aren’t getting any feedback. You need to have someone proofread the writing and advise you on how to improve it. The best proofreader will be a native who understands the practices of good writing.
Don’t Forget the Grammar
Even if you are writing well, if you don’t write with good grammar, the readers will make a note of it. So, make sure you follow the rules and understand the basics of proper text building.
Conclusion
Sure, there are some other minor tips one can find on the Internet, but our goal was to give you the tools that you can use to build on and conquer the skill of English text writing. We tried to show you the most importanteducational aspects that you will need to understand in order to perform well in this field. So, good luck in your journe