Archive for the ‘The Basics’ Category

1. Have a Structure.
For any writing to be effective, it should be close as much as possible to the thoughts of the writer, but not necessarily in the same order.

There is a very good reason why having an outline is practiced by most writers through time. So, try it.

2. Do not be afraid to omit.
Your sentences should not have unnecessary words. Your paragraph should not have unnecessary sentences – in the same principle that a drawing should not have unnecessary lines.

3. Write in an Active Voice.
Writing in an active voice will give your copy a more firm and direct tone that the passive. The statement “My visit to Boston shall always be remembered by me” is weak compared to “I will always remember my visit to Boston.”

4. Open your letter to catch attention.
Make sure that you begin your letter with a lead-in that will automatically catch the reader’s attention. If you write your letter with loads of jargon in it, it will make the language you are using too dense and unreadable.

5. Use a rhetorical question.
This is a very popular attack and is sometimes (even) overused. But as a beginner, it is better that you practice thinking from the reader’s point of view.

6. Cut your sentences short.
You will be able to develop this skill in time. But remember, conversational writing needs to be quick; sometimes, clipped.

Leave behind what your English teacher in sixth grade told you. Fragments and phrases used as sentences will work just fine.