How to Improve Writing Skills
How to Improve Writing Skills
To improve writing skills and be a better writer, you must be determined to do the requirements. It may be tough at some times and could take you a while, but it would be worth it. Be patient. Good things happen when you are.
But here are some easy and simple tips that would help you improve writing skills.
- The first key to improve writing skills is to have a good command of the language you intend to use in writing. If you are to use your second language, master it first. Study its grammar, and sentence and paragraph construction. If you are to use the English language, study its Parts of Speech, verb tenses and parallelism, syntax, etc. This may take years which possibly start from your preschool years. But even if you are writing in your mother tongue, you still need to do further study to master it and be better in writing using it.
- After gaining a good command of the language you will use, increase your vocabulary. If you are really serious in increasing your word bank of say, English words, make reading the dictionary your new and bizarre habit. I remember, when I was in 2nd year high school and was reading a pocket dictionary, another student stared at me. I sensed he finds me a bit silly reading a dictionary. But it was worth it. That practice, increased my vocabulary, and the new words I learned from that day, I still use until now.But do not just read, study. Get a notebook and write down the new words you learned with its meaning, and pronunciation. After studying them, apply them. Otherwise you will forget those new words. Use the new words in sentences, write it down in your notebook, or better yet, use them in the articles, stories, or essays you are writing.
- The next thing you need to do to improve writing skills is to read. A lot. A good writer should also be a good reader, not necessarily a book worm, but someone who likes if not loves to read. But do not just read like any everybody else does. You are a writer, read like one. Go beyond reading for what the story is about. While reading, you are studying. Dissect. That’s the perfect word. Look into writing styles, choice of words, vocabulary words, grammar and composition etc. Learn from good writers, study their well-written write-ups.
- Write, write, and write. This is a must if you really want to improve writing skills. Make writing a daily habit. If you skipped a day or worst, couple of days without writing anything, your writing skills will turn dull just like a knife that is left unused, that gets blunt, rusty, and eventually useless.
- Ask for feed backs. Other people’s opinions regarding your essay or story are important. To improve writing skills is getting constructive criticisms and applying them. Just like the principle of the Johari Window: there are things which other people know or see which you do not see and vice versa. They could spot an error or something you can improve which you do not notice.
- Learn how to proofread, rewrite, revise, and edit. There’s a difference between a good writer and a better one. A good writer is one that writes wonderful stories or essays, a better writer is one that also knows how to proofread, rewrite, revise, and even edit his own write-up or others’.
Consider these important tips and through a lot of work and experience, you will surely improve writing skills!
