Quicklinks
Writing Effectively
Writing in General
Too often, beginning writers think that the more complex-sounding their writing is, the better it is. This isn’t true! Throwing in “50-cent” words, especially if you’re not sure what the words mean, doesn’t make your writing better! If anything, it makes it harder to understand--and remember, your most important goal in writing is to communicate your ideas to your reader. If no one gets what you’re trying to say, then your work has failed its primary goal. This doesn’t mean that writing always has to appeal to the intellect--in some cases, your goal might be to make your readers feel something strongly. But they still have to understand what it is that you’re trying to say.
Know Your Audience
Being aware of your target audience and what style of writing best fits your purpose is important, because it helps you to deliver your message more effectively. For example, if you’re writing a review of a concert that you saw, you want your writing to be more casual and colorful than it might be if you were writing a more formal piece--for example, a research report. If you’re writing a report for school, using slang or jargon (that is, words that are specific to a certain profession or group--an example would be the word “riff” or “hook,” which musicians use to describe parts of a song) probably won’t be appropriate. But if you’re writing about a new CD, it probably is appropriate to have a more casual tone (attitude or flavor) to your writing.
K.I.S.S.
No, not the rock band! K.I.S.S. is an acronym that stands for “keep it simple, silly!” This means that your writing should be clear and concise--don’t use big words when a shorter word will convey your meaning just as well; make sure you’re using punctuation correctly so that you don’t have run-on sentences that just don’t end and eventually lose your readers; and make sure you know what you want to say, so that you get to the point.*
*Was that last sentence a run-on sentence? Probably not because (1) it used semicolons to separate the different ideas, (2) all three ideas helped to clarify the first part of the sentence, and (3) none of the words or ideas were hard to understand. But I might have written that sentence differently, to make it even more concise, like this: Keep your writing clear and concise. Don’t use big words when shorter words are just as clear. Use punctuation correctly to avoid run-on sentences, so that you don’t confuse your readers. And make sure you know what you want to say so that you get to the point! By splitting the sentence into four separate sentences, I’ve made it easier to understand each of the separate ideas. But the writing sounds choppier, so I’ve lost a smooth “flow.” Which is better? You decide--good writing means using good judgment to balance clarity with flow and tempo.
Techniques like brainstorming, and using outlines will help you to decide in advance what points you want to make and the order in which you plan to make them. As with most things, having a good game plan will save you a lot of time and frustration, and will help you to plan a straightforward approach to your writing.
Use the Active Voice, Not the Passive Voice
In sentences written using the active voice, the subject performs the action. Example: Jane [the subject] ate [performing an action] a bagel for breakfast.
In sentences written using the passive voice, the subject is acted upon. Example: The bagel [subject] was eaten [acted upon] by Jane.
In addition to keeping your sentences simpler, writing in the active voice generally makes sentences more powerful and easier to follow and gives writing strength and directness. In contrast, writing in the passive voice is often wordy and overly complicated, as well as more difficult to follow and often more dull.
There are some clues for telling whether a sentence is written in the passive voice:
- The verb includes a form of the verb “to be, “ often in the past tense (i.e., was, were). Example: The award was presented to John. [Active: The coach presented the award to John.]
- The sentence often has a phrase with the word “by.” Example: The award was accepted by John. [Active: John accepted the award]
There are a few cases when the passive voice might be more appropriate, such as when the person or thing performing the action is unknown or unimportant. Example: The unsigned letter was dated March 1842.In most case, though, the active voice is usually your best bet.
Use Complete Sentences
When we have conversations, we very often use incomplete sentences, also known as sentence fragments. For example, if you ask me, “Why did Angela go home?” I might answer, “Because she was tired.” There’s no question that what I mean is that “Angela went home because she was tired,” but in speaking, I use a kind of shorthand. This is perfectly acceptable in conversation, because otherwise we would have long and stilted, awkward conversations.
In formal writing, though, sentence fragments are unacceptable, because sentence fragments are incomplete and confusing. Sentences express a complete thought, and require both a subject and a verb. Sentence fragments may have both a subject and a verb, but they do not express a complete thought.
“Because she was tired,” makes no sense out of context--that is, if you didn’t hear the question, the response, which is a sentence fragment, doesn’t really make sense. But there is no confusion about the complete sentence, “Angela went home because she was tired.”
Choose the Best Words for the Job
There’s a reason for all of those vocabulary lists and tests you’ve taken over the years--to give you the tools to be an effective communicator! Words are to writing what colors are to painting--a way to express your creativity and communicate ideas and feelings. Words are very powerful.
But in order to make your ideas as clear as possible, you have to think about the words you use and choose them with care. Two words may be similar in meaning, but the message they convey may be very different in meaning or intensity.
For example, “John drove quickly down the street” may convey your idea adequately, but saying “John sped down the street” gives your writing more intensity.Here are some reminders about choosing words wisely:
- In general, avoid using verbs (e.g., drove) and adverbs (e.g., quickly) together if there is a verb that can express the same idea by itself (e.g., sped). Your writing will be stronger and more to the point.
Example 1: “I’ve had enough!” the judge exclaimed angrily.Better: “I’ve had enough!” the judge [thundered, snarled, spat].
Example 2: The students spoke humorously to one another.Better: The students [bantered, joked].
Example 3: The cat ran and jumped around playfully.Better: The cat [scampered, frolicked].
In this example, not only are the verbs in the second sentence stronger, they’re also more descriptive.
- Make sure you’re using the correct word. Disinterested (unbiased) is not the same as uninterested (not interested). Etymology (the history of words) may sound like entomology (the study of ants), but they’re obviously far apart in meaning! (Below is a short list of commonly confused words.)
- Use words precisely. A thesaurus will help you pick the word that best fits the meaning and mood you want to convey.
Morose, maudlin, melancholy, and despondent are all “flavors” of the word sad, but they have shades of meaning that “sad” may not convey. Using words that differ slightly in meaning will give your writing a precision and “color” that using the obvious word may not.
Writing Links
Bartleby.com publishes the full text of books that are in the public domain (that is, the copyright that limits the reproduction of material has expired or does not apply). This reference page leads to the full versions of many important references including encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauruses, and style guides. Make sure you check out all of the other classic books, from the ancient Greek writers to 20th century authors throughout the Bartleby web site!
The Writing Den’s Tip-o-Matic lets you easily look up information about punctuation, sentences, planning and writing essays, and other writing tips.
The Internet Public Library (a good source for MANY reasons!) has put together this excellent page of links to online writing aids, books, and sites that publish teen writers just like you! Check out the many wonderful links!
The Elements of Style is Dr. William Strunk’s short and elegant classic discussing some of the more commonly broken rules of usage and good writing.
Dictionary.com links to many resources on all aspects of writing, including grammar guides and writing manuals.
Commonly Misused Words
affect, effect
- affect means to influence or change
- effect (noun) means the result or impression; or (verb) to cause
disinterested, uninterested
- disinterested means unbiased or neutral
- uninterested means not interested
among, between
- among generally should be used when there are more than two persons or things involved
- between is used when there are two persons or things
farther, further
- farther is used in connection with distance: After I moved, I was even farther away from my job
- further refers to degree or extent in the sense of “I will discuss this no further”; also a shortened version of “furthermore”
imply, infer
- imply means to hint or suggest (the speaker makes the implication)
- infer means to take in a hint or suggested (the listener infers meaning from something that the speaker says)
lay, lie
- lay means to place something or put something: please lay the paper on the desk
- lie means to rest or recline (also means to tell an untruth)
less, fewer
- less is used for quantities: I have less money than you do
- fewer is used for individual numbers or units: I have fewer dollars than you do
me, myself, and I
- Me is appropriate when you are the object of the action (verb): are you talking to me? In general, use “me” if it follows a preposition (i.e., by, for, to, against, between, below, above, etc). A common mistake: “her and I” as in “The boys were talking to Mary and I.” It should be “The boys were talking to Mary and me” (i.e., the boys were talking to Mary [and] the boys were talking to me.
- Myself is reflexive--it has to reflect back on an “I”: I’ll do it myself. Don’t use “myself” when you mean me or I. Wrong: As for myself . . .” Correct: As for me . . .” Wrong: The boys were talking to Mary and myself.” Correct: The boys were talking to Mary and me.”
- I is a nominative (naming) pronoun (along with he, she, we, they, who, you, it). Nominative pronouns serve as the subject in a sentence: I went to the store; he ate a pizza.
who, whom
- Who and whom aren’t difficult to figure out if you remember that “who” is like “I” (it’s a subject) and “whom” is like me, him, her (it’s the object of the verb or preposition).
- Use who and whoever when you could substitute he, she, I, we for who: Who got an A? (She got an A.)
- Use whom and whomever when you could substitute me, her, him, them, us as the object of the verb or object of the preposition: Whom did you talk to today? (Did you talk to him today?)