Writing is not one of my strengths. The first time I have discovered this, I was in primary school when in 3rd grade we had to write an essay for the first time. I discovered that free, creative writing is nothing for me and tried to find my way through structured, informative writing. The years passed and after finishing my studies I started to work on my own and founded this blog, and I have to admit that it was quite a challenge to build the habit of writing consistently over time.
Because I aim to develop my writing skills I discovered an interesting book named “On Writing Well” by William Zinsser. Maybe there are also some of you who want to evolve in this direction, so I decided to write this article with the main ideas of the book.
Anyone can learn to write
- Writing takes time and effort and learning from mistakes
- Write about things that passion you
- Write regularly, schedule writing in your timetable
- Observe your writing and work on its component, form, and style
- Take part in online courses and workshops to improve your writing skills
Quality writing is easy to understand
- Formulate a single intention clearly and simple with a good structure. The writing should flow.
- Use short and simple paragraphs, sentences, and words. After finishing your writing, put the pen beside and read the whole text aloud, cut words and expressions that disturb the flow.
- Be concise!
- Give your writing a personal touch: the reader should feel addressed by the written text and you can do this by telling stories, using quotes and bringing your message over in an energetic way.
Make yourself a good system
- What is the one idea you want to leave in the readers` mind?
- Research all the material you find about a topic, look what surprises you, write only about essential things from this material.
- Use a story to explain a complex topic. Organize your writing to display a clear thinking process.
- Write your first draft – after that rewrite and edit. Read aloud. Edit. Rewrite. Read aloud. Edit…
What do you think of this system of writing? Are you going to try it out? I guess I will give it a try…