WRITING: SKILLS

 

WRITING SKILL

The skill which is used to draft a written document is called writing skill. This is an umbrella skill which includes many skills. All those skills are known as writing skills.

 

Writing skills include all the knowledge and abilities related to expression through written word. It is related to understanding of language by means of grammar, spelling, punctuation, when and how to write. Here, are few of the skills that comes under writing skills-

1.    Linguistic skills

a.     Vocabulary

b.     Spelling

c.     Punctuation

d.    Capitalization

2.    Grammar skills

a.     Tenses

b.    Sentence structure

c.     Paragraph Structure

3.    Format skills

a.     Drafting

b.    Designing

4.    Planning

5.    Decision making

6.    Good Handwriting skills

7.    Revising and Editing Techniques

WAYS TO IMPROVE WRITING SKILLS

Writing skills need a lot of hard work and patience. Good Writing skills make any of the documents effective and impressive. We can improve our writing skills by practicing regularly and updating ourselves in language learning. Few tips are given below-

   1.    Linguistic skills: The skill which is related to the knowledge of language is called linguistic skill. it includes various parameters like- word meanings, antonyms, synonyms, one word substitution, homonyms, homophones, spellings, punctuation etc. we can subdivide the linguistic skill in to following categories-

a.     Vocabulary: Vocabulary is the base of any language. If someone wants to learn a language then we must learn words and their proper uses in different situations. The confusing words like homophones, homonyms, heteronyms etc should be learnt properly. learning vocabulary is one of the important linguistic skills.

b.     Spelling: It is really an important skills in writing a document. Even a minor mistake changes the meaning of the word that leads to confusion and creates barriers. Hence, before writing any document our spelling skills should be taken seriously. It is an important skill, too.

c.     Punctuation: Punctuation gives a correct flow and sense to any document. An error in punctuation changes its meaning completely. Never avoid the knowledge of punctuation while learning a language. it is an important skill.

d.    Capitalization: Though it comes in punctuation but it also plays an important role while writing a document. It gives some special designation to certain words. Hence, it is used to clear the point.

2.    Grammar skills: Words are the base of any language but only a proper arrangement of words makes sense. Hence, the proper placement of different parts of speech in a sentence makes it understandable. It includes the study of parts of speech, tenses, structure of sentences, etc.

a.     Tenses: Good grammar skill requires the complete knowledge of tenses and their usage. with learning tenses, no one can make sense of a document.

b.    Sentence structure: Every expression requires an special format or structure. enquiry can not be asked in statement format. likewise, surprises can not be written in enquiry format. hence, it is important to learn sentence structure so that each expression can be written in suitable sentence structure.

c.     Paragraph Structure:  Even after learning words and sentence writing, most of the writers don't know how to design/write a paragraph correctly. Loosely packed sentences loose the charm of reading. hence, learning paragraph development is very important as every document is the logically arrangement of paragraphs. 

3.    Format skills: To make any document presentable and professional, formatting skills are very important. It includes formatting, drafting and designing.

a. Formatting: a document means the placement of every element as per the structure demand. It refers to the presentation of a document. If what to write is important but where to write in a document is also important. Every formal written document has a fixed format to follow. Hence, formatting skill is very important to give an elegant look to any document.

b.     Drafting: Drafting refers to actually writing the words of the paper. It is the process of creating a document/assignment. It takes quite a bit of time, and includes other elements of the writing process such as editing, revision, review etc. It is formal and technical term.

c.    Designing: Design may refer to the finished product of drafting in accordance with the expected result. It is the method to represent one’s imagination through drawing.

4.    Planning: When a document is written, it requires various steps before actual writing. those various steps are called planning. Without planning it is almost impossible to write an impressive document. For writing a document planning can be done on various parts like on subject, readers, length of document, language etc. Planning before actual writing, will help to write a document effortlessly and it enables a writer to build a consolidated argument. It also saves a lot of time for editing work. A plan gives crystal clear picture of the purpose of writing.

5.    Decision making: What to write and how much should be written completely depend on writer. the decision is solely of a writer. Hence, Decision taking skills are must for writing.

6.    Good Handwriting skills: Other than words, sentence, paragraphs, formatting etc, the most important thing is handwriting (if typing through key board, then style of writing).

7.    Revising and Editing Techniques: Revision and editing are very important skills as they remove unnecessary words and correct the mistakes if any.  During revision, if any mistake (related to spelling,  structure of sentence etc.)