WRITING SKILLS: KEYS TO SUCCESSFUL WRITING.
Writing is part of life. In our
everyday endeavors we write be it by use of a computer or pen. People write
letters, essays, research papers, speeches etc and this all calls for good
writing skills in order to be effective.
Writing is not just putting words
together; it is a skill that has to be nurtured through constant practice
Remember we write to share an experience, express personal ideas and feelings,
thoughts and observations. Therefore a good writer makes us sense what is
happening.
This therefore means that writing is
not just deciding what to
write but how to write. Mastery of writing then in the
key to successful dissemination of information.
KEY TO SUCCESSFUL WRITING.
In
order to get your readers enjoy what you are writing about, you need to have a
good foundation. The following keys will help make your story interesting.
Key 1:
Know your audience.
a. What is your audience?
b. How old are they.
c. What are their interests?
Key 2 :
Choosing a good topic.
Consider
these three factors when choosing a topic.
a. Can you find some information on the topic?
b. Choose a topic of interest to you and to
others.
c. Choose a topic that is limited enough so
that you can cover it in an interesting way.
Key 3.
Organize your composition.
Readers
enjoy reading a well organized composition that flows like music to the ears. A
good composition contains three parts: the introduction, body and the conclusion.
These parts are developed in form of paragraphs. Each part of your writing must
be cohesive, coherent and interesting.
a. The
introduction.
·
Most
important part of writing as it is the 'appetizer'.
·
It
aims at catching the reader’s interest.
·
It
therefore must be interesting and present the main point or argument.
·
Can
use a proverb, clever quotation, starting statistics, starting revelation,
provocative questions, anecdote or striking contrast.
b. The
body.
·
It
contains the substance of the writing.
·
Aim
at holding interest of the readers.
·
Organization
depends on the nature of the topic. e.g argumentative will take the emphatic order, narrative the chronological order,
explanations the process order,
and compositions on problems the problem – solution order.
·
You
may use 3 to 5 paragraphs.
c. The
conclusion.
·
This
brings the writing to a close.
·
Should
be powerful, inspiring and memorable.
·
It
should restate what you have said referring to the theme.
·
Conclusions
end differently depending on the type of writing i.e. recommendation,
prediction and quotation conclusion.
NOTE
Develop
a sense of what to or what not to include in your
paragraph.
· To achieve coherence use the following:
Ø Transitional or linking words e.g and,
also, in addition, further more, never the less, consequently, as a result, for
instance, to sum up, indeed etc.
Ø Use synonyms i.e fire, blaze, inferno etc.
Ø Repetition i.e you always have written
good poems and you will write now. All you have to do is to write
the title first.
Ø Use pronouns reference.
· Building paragraphs is essential and how do
you do this? Use the following;
Ø Facts and illustrations.
Ø Details especially for descriptions.
Ø Comparisons and contrasts.
Ø Reasons (why something happened).
Ø An anecdote (brief story).
Ø Rhetoric questions.
Ø Always remember that a good piece of
writing is dependent on how well you
have developed your paragraphs.
For
example,
It
was regarded as respectful behavior for girls to hide in rooms whenever doors
were knocked by visitors and strangers. This prevented visitors from seeing the
girls as they would easily think of sending marriage proposals, yet at that
time, it was an affair purely left to parents and close adult relatives.
Discussions
during marriage proposals were done by adults in the family, without both the girls
and boys knowledge of who their future husbands would be. The boys parents
would visit the girls parents home to propose. Weddings were arranged as soon
as marriage proposals were accepted.
Halima
observes any child’s character (mannerism) depend a lot on how their parents,
especially mothers bring them up. On accepting marriage proposals, special
female teachers experienced in sexuality were assigned the duty of teaching the
girls how to live in marriage; particularly how to prepare themselves to have
sex with their husbands.(Elimu Asilia)
KEY 4.
The mechanics of writing.
For
any project to succeed, the foundation must be good and strong. Therefore a
writer needs to have some basics to make him/her have a convincing piece of
writing.
The
following tips are essential.
· Neat / legible handwriting.
· Correct spelling.
· Correct punctuation.
Punctuation
is the use of certain marks to clarify meaning. Misuse of any of these marks
may change meaning or fail to convey intended meaning.
Ø It is important to know the use of the
punctuation marks one is using.
Ø Below is a list of punctuation marks
commonly used:
1. Full stop (.) sentences end with full stop.
2. Comma (,) used to set off connectors,
separate words.
3. The semi-colon (;) pause milder than full
stop.
4. The colon (:) used in introductory
statement.
5. The question mark (?) used to query.
6. The exclamation mark (!) use to express
strong feelings.
7. The hyphen (-) join compound words,
elements of digits.
8. The dash (---) stress materials that follow
it.
9. Parenthesis (bracket) ( ) used
interchangeably with dashes.
10.
Quotation
marks (“”) - enclose direct quotations, special words, titles etc.
11.
Ellipsis
(…..........) show omission, create suspense.
These
punctuation marks are the building blocks that make your composition
interesting.
KEY 5.
Sentence construction.
Sentences
are the grammatic vehicle we use to convey meaning. Writing coherent sentences
is essential and a skill that is acquired through practice. Sentences are meant
to convey meaning clearly and accurately. They are;
· They are supposed to be grammatically
correct.
· Sentences should be complete.
· They should be clearly and logically
connected.
· Spelling and proper use of punctuation
marks cannot be underscored.
How
do you attain well constructed sentences?
Evaluate
your sentences by checking on;
1. Subject – verb agreement.
2. Agreement with collective nouns.
3. Correct use of articles, pronouns,
adjectives, adverbs etc.
4. Correct use of words.
5. Correct spelling and punctuation.
· Sentence variety is key in holding the
readers attention use both short and long reasonable sentences.
KEY 6.
Choice of words.
This
is a key component in developing your paragraphs and creating and interesting
presentation.
· Precisely use the right word.
· Preferably use concrete rather that
abstract in stories.
· Use figurative language. Avoid cliché’s.
KEY 7.
Choice of style.
As a
writer, one needs to use a style they are comfortable with. You can choose to
communicate a message through:
· A poem.
· Narrative.
· Drama / dialogue.
· Speech.
· Letter.
· Report, etc.
Whichever
style you choose, remember your writing must be attractive and interesting to
capture your reader’s attention.
Someone
sang a simple song.
Music
alone shall live,
Music
alone shall live,
Music
alone shall live,
NEVER
TO DIE.
We
write music to tell a story so keep writing!
Presented By:
LILIAN SAYO
AGOLA
During
the Elimu Asilia training workshop organized by Goethe-Institute and National
Museums of Kenya on 20th -22 May, 2013 at Corat Africa Hotel, Karen.
