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English Writing

Writing Skills

Regardless of how well-educated you are, you are not going get the respect you deserve unless you write well in English. English writing does not necessarily have to be prose, poetry, or essays. Good English writing can be basic means of communication such as formal and informal letters, official directives, and information reports. Whatever it is, there are certain key aspects that you should focus upon in order to improve your English writing skills.

Grammar

English is a beautiful language but when it is not used properly it could sound really terrible. Learning good English writing skills begins with firm foundation in grammar. The usage of words, phrases, clauses and the right parts of speech is extremely important in English writing. Grammar can be easily improved by referring to English grammar books. One can also improve his or her grammar by reading classic English novels. Over a period of time, you will recognize it when the grammar does not sound right.

Vocabulary

Having a good vocabulary is important to writing well. There are specific words for every occasion and those have to be used at the right place in the right way. Words that sound good often make writing impressive. But vocabulary should not overwhelm the reader. One should have a repertoire of good words for every situation and then use them sanely at the right time. The dictionary has forever been an important tool. Not only are the meaning important, but also the part of speech and how it is used. Thesaurus is another tool that will provide multiple synonyms of the same word, depending on the occasion. Sometimes you need to use the simplest word possible while sometimes you may choose a more flamboyant word.

Spelling

Spelling is an important part of your English writing skills. Bad spelling could ruin an entire piece of well written work. There are a lot of words that sound alike in the English language, but may have completely different and, sometimes, contradictory meanings. Nowadays, spell checking tools are everywhere. While these spell checks can be very useful, they can also be very misleading and unreliable. One must be vigilant to avoid spelling mistakes.

Punctuation

It is not that difficult to emphasis expressions in a speech but not so easy when you are writing down the same words. This is where punctuation becomes so important. Use of commas for pauses, semi-colons, colons, hyphens and even exclamatory marks are all very important in order to convey the right emotion. Words seldom convey the whole picture on their own. One has to be aware of the proper use of punctuation. Punctuation is what infuses soul into the sentence. Often the entire meaning of a sentence could change if the appropriate punctuation is not used.

In order to improve your English writing skills, it is very important to read good literature and books. One can start with the editorial of English newspaper which is usually well written. Knowing the English language is one thing and developing beautiful content is another. Lot of reading and lot of writing should get you to a position where you can express yourself eloquently in written words.

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