Month: April 2016
How To Improve Your Writing Skills – Add Engaging Details!
(This is #1 in our series of tips for writing better essays.)
As a high school English teacher, I have read thousands of essays, from autobiographies to persuasive essays to Advanced Placement literary analysis essays. One problem that I often notice is that students tend to write in general terms and don’t provide enough information to make their work personal and impactful. Even essays that are already fairly good, could be made compelling with more detail to flesh out what the writer is trying to convey. So, if you are looking for a concrete way to improve your writing skills, these two techniques will instantly take your essay to the next level and are simple enough to try out with your next assignment.
Be Specific
Specific means “clearly defined or identified.” In other words, tell what kind and how many. “Baby, it’s cold outside” may be good for a song, but a California girl like me can feel chilly at 60 degrees, while someone in Minnesota might wear shorts when it’s 40 degrees. Save everyone the trouble and be specific. Often our default is to write in general terms, but incorporating specific details makes your writing more accurate and interesting.
Check out this example:
Kobe Bryant recently retired after a long and successful career.
If you’re already familiar with Kobe Bryant, this sentence may not be problematic. But, if you didn’t know anything about him, you probably need more information.
Kobe Bryant, star basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers, recently retired after a 20-year career that included leading his team to five NBA championships.
Now we’re talking. Still just one sentence, but there is no mistake as to who Kobe Bryant is, what type of athlete he is, and what makes his career “successful.”
Don’t assume your readers will know what you are thinking; you have to tell them exactly what you want them to know.
Be Descriptive
“Show not tell.” Ever heard your teacher say this? She’s reminding you to be descriptive in your writing: paint a picture with your words by showing what you are thinking, not simply telling. You can do this by using figurative language, lively verbs, and sensory details (the five senses).
Let’s consider the most popular books right now. What these books have in common is that the reader is able to escape into a unique world. The author uses such vivid details that the reader can visualize the scene and characters.
In this example from The Hunger Games, you’ll see the difference that details make:
Details Removed:
Sitting next to Prim is an ugly cat. Prim named him Buttercup because of his coloring. He is not friendly to me. I think he still remembers how I was mean to him when Prim brought him home.
Original Passage:
Sitting at Prim’s knees, guarding her, is the world’s ugliest cat. Mashed-in nose, half of one ear missing, eyes the color of rotting squash. Prim named him Buttercup, insisting that his muddy yellow coat matched the bright flower. He hates me. Or at least distrusts me. Even though it was years ago, I think he still remembers how I tried to drown him in a bucket when Prim brought him home. Scrawny kitten, belly swollen with worms, crawling with fleas.
While there is nothing seriously wrong with the first passage, it isn’t very interesting either. In the original passage, however, the author breathes life into the cat. The way he is sitting conveys intent, with the use of the lively verb “guarding”. We can visualize him because we know his exact shade of yellow, and we may even feel sympathetic towards him because of the description “scrawny…crawling with fleas.”
Using descriptive details is a natural pairing for creative writing, but it works well with other genres, too. For instance, informative essays can be more effective with descriptive details. The phrase “the resulting solution will change color” is less impactful than “the resulting solution will turn from clear to blood-red”.
Make it work for you
It’s easy to try out these techniques. Look at any essay you’ve already written and see if you can liven it up with specific or descriptive details.
But to be really good at using these techniques, you need to know more about them and how to use them effectively (too many descriptions can drag your essay down!). Check out online resources to learn more about descriptive writing (here’s one).
The best way to improve your writing is to write, a lot. And get feedback from someone qualified, because there’s more to descriptive writing than just throwing in some adjectives. So don’t be shy, practice and show what you’ve written to someone you trust to get a meaningful response. (Check out our Descriptive Writing course to learn more about how to add engaging detail and get personalized teacher guidance.)
Soon, these techniques will be infused into your natural writing style and you won’t have to work so hard on them. Happy writing!
We’d love to hear from you! Tell us how you plan to add more detail to your essays.
Writing a College Essay?
Now from Meemli – College Essay help from experienced experts!
Find the option that’s just right for you!
Get More Info
Related Posts:
22 Apr, 2016
Why Writing Skills Are Important For Teens
(This is a much-discussed topic with students, teachers, parents and within our team!)
It may seem like STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education is getting all the attention nowadays in schools. Sure, STEM is important for students to be able to master, but so is another area just as fundamental but less hyped: good writing skills.
Being able to communicate effectively is a critical skill that every student, not only aspiring writers, needs in order to to compete in our increasingly complex world. And, many leading educators as well as science/industry leaders are advocating the importance of language and other arts in a well-rounded and effective education – there are quite a few who promote STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) instead of just STEM.
Develops Logical And Critical Thinking Skills
Critical thinking is a necessary skill in understanding and analyzing the many perspectives and biases that inhabit the information we receive (from the news, social media, even textbooks). Writing essays trains students to consider various viewpoints and to argue their own ideas critically and skillfully through a carefully considered thesis and argument – the essence of critical thinking, which can be used for any subject or problem.
You see this argument building in math, too.Take for example writing proofs in geometry, where every mathematical action requires evidence to support it.The practice of writing helps students build universal skills in analyzing, reasoning, and logic, which are essential in any field of study.
Promotes Individual Thinking
Writing is great way for students to develop their own opinions, perspectives, and criticisms on everything and anything, from the young adult book they’re reading for fun to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, current events, or their own values and lives.
Most essay writing starts with “brainstorming,” an approach that fosters creative thinking and innovation. Essay writing will aid young students in developing their overall communication skills, including the expression of their own opinions, and taking creative and unusual perspectives. All these skills are useful in college and the workplace, where effective communication is as important as innovative thinking (after all, what’s the point of having a great idea if you can’t explain it?).
Builds Memory and Understanding
How often have you read an article or heard a news story, and forgot some of the important details moments afterwards? Now imagine trying to remember and understand the main points to something more lengthy and complex.
Putting thoughts to words on paper (or screen) helps teens, and adults, better synthesize, understand, and retain information. The structured approach of essay writing hones the skills that aid in understanding and retention, without requiring a teen to write a full-blown essay (unless you are asked for one!).
For more details on how writing helps your brain, check out this infographic about writing and the brain.
Prepares For College And Careers
Students (and their parents) probably already know that writing skills are a must for college. Almost every college requires personal essays as part of the admissions process. Writing is also a key component in just about every college-level class, in subjects as diverse as economics, anthropology, comparative literature, biology, and math.
As for the workplace, good writing skills are a requirement in many fields, and especially so for advancement.You may wonder why writing is important when communications are all about short tweets and YouTube videos. Want convincing? Here’s a Harvard Business Review post stating “Effective writing must be a company wide endeavor.”
Helps Reduce Stress
Writing is also a great outlet for stress. Teens and pre-teens are dealing with a variety of personal, academic, and social pressures and challenges. Writing has been proven to reduce stress. Maybe that’s why so many professional therapists and self-help advisors recommend keeping journals!
Best of all, writing offers a creative outlet. Not all of us may be capable of playing music or painting works of art, but everyone can write about something. Once your child is past the stage of worrying about writing “well,” she can write for enjoyment. Encourage your kid to write – it’ll give him a lifetime of confidence as well as comfort.
If a teen needs to improve his or her writing skill, parents can make an effort to provide some help. Teachers may have suggestions on activities and resources, and you can of course find any number of workshops and classes, online or onsite, especially during the summer. And if you want feedback on the writing, check out our essay review!
What do you think? How important are writing skills to you? Leave us a reply!