1. Identify your writing audience. Use simple words to talk to them.
Always write to the audience you are trying to attract. Before starting a complex assignment, identify the profile of a typical reader. What is his/her education level, career, interests, ethnicity, residence, economic status, etc.?
Use jargon and technical terminology sparingly. Complex phrases should only be used if it adds to the quality of the sentence, and if you’re certain the majority of your audience is already familiar with those terms.
If you target your writing to the things your audience finds familiar, you will speak to them more clearly. A short, simple sentence is easy to understand. Complex, verbose writing takes longer to read and digest.
2. Write in the active voice.
Not sure what active voice is? Every day we perform actions. When writing in active voice, the subject directly performs the action. The true meaning of the sentence is clear, and your writing is more concise.
Active Voice: Upon entering the conference, the greeter handed you the paperwork.
Passive Voice: Upon entering the conference, the paperwork was handed to you by the greeter.
How to check for active or passive voice:
- Identify the subject and verb of the sentence. Is the intended subject performing the action? If so, you are writing directly. See the above example. If an inanimate object is performing the action, chances are the sentence is in passive tense.
- Are there any linking verbs (am, is, are, was, were, etc.) in front of the action verb?
Most passive voice sentences contain some variation of these verbs.
3. Delete words that do not add to the meaning of each sentence.
Before you submit that next proposal, have a friend read your writing. Then ask your friend to explain in fifteen seconds the purpose of your writing. If s/he can’t do this accurately, you need to delete the “extra” phrases that are complicating your text.
To edit thoroughly:
-Isolate each paragraph in your text, and identify what that paragraph is trying to convey.
-Use your first sentence to transition “in” from the previous paragraph and to identify the topic of the paragraph.
-Use the last sentence to transition “out” and sum up main point of the paragraph.
-Remove additional prepositional phrases, extra verbs, and unnecessary descriptions that are in between the subject and predicate of each sentence.
And very importantly, try to say the most with the fewest words possible.
4. Break up your writing into short sections.
Break down complex subjects from one main idea into several sub sections that elaborate on the main idea.
-Use bold and underlining headlines to designate the sub sections in your work.
-Each sub section should only focus on one topic and have a beginning, middle, and end.
-Within each sub section, break each paragraph into small, simple to understand bites.
5. Save the past tense to describe things that actually happened in the past.
Write conversationally.
Past research, experiments, results, etc. should be written in past tense. Avoid using “would” or “could.” Most of the time, these words are unnecessary, and they add an uncertainty and “future” aspect to your writing. Just change your sentence around to be direct.
6. When detailing information, use specific terms–not generalities.
Often we use adjectives (good, excellent, fast, well) to describe findings or to “prove” our point. Yet, when writing technically, tell how something happened, instead of stating a generality. Use facts, figures, data, and conclusions to communicate and prove your point when appropriate.
Works Referenced: The Elements of Technical Writing by Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly
