Writing is similar to starting an assignment. You need to be well-planned, prepared, focused, committed, and most importantly, passionate towards what you are doing. If you implement all the points mentioned, the odds of writing a well-appreciated text will be in your favor.
Key Points to Writing a Document
First of all, let’s accept the fact that very few people, almost none, can write a document the way they wanted to put it on paper, in the very first attempt. Ideas and memories often come when least expected, and these new ideas keep on changing your document with each subsequent input.
Once you have put your ideas on paper, the next step would be to present it in a simple, logical, connected and clear manner. This needs planning and preparation, for which there are definite steps you can follow −
● Appropriate language
● Plain English (free of jargon)
● Simple sentences
● Relevant content
● Use of bullet points
● Conciseness
● Constant improvement
Research
Researching on any topic is a very critical step before writing. Your sources need to be reliable and widely accepted. Before you identify and develop your topic, you should find the context and background information on your topic. This can be done by referring to books, articles, journals, news sources, and magazines. People nowadays use video and sound recordings too. The following steps will help you to −
● Note the important and relevant details.
● Evaluate each point against the topic and the purpose of your document.
● Record the details of your resources and references (i.e. author, title and publishing)
● Arrange the content in a logical order under appropriate headings and sub-headings.
Purpose
Knowing your audience will give a lot of help in deciding the content and the way you should approach it. In case you are not aware of your audience, write keeping in mind the demographic, i.e., the target group for your write-up, as online article writers or bloggers do.
Before you begin to write, try to understand always what your reason of writing is. It could be anyone of the below −
● Providing information
● Applying persuasion
● Presenting your opinion
● Proposing ideas
● Sending reports
● Recommendations
● A desired action
● Reaching an accomplishment
For example, if your intention is to sell a product or get someone to subscribe to a service you are providing, or are promoting a cause, ask yourself questions like −
● Who are my potential readers?
● What is the background of my prospective target readership?
● Where do they live and how old are they?
● What are their interests and priorities?
These questions will set the purpose for your writing.
Writing the Documents
Once you have identified your audience, try to anticipate the information that your reader might think necessary and include it in your document as you write. It can be done by asking yourself the “WH-questions”.
● Answer the WH questions − Answering “Who? What? Why? Where? When? Whom? How?” will give you a head-start on the content of the writing.
● Determine the Start and Finish − After collecting all possible ideas that you have on the topic, you could go through them and reject a few that won’t make sense in your write-up. After that, find out the idea that will leave the maximum impact on reading it, and put that at the start of the article. The end should have the idea that summarizes all the ideas in a clear and crisp manner.
● Get a second-person opinion − Always get your written text checked by somebody before submitting it. This lends an objective, second-person perspective to the review and stops your emotions and indulgence from getting in the way. Don’t do this if the content is confidential and not to be shared.
● Discuss suggestions and include improvements − Once your friends have suggested some changes, implement the ones you think are relevant.
