Seton Magazine Catholic Homeschool Articles, Advice & Resources
Summary
If you are not using one of these five tips to improve your writing from Mary Anslinger, then stop and read! Any one of them will make you a better writer.Whether you’re a grade school student, a high school student, or ready to find your way at college, chances are you’ll be writing.
Essays, research papers, tests, and more take writing at some point. And, since that’s the case, wouldn’t you want to do it well?
This is why I’m sharing some of the wisdom my experience with Seton school and writing for years has taught me. I’m here to give you 5 ways you can improve your writing.
1. Spice it Up
One of the many things I’ve learned through years of school (and an English tutor) is, to make a text or writing interesting, you need to change things around a little bit, occasionally. Don’t change the way you write, but try something different to enhance your text and make things sound more interesting.
Always writing sentences the same way can be repetitive – because they’ve become predictable!
The “subject-verb-complement” structure might be very straightforward, but sometimes, a change is good! Try to switch up the order within your sentences, occasionally, to add more depth to your text.
2. Synonyms
Another way to help in writing is to use lots of different words! Finding many of those same words in your essays? Try changing some of the ones you’ve used and looking for similar ones.
You want to use words that are precise and express exactly what you’re trying to say, so search in your handy-dandy thesaurus (or a dictionary) for them!
In this era of technology, it’s easy to find resources that will help you navigate your writing and give you new words with the same meaning. And it broadens your vocabulary at the same time!
3. Punctuation
Adding punctuation in your text is one of the easiest ways to improve your writing! Punctuation gives your text a certain rhythm, so to speak.
How can you do it? Try changing the sentence structure. Switch that d
eclarative sentence to an interrogative one, and you’ve already taken a step in the right direction.
Now, what else can be changed? What about your Imperative sentences? Are they in the right spot? Are they conveying my meaning the way I want?
However, don’t overdo it. It’s all about balance! (Too many exclamation marks can make you seem aggressive or overly excited).
All punctuation has a purpose, so read through your Seton books and your favorite books on the shelf; notice the punctuation? See how many examples you can find!
4. Plan it Out
If there’s one thing I learned that’s been the most helpful, it’s how important planning what you will write is. Planning is 50% of the work! The writing part is easier. It’s coming up with the ideas, organizing your sentences and paragraphs, and making sure your transitions are smooth that is hard.
So, next time, plan an outline or write down your ideas before you start writing. You’ll be amazed what a difference it makes. No need for full sentences. Just keywords to help you understand what you mean.
5. Practice
Practice makes perfect, right? Well, it’s the same concept with your writing. Practicing will make you better! Writing often will allow you to develop your own voice and help you make you feel more confident in your writing.
I’d suggest making writing a daily habit, and with school, it’s easy to fit in lots of writing, but if you want more, try journaling – or blogging! Just writing 30 minutes 3 times a week can make a difference. Practice is also the time for you to experiment a little.
Try adding some new words to spice up your text a little. Remember those strategies we talked about earlier? Try to apply them now! It’ll come to you more naturally with practice.
The more you practice, the easier writing will become! What do you like to write about? What are things you have learned that have helped your writing?
About Mary Anslinger
