Everyone has their own style to writing and no style is completely perfect. In every paper there are things that need to be worked on. As a writer I realize there are many skills that I still need to work on such as writing to a specific audience, vocabulary and word choice, and highlighting the important subject matter. In a paper it is important to know your audience and the level of education they have received. For instance, if you are writing to a peer the writing style may tend to be more relaxed but when writing to someone in a higher position then you the tone of the paper is more serious and to the point. As I have learned, the older you get the more words you have to describe and not use the conjunctions that are so common to us today. I also need to work on the vocabulary in tone of my writing. For the most part I use words that most second through fifth graders can recognize. Now that I am in college, I know that I need to use more collegiate words that are found throughout my textbooks. Another thing I need to work on is getting straight to the point. In most of my papers I tend to focus on the small things instead of what is most important. Instead of using useless information I need to emphasize on the information that I need to cover.
I also mentioned something similar in my entry regarding recognizing who my target audience is. My writing style tends to be more relaxed as well which makes me nervous then writing to professionals or an adult audience. I also second guess myself when writing to an adult audience because I feel like it always comes off as demanding rather than polite and professional.
ReplyDeleteThe skills you picked I believe are all good ones that in a way flow together. I have the same problems with all of them. I also said something in my entry about my word choice. Developing a better vocabulary i believe will come along with the skill of understanding and being aware of who your audience is. As a college student that is trying to enter a professional field i feel like those two skills are the hardest to learn.
ReplyDeleteI have the exact same problem. I like to know every little detail, and I end up putting every little detail into my paper, and my paper ends up being way over the page limit. I really hope this class can teach us whats important and whats not so I can stop writing these really long papers.
ReplyDeleteKatie, I know exactly what you mean when you said that you need use college words. I have that same difficulty as well. I like to use words that I am comfortable with in the everyday use. We college students need to broaden our vocabulary and be open to new words and their meanings.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most useful phrases of all time is 'For instance' - well-played...
ReplyDelete