Chapter 4 Summary
1. Selecting Appropriate Words
a. As you being to write a memo, letter, etc., it is important to reminder yourself who your audience will be.
i. Use words that will be familiar to your audiences.
1. In order to communicate effectively to an audience, you should use words that the audience is familiar with. ii. Aim to use short words.
1. In the book, Business Communication, authors Kathryn Rentz and Paula Lentz explain that, “short words tend to be familiar words” and that the “heavy use of long words…creates an impression of difficulty” even if the long words are understandable. (Rentz) iii. Use slang and popular clichés with caution
1. Although slangs and clichés could make you sound credible with other business
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ii. Avoid words that stereotype by race, nationality, or sexual orientation.
1. Stereotypes against race, nationally, and sexual orientation is typically negative. When writing, remember to treat everyone as equals. iii. Avoid words that stereotype by age. iv. Avoid words that typecast those with disabilities.
3. Writing Clear Sentences
a. When writing, remember to write in clear sentences.
i. Limit sentence content.
1. People typically prefer a simple sentence over a complex sentence. That is not to say that sometimes a sentence may need to be longer to demonstrate a point. ii. Economize on Words
1. When writing, try to effectively express your point in as few words as possible.
4. Writing Clear Paragraphs
a. Writing clear sentences will lead to writing clear paragraphs. Using paragraphs will help readers understand the flow of your writing.
i. Give paragraphs unity.
1. For each paragraph you write, stick to a single topic for unity and clarity. ii. Keep paragraphs short.
1. Like sentences, try to keep your paragraphs short. That is not to say that occasionally it might be necessary to have long paragraphs, it depends on the main idea of the paragraph. A good rule of thumb is to keep paragraphs to eight sentences in length. iii. Leave out unnecessary details.
1. Be sure to only include information that is relevant to a paragraph. iv. Make paragraphs coherent.
1. When you are finished with writing a
3. Writing big paragraphs will help students focus on exercising on their thinking and imagining to the limit.
In this chapter, Lunsford details the planning and drafting process for a writer to organize their ideas with either a formal outline or a rough plan. Lunsford reminds writers to be flexible during the drafting process and not to think twice about changing elements of the essay at this point in the process. Lunsford goes on to explain the qualities academic paragraphs must have these include unity, development and coherence. To obtain unity within a paragraph all sentences should relate to the topic sentence of the paragraph. When developing a paragraph it is important to switch between general and specific ideas in the paragraph, while supporting those ideas with details, evidence and examples as required. Ensuring a paragraph is coherent is crucial when developing an academic paragraph. Because readers need to be able to follow a writers ideas easily, Lunsford gives her readers a method to follow to achieve this goal. This method includes using the general to specific ideas, repetition, parallel structures, and using transition words. The author notes that this method should also be used to link paragraphs
It helps the sentences transition nicely and form into well worded paragraphs. As Zinsser said in his essay, “You can avoid this dreaded fate for your message, whatever it is, by making sure that every sentence is a logical sequel to the one that proceeded it.” (TRR 202) He gives us an alternative method by suggesting to create two or three different sentences or words and see what one fits and flows the best. Choose your sentence, as each good sentence will form a perfect piece of writing.
In a business environment communication needs to be adjusted and adapted depending on the different audience and situation. This is determined by decided which communication method is best suited for the situation whether it be written or verbal. The different requirements that might need to be adjusted for could include age, ethnicity and special needs. For example, younger audiences might have shorter attention spans and get bored easier, whilst older people might be more patient and are able to sit for a longer period of time. Another example is when using visual communicate it is important to use big clear text for partially sighted people. When preparing a verbal presentation, it is important that you cater for people with special needs such as if someone lip reads it is crucial that that are positioned appropriately in the room. If someone in the audience has mobility problems it is important that the aisles are big enough for a wheel chair to easily and freely move around the room.
Structure is the fundamental part of a good essay. One part of structure is a layout of what you are going to accomplish in your essay. Many people call this your thesis, but it is more than just one sentence. The layout of ideas helps both the reader and the writer create a piece of writing that is easy to follow and hopefully in return is easier to write. As you go about writing your essay, one aspect of structure that must happen throughout is punctuation. This is an area in which I struggle, but it is still important to try to write with proper grammar and punctuation in order for your readers to not misinterpret what you write.
When developing a message THE RIGHT WORDS are important. There are many factors in choice of word that should be considered they include the audience and intent, expectations, educational level, and profession. These are all key elements in developing a presentation. In my opinion I think that there are two important factors that must always be taken into consideration which are the expectation of the presentation as well as the education of the audience. Which these two this helps the presented to develop accurate means of communication with the audience.
Business writers should use short familiar words to make the message clearer. This allows the message to be easy to understand. It doesn’t dumb down the message business writing needs to be clear and easy to understand so it cannot be misinterpreted.
You do not need to write whole paragraphs for any of the below sections. You simply need to write complete sentences that show the basic outline of your essay. Doing this will give you a guide when writing your rough draft.
My past writing life has allowed me to learn and grow and develop my voice. The more I write, the more I understand what my voice is and how to use it. Trying to restrict myself to the five-paragraph essay structure inhibits my voice and makes it increasingly more difficult to showcase who I am as a writer in the world. When I remove that structure, I believe my voice can be heard loud and clear. When I write, I can explain my thoughts and ideas succinctly, and I believe that allows me to accomplish what I am trying to do more quickly. I am better at communicating through writing, which has been and will hopefully continue to be a great asset for me as I go through life.
Before sitting down to write something, I always like to take a second to think about my audience. Who will be reading my content and why will they be reading it? Keep this in mind helps me tailor my message. For example, a landing page will have a different audience than a press release.
To start each paragraph, it is best to write the main idea of the paragraph, and then follow it up with supporting ideas to make your point clearer.
1. You don’t need complete sentences if it is easier to make lists or use phrases. Bullet points are a useful tool.
One of the fears that I have about the process of writing is the inability to write clear and concise sentences that the reader can understand. Sentence clarity frightens me as I have what I want to say in my head, however, it does not always come out perfectly when I put the thought into writing. When transferring my thoughts into writing I typically form run on sentences and mix my words together. This is where my fear of clarity becomes an issue. When writing clearly, I often assume that my reader understands or has a prior knowledge on my topic. Typically, this leads me to form incomplete sentences or the leaving out of an essential piece of information that gives the sentence its meaning. Along with the fear of the inability to write
Chapter 6 discusses the importance and techniques of structuring your writing for your readers. To properly structure your writing for its' intended audience you need to understand your audience. Factors such as education level, position, title, and more must be taken into account while structuring your writing. Memos, letters, even emails are structured differently depending on their recipients. I have learned through my own experience, that incorrectly structuring your writing can be very detrimental to your appearance to others and in some cases it can be very embarrassing. However on the opposite side of the spectrum, if you structure your writing in such a manner that it is to simple to your audience, you give the impression that you
A writer can accomplish composing a “good” piece of writing by making sure he has logical reasoning behind their statements, by making it noticeable when they transition into explaining another point, and when by not letting their personal feelings be put ahead of their logical reasons, and by making the reader question them. These are not only important for the author but it is also important for the reader. If a author does not have a logical reasoning behind his statements than the reader can not take it as a credible source and they will most likely not believe it. Transitions are a huge part of good writing also because if a reader can not tell when your last point ends and the next one starts