Hi there, I want to know how to improve Articles writing skills. I want to produce grammatical error free, content rich and logical structured articles for my clients' and personal sites. Any help will be highly appreciated. Regards bushib
These are probably obvious points, but the more you read the better you'll write. Also take some time between writing and rereading so you'll catch mistakes and actually read what's written as opposed to what you think you've written. (A second pair of eyes is also a bonus if you can get them.) I'm guessing you're already pretty good at the basics of grammar and spelling but having some reference texts on hand to double check is always worthwhile. William Strunk, Elements of Style is a freely available and worthwhile text to have around. Some of this will depend a little on your style of writing but there are some great blogs online as well for freelance and bloggers that have good tips to which you might want to subscribe. Requesting feedback on your writing it also a great way of learning and determining what sort of content and style your readers appreciate.
Read good writing a lot. Compare and contrast your writing with that of good writers [By reading good books, stories and writer's blogs] and find out what you are doing different [Often wrong].
Well yes you just need to read more and more to improve your writing skills, Learn basic things of writing. I think you should read blogs of Jenn's blogs and articles which gives you lot's of idea about writing and doing Freelancing.
I feel the same way after reading Murakami's books. It's like I can write a fantastic piece of fiction in one sitting. Hehe. But aside from reading, you should also write a lot. Trite yeah, but practice really makes perfect (almost). Also have your articles critiqued by friends or colleagues.
You should read the classic texts on writing such as On Writing Well by William Zinsser. Along with reading good books and journals you should study books of HOW TO WRITE. Many people overlook this step and so they don't improve their skills but plateau out quite quickly. -Ray Edwards
To improve your writing skills, it's best to start from the scratch. Learn the basics English Grammar rules such as subject-verb agreement, different tenses of the verb etc... This will be your foundation in writing your own article. Of course, reading a lot will also improve your writing skills.
Try reading through the fr*e lessons on grammar at www.dailygrammar.com (I think that's the site). They used to email them to people but now they are just available to read at the site. They are an excellent way to get grammar lessons in bite sized pieces and are written by someone who is PASSIONATE about grammar - so you'll learn good stuff. Visit Daedelus books website (a USA bookstore, very cheap) and buy yourself a word a day 2009 calendar for like $2.98 (I am NOT kidding). This will stretch your vocabulary and you'll get even more curious about words. The more words you have inside your mind - the more potential to be a better writer you'll have. Start reading ANYTHING that interests you - books, magazines, websites. You are reading to improve your grammar and spelling. The main thing you want is to KEEP reading and develop stronger spelling and grammar skills. Your post shows your grammar does need some (minor) improvement. Hey - I'm USA born and I'm sure MY grammar could do with some improvement too....everyone could do with a little boost here and there. Read for fun and pleasure and you'll be AMAZED and just how much spelling and grammar you start to soak up little a little learning sponge. When you are reading things for fun, you are relaxed and just enjoying what you are reading. Write down the words you don't understand and look them up in the dictionary. Here is a free one: www.m-w.com. They also have a thesaurus so you can learn alternative meanings of words. Also consider keeping a journal and just write about your day. Write anything that interests you. The more you write - even if you aren't getting paid for it - will improve your writing skills. If you even try one or two of these things and really dedicate yourself to them -- you'll see improvement. The fact that you WANT to see improvement shows that you'll make improvement happen! Good luck!
Very useful suggestions, I liked the tip from DocB about writing and reading it. It really worked in my case. Letrs you iron out mistakes immediately and what's more, when you read it in a flow, you get the right words as well which could be better than what you have typed.
Read a lot. Write everyday. Study good writing. Read books on writing. Have an editor or "second pair of eyes" look at your work. Be your own worst critic. Get a writing coach.
Some great advice in this thread! I especially like EspressoChick's suggestions. On top of that, you could even try some writing exercises to get you going. I think 'just writing' is absolutely great practice, but sometimes you might find that hard, so look for inspiration in the form of exercises. e.g. A successful writer once told me a great way to practice writing concisely. Write an article that you normally would (pick a topic that would be around 500-1000 words perhaps). When you have finished, go back through and try to get this down to half the size. Keep doing this until you sum up your article with a few sentences, maybe just one - maybe even one word. Obviously this is just one sort of exercise, and works for certain types of writing more than others. Great idea if you are looking for a way to sum up a product or service. I also think it helps when writing for the web to just get to the point. There are loads more exercises like this around, in books or for free online.
Yeah, I agree with mspennylane. In my free time I write short poetry and that has a similar effect on my ability to write good quality articles.
I highly recommend playing grammar games from various grade levels. You can find them all over with Google. They really help, especially if English isn't your first language.
Practise, practise, practise. Even talented writers need to practise. I do it every day. Read web articles/magazines and pay CLOSE attention to their writing style. Look at how topics are introduced. Pay attention to the colourful words used. Developing a voice is just as important as proper grammar and spelling. Hang around with other writers (join a writer's group, for example) and share your work. Ask for feedback. Give them feedback.