By There is no doubt that in our modern era, we are all required at some point to write something down. This may be as simple as an email, or as difficult as an academic thesis or report. The way an article is written is very important and not a lot of people realize, that subconsciously, the readers create an image of the author. The more professional and clear the writing is, the more likely it is for the readers to be influenced by it and this gives the author credibility, a mystical trust that gets the message of the author through o achieve his/her goal. Thus, in this article, some points will be discussed that will make your writing more professional and help you get your message through easier.
First of all, the basics need to be clarified to write professionally and this means the basic layout of a paragraph. Every paragraph needs to have an introductory phrase that will explain in general what is the paragraph about. After the introduction sentence, the main topic needs to be discussed and analyzed in detail by using examples, references, comparisons, etc. And finally, at the end of the paragraph, a conclusion sentence is always needed which will briefly summarize the topic discussed. Thus, this is the main structure of a paragraph that needs to be followed to make the paragraph understandable and clear.
Secondly, it is very important to use linking words at the beginning of phrases and paragraphs. Linking words like “First of all”, “Moreover”, “In more detail”, etc. These phrases always require a comma “,” after them. This is a common mistake that people make in their writing, they forgot to use commas (,) in their sentences. Not a lot of people know, how to use a comma properly. The assumption that a comma is used only when the reader needs to get a breath is wrong. The comma is used always at the beginning of a sentence after a linking word like ‘First of all’, ‘Moreover’, etc. Also, two commas are used between one word when the sentence can be read without this word. For example, this is, also, very important. The comma is used between the word “also” because the phrase can be read, even, without this word. Thus, it is important to use linking words and commas correctly to make your writing more credible.
Another important feature that not a lot of people use is the listing of items, especially with email communication at the workplace. Not a lot of people appreciate how important it is to list certain items and how organized an article or email can look with this. To understand this, a simple example can be made.
Let us say that during an email communication, an HR representative sends the following to a new employee:
I will require from you a scanned id or passport, an updated resume, a degree certificate, a driving license, at least two references, your social insurance number, your tax id number, and your address registration certificate.
Now, if you list them out:
I will require the following documentation:
Scanned Id or Passport
Updated resume
Degree certificate
Driving license
References (at least two)
Social insurance number
Tax id number
Address registration certificate
This way, information is presented much more clearly and will help the receiver of this message to gather the required information easier and faster. This can be used in articles or academic research papers when the author requires to present findings and/or numerical information. Thus, this is another point toward a more clear and more structured way of presenting the information.
Lastly, it is important to proofread your work and make sure that you do not have very long sentences. Normally, when you write an article, ideas are coming through and you keep writing, but most of the time, this creates long sentences that when another person reads, will not be able to understand what you are trying to say. Sentences must be short and easy to understand. Keep sentences up to 3 lines long. More than this is usually too much and too difficult for others to follow your line of thinking. Thus, if you proofread your work and you find long sentences, you need to find a way to split it and rephrase it to make it more understandable.
To conclude, these are some of the main items that not many people give importance to, but they are very significant to create professionally written articles. These points need to be exercised and get used, to become second nature when writing down articles. It is a truth that in the beginning this will be a difficult task and will seem strange putting commas and using linking words all the time. However, this will be beneficial in the long run in your professional career, especially in our era where everything is digital and, almost, all communication is done digitally.
