Academic Writing Skills
Great Writing Starts With Creative Thought & Organization
For adult or returning students, the thought of organizing and writing a paper can be overwhelming. Use these simple tools to help you get started & stay focused!
For many adult students, continuing education will require writing an essay, term paper, or thesis. Once you have decided on an essay topic and have created your thesis statement, congratulations! The next step is simply to write. Many writers, both new and experienced, dread the thought of staring at a blank screen waiting for inspiration. For the returning student, there are several ways to avoid that and jumpstart your writing. Here are a few writing tools that will help to get you started:
- Free writing : This is one of the most productive ways to begin a piece - just sit down at your computer and start writing. Don’t spend time thinking about the flow of ideas, don’t stop to check your spelling or punctuation. Don’t even try to make full sentences, simply put on paper whatever comes to mind. You will be surprised how quickly the ideas flow and the amount of creative thoughts you find yourself producing. When you have completed your freewriting, take a break, and when you return you can start organizing your information and backfilling in all the details.
- Outline : This is a great organizational tool that will assist you in getting your ideas down in a logical order or sequence. Begin by writing the numbers 1, 2, and 3, under which you will write your main topics or ideas for your paper. Once that is completed, you will go through each number again, listing a, b, c, etc. underneath, then adding the appropriate ideas that apply to each one. You can continue along in this manner as long as necessary, but this short exercise should give you a good start to you paper’s structure.
- Diagram: Draw a circle in the middle of your paper with your topic written inside. Draw straight lines out from the circle like spokes on a wheel, adding more circles at the end of each line. Within these you will write your supporting ideas. You will draw more lines and circles out from each of those, adding more thoughts or ideas in wherever appropriate. This technique offers both the creative side of the free writing as well as the organization of the outline form
Once you have your basic ideas on paper, take one at a time and focus on getting down all the information you can. Once you have done this for each item, then you can go back in make sure your paragraphs are organized and that they flow smoothly and logically one into the other.
Organization, spelling, grammar, and punctuation are all extremely important. Be sure to use the tools your computer provides, such as spell check, to proofread your writing, but don’t rely on it solely. Put your paper aside for a day or so if possible, then go back and read it critically with an eye out for any and all errors. Simply taking that extra time to review will result in a more polished, error-free piece of writing.
Writing is an ongoing process, so keep at it, don’t get discouraged, and you will find you improve at a rapid rate! Writing for the internet is another area that demands constant improvement. Becoming comfortable with writing is a great tool for anyone seeking professional development, occupational or vocational students. The continuing education student often has the desire, drive, and life experience to acquire expert academic writing skills and become an excellent writer.
Keep up the good work - let me know if you have questions or comments!
