The Business Writing Process
Summary
TLDRThis video script emphasizes the dynamic nature of the writing process, highlighting the importance of understanding audience needs and purpose in business writing. It underscores that effective writing involves research, organization, and multiple drafts to refine content. The script dispels myths about writing being formulaic or static, advocating for a fluid approach that includes revising and rethinking. It also stresses the significance of editing for clarity, conciseness, and readability, offering guidelines to avoid common pitfalls in business communication.
Takeaways
- 📝 The writing process is dynamic and involves gathering information, transforming ideas, organizing, and revising content to meet audience needs.
- 👥 Successful writing requires understanding the audience, determining the purpose, and using an appropriate style and tone.
- ⏱ Writing is a time-consuming process that involves multiple drafts and revisions for clarity and effectiveness.
- 💡 The writing process is not static; it's fluid and involves back-and-forth revisions rather than following a rigid formula.
- 🔍 Research is critical in writing for work as it helps in obtaining the right information and presenting it logically and sensibly.
- 💭 Planning involves getting ideas down on paper or screen, using strategies like clustering, brainstorming, and outlining to organize thoughts.
- 📈 Drafting involves converting ideas into paragraphs, with an expectation of multiple drafts to refine and focus the content.
- ✏️ Revision is essential for improving the quality of writing, ensuring the message is clear and meets the audience's needs.
- 📑 Editing is the final stage of the writing process, focusing on sentence structure, word choices, punctuation, spelling, grammar, and tone.
- 📋 The script highlights common complaints about poorly edited writing, such as length, complexity, clarity, and simplicity, and provides guidelines to avoid these issues.
Q & A
What are the key components of the writing process as described in the script?
-The key components of the writing process include gathering information, transforming ideas into written form, organizing and revising the content, and ensuring it meets the audience's needs.
Why is identifying the audience important in the writing process?
-Identifying the audience is crucial because it helps determine the purpose of writing, the appropriate style and tone, and ensures the message is relevant and effectively communicated to the intended readers.
How does the script describe the nature of the writing process?
-The script describes the writing process as dynamic and fluid, not static, allowing for the discovery and evaluation of thoughts through drafting and revising.
What are the potential consequences of poor writing in a business context?
-Poor writing can lead to misunderstandings, loss of sales, product recalls, and damage to an individual's or organization's reputation.
Why is rewriting and revising an essential part of writing, according to the script?
-Rewriting and revising are essential because they allow the writer to refine their thoughts, improve clarity, and ensure the message is effectively conveyed to the audience.
What role does research play in the writing process for business communications?
-Research is critical as it enables the writer to obtain the right information for the audience, ensuring the content is correct, relevant, and based on factual data.
What are some strategies suggested for overcoming the challenge of getting started in writing?
-Strategies suggested include clustering, brainstorming, and outlining, which help in organizing thoughts and developing a structure for the writing.
How does the script emphasize the importance of revision in the writing process?
-The script emphasizes that revision is an essential stage that requires more than a quick glance, as it involves refining the message, improving organization, and ensuring the content meets the audience's needs.
What are some common complaints readers have about poorly edited writing?
-Common complaints include sentences being too long or complex, making it hard to follow the writer's ideas, and unclear sentences that require rereading.
What are the guidelines provided for improving sentence clarity and readability in business writing?
-Guidelines include avoiding complex or lengthy sentences, using strong active verbs, avoiding modifiers in front of nouns, replacing wordy phrases with concise synonyms, and proofreading for spelling, punctuation, and formatting.
Outlines
📝 The Dynamic Nature of Writing
This paragraph discusses the writing process as an evolving and dynamic activity. It emphasizes the importance of understanding the audience, identifying the purpose of writing, and using an appropriate style and tone. The paragraph also highlights that writing is not a static or one-time effort but requires multiple revisions and rethinking. It mentions the potential consequences of poor writing, such as misunderstandings and damage to reputation, and stresses that writing is a learned skill that involves making judgment calls and is not just about following a formula.
🔍 The Writing Process: Drafting and Revising
Paragraph 2 delves into the drafting phase of the writing process, where the writer shapes their ideas into a coherent text. It acknowledges that the first draft is rarely perfect and that multiple drafts are necessary to refine the content. The paragraph suggests asking critical questions about content and organization during drafting. It also underscores the importance of revision, comparing it to quality control, and advises on editing for clarity, correctness, and appropriateness of language. The paragraph lists common reader complaints about poorly edited writing and provides guidelines for improving sentence structure and clarity.
✏️ Editing for Clarity and Conciseness
Paragraph 3 focuses on the editing phase of the writing process, where the writer ensures that the text is clear, concise, and free from errors. It advises against using overly complex or lengthy sentences and suggests breaking them into more manageable parts. The paragraph encourages the use of strong active verbs and concise phrases, and it warns against redundancy and unnecessary prepositional phrases. It also emphasizes the importance of proofreading the final document for spelling, punctuation, formatting, and content, to ensure that the writing is effective and professional.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Writing Process
💡Audience
💡Revision
💡Research
💡Organization
💡Drafting
💡Editing
💡Style and Tone
💡Clarity
💡Wordiness
💡Proofreading
Highlights
The writing process involves gathering information, transforming ideas, and organizing and revising written work to meet audience needs.
Successful writing requires identifying audience needs, determining purpose, and using appropriate style and tone.
Writing is dynamic and involves discovery and evaluation of thoughts through drafting and revising.
Poor writing can lead to misunderstandings, loss of sales, product recalls, and reputational damage.
Writing involves making judgment calls and often requires many revisions for improvement.
Business writing is not a mysterious process; it can be learned effectively by anyone.
Writing does not follow a magical formula; it requires hard work and thoughtful effort.
The writing process is fluid and back-and-forth, rather than following a rigid formula.
Research is critical for obtaining the right information for the audience in business writing.
Planning involves getting ideas down on paper or a computer screen, which is often the hardest part for writers.
Drafting converts planning ideas into paragraphs and involves shaping the text for the audience.
Revision is essential and requires more than a quick glance; it ensures the message is conveyed appropriately.
Editing is the quality control stage, ensuring the work is reasonable, correct, and well-organized.
Readers often complain about poorly edited writing due to length, complexity, unclear sentences, or simplicity.
Seven guidelines are provided to help with the editing phase, including avoiding complex sentences and using strong active verbs.
Editing should focus on making every word count, using concise phrases, and avoiding redundancy.
Proofreading the final document is crucial for checking spelling, punctuation, formatting, and content.
Transcripts
[Music]
you
the writing process involves such
matters is how writers gather
information how they transform their
ideas in a written form and how they
organize and revise what they've written
to make it relevant for their audience
to be a successful writer you need to
identify your audience needs determine
your purpose and writing to the audience
make sure that your message meets your
audience needs use the most appropriate
style and tone for your message and
format your work so that clearly
reflects your message to your audience
as you begin your study of writing for
the world of work it might be helpful to
identify some notions about what writing
is and what writing is not what business
writing is all about let's take a look
the writing process is dynamic it's not
static it enables you to discover and to
evaluate your thoughts as you draft and
revise a piece of writing changes is
your thoughts and information change and
as you view the material changes as well
writing takes time some people think
that revising and polishing are too
time-consuming but poor writing actually
takes more time and cost more money in
the end it can lead to misunderstanding
loss sales product recalls and even
damage your reputation and your
organization writing means making a
number of judgment calls writing grows
sometimes in bits and pieces and
sometimes in great spurts it may need
many revisions and an early draft is
never the final copy so let's take a
look at what writing is not in the world
of business writing is not a mysterious
process known only by a few even if you
have not done much formal writing before
you can learn to do it effectively
writing is not simply following a
magical formula successful writing
requires hard work and thought-provoking
effort and simply following a formula as
if you were painting by numbers doesn't
necessarily work writing does not
proceed in some predictable way in which
introductions are always written first
in conclusions last writing is not
completed in a first attempt
just because you put something down on
paper or a computer screen doesn't mean
that it's unchangeable writing means
rewriting revising and rethinking the
better a piece of writing is the more
the writer has reworked it the writing
process that we've just described as
something that's fluid not static think
of it as a back and forth process rather
than following a formula to do this then
you do that the writing process is
something fluid not static think of it
as a back and forth process rather than
following a formula do this then do that
before you start to compose any email
memo letter report proposal or website
you'll need to do research research is
critical because it enables you to
obtain the right information for your
audience
the world of work is based on conveying
correct and relevant information the
logical presentation and sensible
interpretation of fact depending on the
length and scope of your written work
and on your audience's needs your
research may include the following
interviewing people inside and outside
your organization collaborating in
person by email or by messaging doing
internet searches reading current
periodicals journals reports and other
documents and visiting a work site at
the planning stage in your writing
process your goal is to get something
anything down on paper or your computer
screen for most writers getting started
is the hardest part of the job take
advantage of a number of widely used
strategies that can help you to develop
organize and tailor the right
information for your audience use any
one of the following techniques alone or
in combination clustering in the middle
of a sheet of paper write down a word or
phrase that best describes your topic
and then start writing other words or
phrases that come to mind brainstorming
at the top of a sheet of paper or your
computer screen describe your topic in a
word or phrase and then list any
information you know or found about the
topic in any order as quickly as you can
outlining this process may be the
easiest and most comfortable way to
begin or to continue planning a report
or a letter if you plant carefully it'll
be
year to start your first draft when you
draft you convert the words and phrases
from your outline brainstorm lists or
clustered grouping into paragraphs
during drafting as elsewhere in the
writing process you will see some
overlap as you look back over your list
or outline to shape your text don't
expect to wind up with a polished
complete version of your written work
after working only on one draft in most
cases you'll have to work through many
drafts but each draft should be less
rough and more focused than the
preceding one as you work on your drafts
ask yourself the following questions
about your content and organization am i
giving my readers too much or too little
information do I need to do more
research where and why should I confer
further with my boss or coworkers does
this point belong where I have it or
would it be more logically to put it
somewhere else is this point necessary
and relevant am i repeating or
contradicting myself have I ended
appropriately for my audience to answer
the question successfully you may have
to continue researching your topic and
re-examining your audience needs but in
the process you'll get even better ideas
and you'll use those ideas originally
and essentially to build your best
writing at work revision is an essential
stage in the writing process it requires
more than giving your work another quick
glance do not be tempted to skip the
revision stage just because you've
written the required number of words or
sections or because you think you've put
too much time in already revision is
done after you produce a draft that you
think conveys the appropriate message to
your audience the quality of your memo
letter or report depends on the
revisions you make now editing is the
equivalent of quality control for your
reader this last stage in the writing
process might be compared to detailing
an automobile the preparation a dealer
goes through and gets ready a new car
for a prospective buyer editing is done
only after you've completely satisfied
that you've made all the big decisions
about content organization and format
that you said you wanted to where you
and how you wanted to and for your
audience when you edit you will check
your work to make sure it's reasonable
and correct at this stage play close
attention to sentences word choices
punctuation spelling grammar and usage
in tone following this writing process
will ensure the effectiveness of your
business communication editing is done
only after you're completely satisfied
that you've made all the big decisions
about content organization and format
that you have said what you wanted to
wear and how you intended for your
audience when you edit you will check
your work to make sure it's reasonable
and correct at this stage pay close
attention to sentences word choices
punctuation spelling grammar and usage
and tone here are four of the most
frequent complaints of readers voice
about poorly editing writing in the
world of work the length the sentences
are too long I could not follow the
writers ideas easily the complexity the
sentences are too complex making it hard
to understand what the writer meant the
first time I read the work I had to
reread it several times being unclear
the sentences are unclear even after I
reread them I still did not understand
the writers message too simplistic the
sentences are too short and simplistic
the writing felt dumbed down writing
clear readable sentences is not always
easy it takes effort but the time you
spend editing will pay off in rich
dividends for you and your readers the
seven guidelines that follow
should help the editing phase of your
work avoid needlessly complex or lengthy
sentences do not pile on words on top of
words instead edit one overly long
sentence into two or even three more
manageable ones combined short choppy
sentences don't shorten lawn complex
sentences only to turn them into choppy
simplistic ones and it's sentences to
tell who does what to whom or what
readers find this pattern easiest to
understand because it provides direct
and specific information about the
action you strong active verbs rather
than verb phrases in trying to sound
important many bureaucratic writers
avoid using simple graphic verbs instead
these writers use a weak verb phrase for
example provide maintenance instead of
maintained work in cooperation instead
of cooperate avoid putting modifiers in
front of nouns putting too many
modifiers words used as adjectives in
the readers path to the noun is
confusing for readers who will have
trouble deciphering how one modifier
relates to another modifier or to the
noun replace wordy phrases or clauses
with one or two-word synonyms combine
sentences beginning with the same
subject or ending with an object that
becomes the subject of the next sentence
too many people in business think the
more words the better nothing could be
more self-defeating your readers are
busy unnecessary words slow them down
make every word count cut out any words
you can from your sentences if the
sentence still makes sense and reads
correctly you've eliminated wordiness
replace wordy phrases with precise ones
use concise not redundant phrases
another kind of wordiness comes from
using redundant expressions saying the
same thing a second time only in
different words
watch for repetitious words phrases or
clauses within a sentence sometimes one
sentence or part of a sentence and
needlessly duplicates another avoid
unnecessary prepositional phrases adding
a prepositional phrase can sometimes
contribute to redundancy be on the
lookout for these phrases and delete
them proofread the final version of your
document paying close attention to
spelling punctuation formatting and
content
[Music]
you
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