{"id":572,"date":"2021-03-30T18:10:56","date_gmt":"2021-03-30T18:10:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-englishcomp2\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=572"},"modified":"2021-10-14T21:03:48","modified_gmt":"2021-10-14T21:03:48","slug":"writing-clearly","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-englishcomp2\/chapter\/writing-clearly\/","title":{"raw":"Writing Clearly","rendered":"Writing Clearly"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\nIdentify hallmarks of clear writing\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nClear writing:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">is clear thinking on paper<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">contains specific information which is relevant to the reader<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">keeps to plain language principles<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">is logically arranged and easy to follow<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nClear writing is effortless reading that makes you want to read more. It is clear and concise, uses short sentences and simple words. It keeps to the facts and is easy to read and to understand.\r\n\r\nTwo factors to consider when writing clearly are the intended audience and purpose or reason for writing.\u00a0 If you\u2019re writing a letter to your grandparents to thank them for a birthday present, then the audience and purpose will be completely different than if you\u2019re writing a cover letter for a prospective employer.\r\n<h2>Audience<\/h2>\r\nIf you know that your audience is familiar with your subject, then you won\u2019t need as many details to make the subject clear.\r\n\r\nIf you\u2019re writing an essay about a short story for your college instructor, then you can assume that he\/she is familiar with the short story -- you won\u2019t need much background information or summary of the short story .\u00a0 Those details might be necessary, though, if the essay is supposed to be written for your peers who haven\u2019t read the short story.\r\n\r\nIn each of these cases, clarity would depend on your audience.\r\n\r\nThink about what your audience knows about the situation or topic you\u2019re writing about. Then, guide them through the information they need to know. To help you do this, try answering the following questions:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Who is my audience?<\/li>\r\n \t<li>What does my audience already know about the subject?<\/li>\r\n \t<li>What does my audience need to know?<\/li>\r\n \t<li>What questions will my audience have?<\/li>\r\n \t<li>What\u2019s the best outcome for our audience? What do I need to say to get this outcome?<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2>Purpose<\/h2>\r\nOnce you\u2019ve established your audience, then consider your purpose or reason for writing this piece.\r\n\r\nAre you trying to persuade your reader to change a viewpoint?\u00a0 Are you explaining a concept or teaching a new idea?\u00a0 Are you comparing and contrasting information from different articles?\u00a0 Are you reporting a breaking story or a community event?\r\n\r\nDetermining the purpose for the writing can help you as you revise for clarity.\u00a0 Is that purpose clear to your readers?\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">In a persuasive essay, you\u2019ll want to make sure that your own voice is heard clearly throughout and doesn\u2019t get drowned out by outside sources.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">If the focus is to explain or teach, clarity will depend on giving steps in the correct order or not moving too quickly from one idea to the next.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">When you compare and contrast, it\u2019s important that the reader can clearly find the two (or more!) items or ideas that you\u2019re comparing and can also follow your organization.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">If you\u2019re writing an article to report an event, you\u2019ll want to eliminate bias as much as possible and stick to \u201cjust the facts\u201d to make the story clear.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\n<p>Identify hallmarks of clear writing<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Clear writing:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">is clear thinking on paper<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">contains specific information which is relevant to the reader<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">keeps to plain language principles<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">is logically arranged and easy to follow<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Clear writing is effortless reading that makes you want to read more. It is clear and concise, uses short sentences and simple words. It keeps to the facts and is easy to read and to understand.<\/p>\n<p>Two factors to consider when writing clearly are the intended audience and purpose or reason for writing.\u00a0 If you\u2019re writing a letter to your grandparents to thank them for a birthday present, then the audience and purpose will be completely different than if you\u2019re writing a cover letter for a prospective employer.<\/p>\n<h2>Audience<\/h2>\n<p>If you know that your audience is familiar with your subject, then you won\u2019t need as many details to make the subject clear.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re writing an essay about a short story for your college instructor, then you can assume that he\/she is familiar with the short story &#8212; you won\u2019t need much background information or summary of the short story .\u00a0 Those details might be necessary, though, if the essay is supposed to be written for your peers who haven\u2019t read the short story.<\/p>\n<p>In each of these cases, clarity would depend on your audience.<\/p>\n<p>Think about what your audience knows about the situation or topic you\u2019re writing about. Then, guide them through the information they need to know. To help you do this, try answering the following questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Who is my audience?<\/li>\n<li>What does my audience already know about the subject?<\/li>\n<li>What does my audience need to know?<\/li>\n<li>What questions will my audience have?<\/li>\n<li>What\u2019s the best outcome for our audience? What do I need to say to get this outcome?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Purpose<\/h2>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve established your audience, then consider your purpose or reason for writing this piece.<\/p>\n<p>Are you trying to persuade your reader to change a viewpoint?\u00a0 Are you explaining a concept or teaching a new idea?\u00a0 Are you comparing and contrasting information from different articles?\u00a0 Are you reporting a breaking story or a community event?<\/p>\n<p>Determining the purpose for the writing can help you as you revise for clarity.\u00a0 Is that purpose clear to your readers?<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">In a persuasive essay, you\u2019ll want to make sure that your own voice is heard clearly throughout and doesn\u2019t get drowned out by outside sources.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">If the focus is to explain or teach, clarity will depend on giving steps in the correct order or not moving too quickly from one idea to the next.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">When you compare and contrast, it\u2019s important that the reader can clearly find the two (or more!) items or ideas that you\u2019re comparing and can also follow your organization.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">If you\u2019re writing an article to report an event, you\u2019ll want to eliminate bias as much as possible and stick to \u201cjust the facts\u201d to make the story clear.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-572\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">Public domain content<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Clear Writing and Plain Language. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Nick Wright. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.plainlanguage.gov\/about\/definitions\/clear-writing-and-plain-language\/\">https:\/\/www.plainlanguage.gov\/about\/definitions\/clear-writing-and-plain-language\/<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/about\/pdm\">Public Domain: No Known Copyright<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">Lumen Learning authored content<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Writing Clearly. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Lumen Learning. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section>","protected":false},"author":161083,"menu_order":6,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"pd\",\"description\":\"Clear Writing and Plain Language\",\"author\":\"Nick 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