Writing Tips: Focus on concisness

Writing Tip: Keep your focus on conciseness

•  staying in present tense whenever possible, will help cut out unnecessary words
• avoiding two and three verbs in a row will also assist with clarity and conciseness

FOR EXAMPLE:

• “I have developed my technical writing skills through both educations and work experiences. From my biology classes, I learned to analyze complex articles, and to write research papers, both independently and collaboratively. In addition, I worked as a software developer, where I was tasked with requirement analysis, and programming. Apart from coding, I was regularly involved in writing professional emails, reports and messages, which gave me a good understanding of how technical communications are used in the workplace. Also, I created instruction documentations on my project where it required me to pay close attention to writing format, grammar and details (100 words).

Rewrite:

• My writing skills have developed academically and professionally. My biology classes require analyzing complex articles and writing collaborative and independent research papers. As a software developer, analysis and programming, writing professional emails, reports and messages have developed my technical writing skills and deepened my understanding of technical communications. I also have skills with formatting and keep keen attention on grammar and details; a skill acquired by creating an instructional document for a class project (67 words).

____________________________________________

FOR EXAMPLE:

Too many unnecessary words:

• To make AGILE possible, the development team needs to be able to repeatedly applies prototype and incorporating changes. Accordingly, most AGILE teams are small groups of less than 20 people. The team members collaborate closely with one another and often communicate face-to-face. (Kent et. al 2011, Brown et. al 370) (50 words).

Rewrite:

• AGILE requires small development teams (groups of < 20) collaborating face to face to repeatedly apply and incorporate changes in prototype (Kent et. al 2011, Brown et. al 370) (29 words).

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 Eliminating unnecessary words:

• Avoid pro-nouns: “I” and “you,” “your”

FOR EXAMPLE:

• “I have reviewed your assignment giving three definitions for the term ‘pyranometer.’ Overall, I think that you have done a great job compiling the definitions in a concise and informative manner. As a non-scientist I was able to understand what a pyranometer is by the time I had read your draft. You chose diverse ways of describing the term which definitely added to the ease of my overall understanding. I have only a few suggestions (75 words).

Rewrite:

• Here is the review of the definition assignment for “pyranometer.” The definitions are concise, informative and easy to understand for a novice reader. Here are a few suggestions (28 words).

_____________________________

Writing Tip: Keep your focus on conciseness

• staying in present tense whenever possible, will help cut out unnecessary words
• avoiding two and three verbs in a row will also assist with clarity and conciseness

FOR EXAMPLE:

I have had the opportunity to take courses that are focused on writing academic and research papers that require critical thinking skills. But I have always felt that writing is one of my weakness, primarily because English in not my first language (it’s actually my fourth) and I require a lot of assistance from the writing center at UBCO for almost all of my writing assignments (66 Words).

Rewrite:

While I have taken many courses requiring research, critical thinking skills and academic writing, because English is not my first language (it is my 4^th language), writing is a weakness for me. I use the UBCO Writing Centre for almost all my assignments (43 Words).