Nurturing Good Writing Skills
The beginning of good writing is not an endeavor of one day; it sprouts from long hours of toils and labour. Good writing is a combination of both ‘self’ and ‘other’. What do I mean? By “self” I mean personal effort which may be achieved through reading and practice. By ‘Other’ I mean an exhortation from those around us or a call of need from situation where one is forced to start writing (may it be for monetary gains or professional development or exposure). Good writing may also come about as a result of environment one grew in, an environment that encouraged reading and writing. Parents and first teachers in this case have a great role to play. Keith, in an article “Help Your Child Learn Writing Skills” appearing in Parenting of K-6 Children states that:
Educational technology advances have taught us that reading and writing development are intertwined in early learning. The physical act of writing letters and early words enhances the child’s ability to read. The complementary relationship between reading and writing continues long after these early efforts, so parents enhance their child’s skills dramatically by encouraging the writing habit in childhood.
Perhaps we should look at some elements that are associated with good writing:Originality: Good writing consists of internalization and bringing out the best that can be! “The very act of writing brings about something original” says Singham.
Hard work and commitment: the writer should be focused and disciplined, ready to make self-sacrifice. Raibert says that since good writing requires hard work motivation is a must.
In-depth reading: Good writing is all about consulting various sources to have a good backing. “If you want to write well. . . read, read, and then read some more. Read good writing. Read bad writing.” (Reed).
Variation of sentence structure in writing: the writer should be able to vary the sentence structure, be simple, concise and clear. Reed observes that the works of good writers are characterized by “simplicity of their language” and variation of “sentence structure and length.”
Acquisation of good writing skills is a life long process, which may not be limited to the few highlighted elements. It is a process that calls for patience, persistence and pursuance.
Works Cited Keith, Kimberly. Help Your Child Learn Writing Skills. Parenting of K-6 Children.
Reed, Bill. “How Reading Can Help You Write.” Edinboro.edu. 27 Oct. 2007 .
Singham, Mano. “On writing-4: The role of originality.” Mano Singham’s Web Journal 17 April 2006. 26 Oct. 2007 http://blog.case.edu/singham/