Skills for Life: Writing

by Sara Bird
Programme Leader

Good writing skills set you up for life: whether it's writing your CV, a cover letter, a tricky email, a short essay, a sizeable dissertation or a business report or proposal, the skills are the same. Universities expect schools to teach it, but schools can focus on content rather than style - so sometime students have missed this key skill or could do with some tips and ideas.

So here they are.

Good writing 'flows' 

Structure is important but does not happen by chance: good writing requires planning.

Mind maps are valuable tools for this (here are some digital versions, or use a pen and paper).  They allow you to 'mind dump' all your ideas, group them into common 'themes', and then impose an order by scribbling '1', '2', '3' and so on onto themes and sub-themes in the order that you will address them.

Microsoft Word tis also useful: we cover this in Methods of Enquiry at level 2 - or this University of Michigan webpage summarises the principles nicely. Basically:

• Apply styles such as 'Title', 'Heading level 1', Heading Level 2' to your title, main headings and subheadings respectively. The rest of the text is 'normal'.
• Use the document map window to see these headings, navigate rapidly and drag whole sections into the order you want.
• Under each heading/subheading, start dropping in the ideas you want to include as bullet points (including references).
• Once your bullets are in place, put them into a logical order within each section. Break into paragraphs that focus on one topic or viewpoint at a time.
• Only then, write the bullets into paragraphs, linking points into a cohesive argument.

So, instead of writing as you go, you gather and organise all your ideas before you create 'proper' sentences, ensuring you don't waste time going back to edit - and don't get 'stuck' into a structure that might have seemed a good idea at the start, but was not as you gathered more information. 

Good writing is succinct

Why use 10 words when 6 will do? Writing succinctly is good practice for academic work, where you want to include as many ideas in as few words as possible, and in business writing, where you want to convince your reader before their patience ebbs.

Try these tips:

• Never repeat yourself, unless you mean to. This includes phrases such as 'personal opinion' (all opinion is personal), or 'free gift' (all gifts are free)
• Use words instead of phrases e.g. 'week after week' is 'weekly'
• Avoid unnecessary clarifications e.g. 'The journal article by Humphreys  (2010) concludes that...' could be reduced to 'Humphreys (2010) concludes that...' (of course Humphrey's opinion is in a journal article if it's a literature review! No need to emphasise this)
• But also avoid generalisations and stick to the specifics, e.g. "On the whole, marketers use a mix of integrated communications for instance PR, social media, online advertising and press advertising' could be reduced to 'Marketers use PR, social media, online advertising and press advertising'
• Avoid common phrases, such as 'the proof is in the pudding' - they sound unprofessional and use more words than alternatives
• Find the exact word, for instance why say 'the literature is outdated and no longer relevant' when you an say 'the literature is obsolete'? This may require expanding your vocabulary - a thesaurus can help.

Finally, read and re-read your work with such principles in mind - looking at whole paragraphs and sentences and culling all unnecessary words and phrases - and rewrite as short and readable sentences. There is a temptation, especially in academic writing, to use long words and old-fashioned, long-winded phraseology - however, this usually just makes it harder to read.

Good writing guides your reader

This links to the first point, of a good structure, but aims to guide your reader through your writing. A good introduction outlines what to expect, 'signposting' between sections explains how they link, and a brief conclusion ensures key points are emphasised. Readers will understand your work better if they know what you are aiming to achieve.

In conclusion...

Writing is a skill, not a talent. You can learn to write better by applying these principles and watching how others write well (or not - and avoiding their mistakes). Finding the right word, creating a convincing argument, and using the right language and tone are key skills for marketers, managers and academic alike. Use this time at university to practice this skill - and then use it for life.

More useful sources:

Mark Nichols' Daily Writing Tips blog

Rowena Murray's 'How to Write a Thesis' (available as an e-book via UWE Library)

UWE Library's Writing Skills pages 

Apps and Websites to Support your Academic Career - and Beyond

by Sara Bird, Programme Leader

University is busy: deadlines mount up, you need to plan ahead, you need to brainstorm and project manage and keep track of all your notes and ideas...it's just like a job. So while you're at university it's a great time to try out the myriad of apps and websites that are out there to support your career - and improve your uni work.

Planning for Deadlines

One big challenge at university is keeping track of deadlines for different modules and assessments. Diaries are useful, but too often you put a date in but forget until that very week. Diary apps and reminders can help, but. in this case, a good old fashioned paper calendar or wall chart above your desk may do the best job.

However, it does help to break complex assignments down into steps and set deadlines for each step. Until UWE get an equivalent, you might want to 'borrow' this weblink from the University of Kent - simple enter the dates for hand in and when you want to start, and the webpage suggests small steps and the dates you should complete them, to help you keep on track.

Keeping Track of Notes and Resources

Perhaps you're managing a large assessment, or trying to keep track of multiple modules, applying for multiple placements of graduate roles - or even planning your holidays. There are now a number of excellent software options to help you keep track of information, organise ideas and manage tasks.

Most developed as note taking tools (useful for lectures...) but the three we focus on have evolved to become much more. Embedded in browsers, they track useful webpages, link to PDFs and other documents or presentations, create todo lists and reminders - and are accessible across devices for full integration. The three all have free versions - with more functionality if you choose to pay for it.

Evernote tends to win in reviews: highly compatible with macs as well as PCs, it is long established and offers great functionality even through its free version. Microsoft's OneNote tends to favour Microsoft 365 users but has ever increasing functionality and works well with the programmes you use most often. Google Keep is the relative newcomer but very useful if you're already a Google mailer/blogger/doc user - and with ever expanding options this might be the one to watch.

Give them a try, make your choice - it could keep you organised for years to come.

Working as a Group - or accessing your own materials

University is often the first time that you need to work in groups on some significant projects: but you all have different timetables, you live in different places and it's hard to get together - so how can you work well without it involving a bus journey?

For talking face-to-face there is always good old Skype, FaceTime for mac users, and also Google Hangouts. They're all free with similar functions - and can include more than 2 in a conversation.

If you want to share and develop documents together then options include Dropbox  - or the sharing options in Evernote, OneNote and Keep described above. Alternatively, you can share documents, track comments and make suggestions on documents and presentations via Google Docs. Or, for a rather different approach, use Prezi to create presentations that have a slicker approach than Powerpoint, and you can share editing remotely.

Of course - another advantage of all these 'sharing' platforms is that YOU can access your own work from multiple devices. No more lugging the laptop around...

Mind Mapping

As your assignments grow, you'll find mind mapping more and more useful. I use mind maps for planning lectures, building presentations, writing blog entries - and have used them for 20-something years for planning essays and exam answers. And now I can do this online. MindJet is great for including links, collaborating and project managing - but pricey.  MindNode is good for tablets and touchscreens - of the Apple variety. FreeMind is free and open source, Coggle is free but requires logging in with Google, and there are plenty more options if you look around...

To Do lists

Finally, I know most phones have To Do list apps built in, and there are plenty out there, but my favourite has to be Carrot. She's moody, sadistic and even creepy at times - the functionality of the app improves as you complete tasks, and incentives include training your cat to assassinate Justin Bieber and not getting on her bad side. For iOS only.

What do YOU think?

The website and app options to support your productivity will continue to diversify and evolve - one good way to keep track is to follow Lifehacker's productivity pages.  However, many of you will already have your own favourite apps: add them to the comments, debate which is best and  helps others improve their productivity.