Looking for better writing clarity? When you write, do you get your meaning across clearly? Skillful writing is focused and straightforward. It delivers information without fluff or dense jargon. Good fiction writing can be more flowery, but it must still be clear. Here are five tips to help you achieve writing clarity every time.
1. Organize Your Thoughts
Writing clarity begins with a well-organized argument. Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, writing flows better when you’re working with a plan. You should have a clear outline of the key things you want to cover. Many authors use actual outlines that they write ahead of time to organize their information. It helps guide the writing and keeps them on track. This is a classic, time-tested technique for nonfiction writers, but it’s also useful in fiction.
Writing without an outline is like driving without directions to your destination. You may eventually get there, but you’ll waste a lot of time and effort. Use a plan to keep yourself focused and on track for better writing clarity.
2. Use the Active Voice
An active voice is key to writing clarity.
The passive voice reverses the subject-object order. For instance, instead of saying “I blew up the building,” you write, “The building was blown up.” Instead of writing “The committee held several meetings,” you write, “Several meetings were held.” You describe the action without naming the person who’s doing it.
When you use the passive voice, your writing sounds tentative, as if you can’t commit to making a strong statement about what you’re describing. Consider this famous phrase: “Mistakes were made.” Well, who made them? What were they? The passive voice often crops up in political speeches and legal testimony because they allow the speaker or writer to describe something without pointing a finger at the person who did it.
The next time you spot the passive voice in one of your sentences, stop and ask yourself, “Who is doing this action?” You’ll see that there’s an effortless way to turn it around and improve writing clarity.
Some believe there is no place at all for the passive voice, but that rule isn’t fixed. Sometimes, there is no other way to form a sentence, and using the active voice doesn’t sound right. “This book was printed in 1812” sounds better than “The printer printed this book in 1812.” Use your common sense. Use the active voice when you can, and use the passive voice when it makes sense.
3. Keep It Simple
Use everyday language to improve writing clarity. If an ordinary word can replace a longer or more obscure one, use it. Long, rambling sentences make your writing sound unfocused. Keep your sentences short. To help with writing clarity, go through all sentences that use conjunctions like “and” or “if.” They might read better if you cut them into two or more sentences.
With fiction, there’s more leeway for longer, more obscure writing. You should still have a clear idea of what you want to convey with every sentence and paragraph.
If you’re using acronyms, spell them out the first time you use them, unless the acronym is well-known, like NASA or the FBI. Otherwise, don’t assume your audience knows what you mean. The acronyms may be obvious to you because you use them every day, but they may be mystifying to readers who aren’t familiar with the subject.
4. Avoid Jargon to Improve Writing Clarity
Some of the worst offenders to writing clarity are words that originated in business offices. People use business jargon because they think it sounds professional, but it makes their writing dense and clunky.
For instance, you’ll see the word “utilize” in a lot of professional and even nonprofessional writing. The word “use” is better. It’s simple and direct. The word “proactive” is another frequent offender. Why not just be active? The word “synergy” has replaced “collaboration,” but is it a better choice?
Similarly, eliminate overused business cliches like “thinking outside the box,” “moving the needle,” or “paradigm shift.” These phrases have lost all meaning, and they make your writing dense. The bottom line (another overused cliché) is to avoid annoying business jargon whenever possible.
A Note About Technical Terminology
Some professions and industries have technical terms that amount to a second language. If you’re writing for a professional audience in that industry, you can—and should—use the terminology they use. Usually, there aren’t ordinary words that convey the same meaning to that audience, and your meaning could get lost. You should still strive to be clear and direct in your writing.
5. Cut Out Excess Words
Too many words will drown the writing clarity of any piece. Be ruthless when you edit. Delete all words that add wordiness without enhancing the meaning.
Instead of saying “in order to,” say “to.” Keep an eye out for fluffy words like “really” and “very,” which often pad sentences without adding any value.
Exercises to Help You Gain Writing Clarity
Are you ready to improve your writing clarity right now? Try these exercises. Think of them as games that can help you trim the fluff and tighten your prose.
100-Word Challenge
Write a paragraph on any topic you want. The challenge is that you must limit yourself to 100 words. Trying to get your meaning across in just 100 words isn’t easy. It will force you to cut fluff and make deliberate word choices. Are you ready to push yourself further? Reduce your word count to 50.
The Because Test
In this challenge, you add the word “because” to the end of every sentence in a paragraph. This forces you to consider why you’ve included that sentence. Why is that sentence there? What information backs up its importance? This test will help you find vague or weak sentences.
Here’s an example. The original sentence is, “This new policy is important.” In the Because Test, you ask yourself, “This new policy is important because…” It forces you to explain why you’re writing this sentence. The edited version might read, “This policy is important because it reduces delays.” Use this test to make weak sentences stronger.
Reverse Outline
After you write your first full draft, read each paragraph, and summarize it in a single sentence. Write down each summary in order. Ask yourself: Does each summary flow easily into the next one? Do they make sense in this order? This is an excellent exercise for uncovering a jumbled or cluttered structure. If the summaries don’t flow together well, consider rearranging the article’s structure.
One Idea Per Sentence
In this drill, you ask yourself what the meaning or main idea of each sentence is. This is a wonderful way to cut conjunctions and arrange your text to maximize writing clarity.
Here’s an example of how you might rewrite a wordy, rambling sentence. The original sentence reads, “She got to work early, got the coffee going, and started her day while thinking about the argument she had with her boss the previous day.”
Using the idea of one idea per sentence, you would rewrite it as, “She got to work early. First, she got the coffee started. As she got ready for the day, she thought about the fight she had with her boss.” This rewrite doesn’t try to cram too much information into a single sentence. It gives each sentence room to breathe.
Make Your Writing Shine
Nobody writes a perfectly polished first draft. With these editing tips, you’ll create writing that is clear, engaging, and easy to read. Try the writing exercises the next time you feel stuck on a piece of prose. At Dazzle Printing, we help writers at every step of their journey to being published.
