Writing Clearly

Clear writing is critical if you want to get your message across to readers. This is true whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction. Readers must understand what you write. Often, as writers, our ideas are crystal clear in our minds; but when we attempt to translate those ideas onto paper, they don't come out the same as we envisioned them. Always put yourself in the frame of mind of a reader. Is what you've written potentially confusing to readers? Is it misleading or ambiguous? Would a reader understand what you've written with the same clarity you understand it? If not, what could you do to make it more clear? Sometimes clarity suffers when important details are omitted. A good way to make sure you've included all the necessary information readers need is to make sure you've answered all the journalism questions - those questions a reporter answers when writing a news piece. Those questions are: who, what, where, when, why and how. If you've covered all these bases, you most likely have provided readers with all the necessary information they need to interpret your writing. Leaving out just one of these critical pieces of information can be enough to confound readers and lead them to a different conclusion than what you had intended. Writing as clearly and precisely as you can will assure that your message will be received, understood and appreciated by your readers.