This is the time of year when many people think about what they want to achieve over the next 12 months. For some people, that goal involves writing. It might be a fiction or non-fiction book, thesis, family history, memoir or other piece of writing. A large piece of writing can be daunting which makes it hard to even get started.

Here are some tips.

• Think about the overall structure.
• Break the task into smaller pieces of writing.
• Set deadlines for each piece of writing.
• Learn how to use features of Word for long documents.
• Remember the tip: What I really want to say is…
• Make a start and fix it up later.
• Join a local writing group for support.

If you want to write, but don’t know what to write about, think about your passions and what interests you. It is always easy to write with passion.

An editor can help you at several stages of your writing, from the initial planning to the finishing touches. An editor can help structure and organise your writing at the beginning, and also copy edit your writing to ensure consistency and clear communication, whatever your audience and message.

For editing and writing inquiries, contact Right with Rhonda at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

A recent Editors NSW workshop on grammar with presenter Elizabeth Manning Murphy DE was a reminder about the purpose of grammar. Grammar is the communication code we all share and it helps us communicate clearly in writing and in speech. It is just as important for new media such as emails and websites as the old media of printed letters. It improves understanding, ensures clarity and reduces confusion.

Formally teaching and learning grammar did go out of fashion for a time, so it is common for people to be unsure of the right uses of grammar or think something looks odd without being able to explain why.

Some grammar tips

• Understand grammar conventions before breaking them for effective writing.
• Be aware of the different parts of speech such as nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions.
• Be aware of common mistakes and look out for them.
• Find a grammar reference book that is useful for you.
• Remember English is a living language and conventions change over time.

Elizabeth’s book Effective Writing: Plain English at Work is a great easy to read resource. It emphasises that grammar is the basis for plain English style which is recommended for government and business communication.

Effective writing: plain English at work by Elizabeth Manning Murphy

The Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers is a comprehensive resource on many aspects of writing and editing (see my blog here).

For editing queries, please contact me at rhdaniels@bigpond.com

This week I came across a journal with a very specific title: The International Journal of the First Year in Higher Education. This title is very clear. It communicates what the journal is about, what content to expect and who the audience is, even without reading its blurb.

Just to confirm, the blurb at www.fyhejournal.com says the journal “focuses on research and practice about enhancing the experience of commencing students” and the journal’s audiences are “academic and professional staff involved in first year programs as well as senior managers with responsibility for first year policies and strategies”.

It is a good reminder to know your audience and write for them, which includes:

• getting the title right
• getting the content right
• getting the structure right
• getting the language right.

For more, see my blogs Write for your reader and audience and Are your headings helpful?

But wait. In August 2015, the journal was renamed to Student Success: A journal exploring the experiences of students in tertiary education to broaden the focus from First Year to a wider view of student engagement and success in tertiary education.

What do you think of the name change?

The top two mistakes in academic writing I see when editing theses and journal articles are writers trying too hard and not meeting the requirements.

Mistake 1 – Trying too hard

Trying too hard describes a style of writing that tries to impress with complexity, rather than clarity. Impress with simplicity. As much as possible, use the simplest form of a word, delete filler and unnecessary words, keep sentence and paragraph length easy to read, minimise the use of acronyms and jargon, and provide the appropriate level of detail at the right place. Make it easy for the reader. See my other blog tips on writing to impress through simplicity.

Mistake 2 – Not meeting the requirements

As with all writing, academic writing is written for a particular audience for a particular purpose. It is important to know and meet the requirements of the style of writing, the audience and the publisher. Some of the requirements for a thesis might include total word length, original contribution, critical analysis, the structure and the reference style. The requirements for a journal article might include relevance to the aims of the journal, word length, footnotes (or not), and the number of tables or figures allowed.

Improve your academic writing by avoiding the top two mistakes. Keep it clear and simple, and know and meet the requirements.