Module 1 — Effective
writing: Strategies
and principles
| Course Guide | Module 1 | Module 2a | Module 2b |
| "Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of intelligent effort." (John Ruskin) |
SECTION 2: Adopting a writing strategy
In this section we'll work through an approach to write efficiently. You should find this approach applicable to all work-related writing tasks regardless of the format (letter, fax, report, briefing note, email, etc.).
Most effective writers write their first drafts without worrying about mistakes in spelling, grammar, punctuation, or sentence and paragraph structure. They stay focused on getting down what they really want to say. Then they go back and look at how to say it correctly. Today's computing power can either assist or, at times, hinder this approach.
A workable procedure is as follows:
- prewriting
- organizing
- drafting
- editing
- proofreading
In this section, you'll work through these five steps.