10 Simple Rules for Good Writing: Common Mistakes and Fixes

4 min readDec 9, 2020

Have you ever thought about the quality of your Writing?

Do you think whether or not you are getting the right message across?

Writing is one of the most accessible methods of sharing your thoughts and ideas. To win this game, follow the tips listed below and learn how to deliver the perfect message loud and clear.

1.Keep Your Sentences Short and Simple

To attract your reader’s attention, write short, precise, and straightforward sentences. Focus mainly on verbs and nouns. For example, instead of using: ‘There are some people who cannot keep secrets’, use: ‘Some people can’t keep secrets’.

2.Use Active Voice in your Writing

To make your text more engaging to your reader, use active voice instead of passive voice. For example, use ‘John received the document’ instead of ‘The documents were received by John’

3.Use Simple Words and Words Combination

Make your Writing easier to digest by using simpler words and words combination. Avoid specific terms that a regular person would rarely use in everyday life. For example, instead of using; utilize, commence, tranquil, and transparent, use words such as use, begin, calm, and clear respectively.No person will ever want to search for a certain word in a dictionary, mostly when skimming through an article.

4.Use Action Verbs and Adjectives

What you write needs to express confidence. Include visceral verbs and adjectives that can help with expressing action. Don’t use adjectives that require the words very and or really before them. They weaken your Writing. For example, Instead of using; Really tasty, very small, use; Delicious, and tiny respectively.

5.Use the Right Punctuations to Keep the Right Meaning of Your Text

To keep the message clear, don’t make your Writing confusing and ambiguous. If a sentence needs an extra comma, add it. If you can separate two thoughts with a period instead of a comma, do so, even if punctuation rules tells you not to. By doing so, the meaning of both sentences will be clear and simple to understand.

For example, instead of using, ‘This bed as old as it still makes you want to sleep on it.’Use; ‘This bed, as old as it is, still makes you sleep on it.’

6.Be Specific on Your Writing

Not only keep your sentences short and straight forward but also provide your reader with enough details. Make your work specific to make it easier for you to share your ideas with readers. For example, instead of using; ‘I like many different fruits’, use; ‘I like many different fruits such as pineapples, mangoes, apples, and oranges’

7.Address Your Reader

Simply use the word ‘you’ whenever it is possible. The single word will make sure you address your reader personally and make your reader feel you care for him/her. For example, instead of using; ‘It is possible to avoid these challenges’. Use; ‘You can avoid these challenges.’

8.Avoid using Jargons

Keep your Writing free of difficult terms and niche jargon as much as possible. Not everyone is an expert in a specific field of study. An easier article to understand will attract a wider audience and keep them reading. For example, in the nursing field, instead of using; Hypertension and Pyrexia, you can use; High blood pressure and A fever, respectively.

9.Be Consistent When Writing

You need to build trust between you and your readers. Describe your ideas and facts and provide additional proof after stating your main point. Your message has to be consistent. For example, instead of using; ‘I admire students who are focused, hardworking and have the motivation’. Use; ‘I admire students who are focused, hardworking, and motivated’.

10.Construct Your Sentences Properly To Make Strong Points

Construct your sentences properly. This way, you won’t need any exclamation marks to show strong points or make your readers stick to your content. You can form multiple ideas and use consistent grammatical language for close delivery.

For example, instead of using; ‘Forgotten by everybody, his ideas were meaningless.’ Use; ‘He was forgotten by everybody, and his ideas were meaningless.’

In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that you can find more helpful writing rules other than the ones we have highlighted here. However, we have highlighted the ones that are easier to follow, leading to the best results in Writing. Feel free to find more writing rules that can give you the desired results.