how to get better at writing

welcome to introspection ft. harsehaj! ⭐️ i’m harsehaj, a 19 y/o always up to something in social good x tech.

this publication is a place for me to reflect on productivity, health and tech, and drop unique opportunities in the space right to your inbox daily. if you’re new here, sign up to tune in! 💌 

scroll to the end for my daily roundup on unique opportunities!

onto today’s topic: how to get better at writing ✍️ 

yes, you can chatgpt most of the things you want to write nowadays, but written communication is such an important skill to have.

i enjoy creative/casual writing (thanks to this blog), but i can’t say i particularly enjoy academic writing. i love articulating my thoughts through my authentic tone and style. essays for school or project memos feel restrictive, however i understand the need for standardized writing etiquette.

despite being a stem-focused person, i’d like to think my writing isn’t too bad. i guess i fall out of line with the stereotype LOL. writing skill translates beyond essays for school. 🏫 communication and quality of your writing is evident through the emails you send, linkedin posts you write, college applications you submit, and even the texts you share.

here are 3 quick tips on how to generally improve your writing:

1) read what you’re writing out loud, or even at least mentally. 📚️ 

sometimes i’ll read back a sentence i wrote and think, “wtf am i trying to say here?” i’ve noticed this a lot in the essays i look over for others too — your writing should flow like it’s being spoken aloud.

reading your own work helps for putting yourself in the audience’s shoes. it’s most helpful for catching redundancy, run-on sentences, general flow, and more.

2) please learn how to use commas. 🔎 

comma usage is probably the #1 thing i’ve observed done incorrectly, and makes a huge difference in the reading experience.

comma breaks, a punctuation structure, is one of the most misused examples (see what i did there?). comma splices are also pretty up there. you can’t connect two separate ideas with a comma alone. you need a connecting word of some sort, or just leave the clauses as independent sentences.

ex. ❌ i love winter, it’s the prettiest season.

 ✅ i love winter, because it’s the prettiest season.

3) plan before pen 🤔 

think, “what am i writing? why am i writing it?” of course, a text probably doesn’t require planning, but longer content like emails or essays definitely do. don’t just immediately start writing.

even for these short blog posts, i always have some sort of mental structure before i write out all the content. i knew this one, for example, would have an introduction + 3 key points of improvement. this way, i’m not just rambling on and on, nor am i struggling to fill space.

even with emails, i think about my intention for the email and write it accordingly. good writing has intentionality at its foundation, and planning helps actualize that. (:

writing is a hard skill to master. i’d even say you can’t master it (english teachers cackling rn), because there is just so much to it. it’s a skill you should have even if ai can do it for you — if you can’t communicate your ideas, beliefs or thoughts to the world, your identity is just that: a locked box. 📦️ 

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