Many forms of writing, such as scientific and technical documents, naturally lend themselves to a complex and unclear structure. That’s why it’s particularly important to consciously compose it to read as simply as possible.
Need some ideas on how to do that, apart from using the best writing software you can find? Read on and find out our recommendations:
1. Use the simplest words you can find. Most inexperienced writers tend to rely on an extensive vocabulary in order to show off their abilities. It’s a bad, bad road to take. Unfamiliar vocabulary will leave plenty of gaps in readers’ comprehension. Couple that with the already difficult technical language and you’re dropping a serious lot of work their way.
2. Tighten your writing. Technical people generally don’t have the patience (nor the time) to wade through a pile of words that don’t directly help the point. Keep the setup and flowery language where it belongs – in English class. In the real world, hack those unnecessary items with an axe.
3. Keep sentences short. Complicated language only gets even more dense when you throw it inside unnecessarily long sentences. Keep them short, but make sure they’re complete (use your concise writing software for help).
4. Make sure your subject and verbs match. This is basic, yet remains a common sticking point for many technical workers. At the least, you should be getting this right.
5. Punctuate long sentences properly. Most of the time, you can’t get away with using purely short sentences. As such, you’ll need to throw in long ones every now again. When you do, make sure they’re properly punctuated to allow the reader some necessary breathing room.
