THE ELEMENTSOF GOOD WRITING

Not everyone is a naturally gifted writer. Writing is a skill that can be practiced andmastered. In many ways, it is like driving a car. If you have ever driven in anothercountry, you know that some of the rules of the road may be different. Just as therules for driving differ from country to country the conventions for writing maychange from language to language.

\Triting in a different language involves more than mastering its vocabulary andgrammar. Language, including written language, is a reflection of the thoughtpattems of native speakers. In order to write well in a different language, it isimportant to understand the way native speakers of that language organize theirthoughts. That is why it rarely works to write something in your native languageand then translate it into English. The words may be in English, but the logic,organization, and thought patrems reflect those of your native language.

To write effectively in English, you must conform to the accepted pattems oforganization. Practicing these pattems will put you on the road to becoming abetter writer.

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CHAPTER 1

Getting ReadY to Write

Determini Your Attitude Toward Writing

Your attitude toward anything that you do in life greatly affects your success

in doing it. Writing is no exc"eption. Think about your attitude toward

writing in yoo" ,,"ii.r. language as you complete the following exercises.

A.Circ|etheappropriateresponsestothefo||owingstatementsaboutwriting in Your own language.

. 2, CHAPTER'1

Take the number from the box on page 2 and divide it by ten. The final number isyour aveEge score for the ten questions. Overall, it will tell you how much you liketo write. The closer your score is to "1,'f the more you like to write. The closer yourscore is to "5," the less you like to write.

Based on your answers, what general conclusions can you make about yourattitude toward writing in your native language?

D. Write a paragraph about your general attitude toward writing.

U{O ANE ffYffiAgEE?WTElHmm?

Small-Group Discussion

In small groups discuss your main ideas from the paragraph you wrote above(number 4), and then answer the following questions.

1. \Uhat kinds of things do you enjoy writing about?Z. What kinds of writing do you think will be required in university classes?3. what types of writirig does your job or future profession require?4. What do you hope to gain from this course?

GETTING READY TO WRITE

Elements of Good Writing: SPA

spA is an acronym that stands for subject, purpose' and audience-three of the most

important elements of good writing'

,za suhlectthat you know well and understand'

You will find it easier to write if you have !u a"u' Purpose for writing'

\ un audlence that you have identified'

Keeping these three elements in mind will help your writing stay focused'

SUBJECTinterests You and that You know

an angle or focus of that subject

suallY-have to go through a

ct until you find an appropriate topic'

E NT ERTAI N M ENTGoncerts

ROCK MUSIC

The Rolling Stones

World Tour

In the next example, the same general subject, entzrtnimnpnt, has been nanowed down

to the silentfihn era.

ENTERTAINMENTThe Movies

MOVIE HISTORY

Early History

Silent Film Era

Finding a SubiectGo through the process of narrowing down each of the following general subjects until

y." ?L"a i,necrfic a.,gl. that you would be interested in writing about'

TELEVISION PRCDGRAMS

4. CHAPTERl

IN\'ENTI ONS

Write a few narrowed topics on the chalkboard. Different srudents will probably havevery different topics. Discuss and compare the various topics with your classmates.

PURPOSEwhenever you write something, it is importanr to think abour your purpose. Todetermine your purpose, you should ask yourself the question, "Why am I writing?" Thethree most common purposes for writing are to entertain, to inform, and to persuade.However, these three purposes are not always mutually exclusive. It is possible for apiece of writing to accomplish several purposes at the same time. For example, an articlemay be amusing but also educational and/or persuasive.

ldentifying PurposeA. Read each of the following selections and decide whether the author's purpose is

to entertain, to inform, or to persuade. Some selections may have more than onepurpose. Write your answer on the line.

?+'lil ruino is the name given to an unusual warming of the Pacific Ocean that cancause weather changes all over the world. El Nifio has troubled much of the world withdisruptive weather for several years now, but researchers at the National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration announced yesterday that El Nifro's strength hasdecreased. Long-range climate forecasts for events like El Nifio can help farmerssuccessfully choose which crops to plant. Forecasts in Peru, for example, have helpedincrease the nation's overall economic product by preventing millions of dollars'worthof crop losses.

Selection 1:

"Photography is art," says saundra Lane. she is a trustee of the Museum ofFine Arts in Boston and a photo collector. She says that whether or notphotography is arr was a debatable point until the 19?0s. All that changed whenone of Ansel Adams's photographs was chosen for the cover of Tirne magazine.Ever since, the value of photography as an art form has no longer been open toquestion. Exhibitions of the works of great photographers are now regularlyfeatured in museum shows the world over.

Selection 2:

GETTING READYTOWRITE

(authsr wrkrwqm)

The president is due in Atlanta on February 13 for a campaign fund'raising finnel.thewhite House said yesterday. The president is expected to arrive in Atlanta aboard his

private plane, Air ForceOrw,after giving a speech at the Department of Health and

Human services in washingtorr, D.C. He will retum to the lvhite House later that night'

Selection 3:

Selection 4:

Selection 5:

make sudden left turns without signaling,

ft has been sid that there is no love more sincere than the love of good food'

You witl surety agree when you ioin us for dinner at

Tlte Atelier'1#{;{Our highly acclaimed chef will attend to your every whim and fancy

ut you cttoose from our impressive menu of fine;;J".h cuisine, artfully prepared, presented, and served

in our tastefully decorated restaurant'

Whether you'te in New York for a special occasion or not'

we'll make this occasion special' You'll fall in love'

CHAPTEF 1

Selection 6:

Source: Dase Bcrrr's Onlr TiavelGuideYou'IlEwrNeed' by Dave Barry

B. Complete the chart below by putting each type of writing in the appropriate box.Some types of writing may go in more than one box.

playsmemossongsessays

poeffy

jokes

storiescomparisonseditorialsanalyses

newspaper articlesnovelsletterstextboolsinstmctions

ENTERTAIN INFORM PERSUADE

C. Look through your local newspaper and find one example of writing that entertains,one that informs, and one that persuades. Bring your artictes to class to share withyour classmates.

1. Which kind of article (entertaining, informational, or persuasive) was thb easiestto find?

2. Which kind was the most difficult to find? Whv?

3. which kind of writing do you think students are usuallv asked to do?

GETTING READYTOWRITE

AUDIENCE

vhat you wrire about (subject) and your reason for writing (purpose) ale greatly

affected by whom vo" "r. *.itirrg for (audience). Because you will usually be writing for

an audience, you will communicate your ideas more effectively,rf you keep that audience

- rni"a. Remember that all audiences have expectations, but those expectations vary

from one audience to another'

As you work through this book, your audience will usually be your teacher or classmates'

Fi;;;;;,;o,, will".*ri"""fiy'b" asked to write with another audience in mind' This

will give you practice in choosing the appropriate words and varying youl tone'

Readthefollowingtwoe-mailsandnoticethedifferenceintone.

CHAPTEF 1

In small grcups, make a list of the differences between the two e-mails. Which oneuses more formal language? Which one is more conversational?

1.

z.

3.

4.

Writing for Different AudiencesA letter you would write to your best friend asking him or her to lend you some moneywould be quite different from a letter to a bank loan officer. The rwo letters wouldprobably include different expressions and have a different tone.

A On a separate piece of paper; write a letter to your best friend asking to borrow ,

B.

tG.

money.

Then write a letter to the loan officer at a bank asking to borrow money.

Compare your two letters and answer the following questions.

1. Which letter was easier for you to write? \Vhy?2. In which letter did you use a more formal style?

DETERMTNTNG SUBJECT, pURposE, AND AUDTENCE

choose one of the following general subjects to write a paragraph about.

. your hometown

. your school

. your family

After you have chosen your subject, decide on a specific focus that interests you.Then determine your purpose and identify your audience.

Subject:

Focus:

Purpose:

Audience:

GETTING READY TO WRITE

Finally, write your ParagraPh'

Now find another focus of the same subiect that you want to explore. Choose a

different purpose for your writing and pick another audience.

Subject:

Focus:

Purpose:

Audience:

Write a second paragraPh.

How are your two paragraphs alike? How are they different?

The Writing Process

Very few people pick up a pen or sit down at a computer and produce a perfect piece ofwriting on the first try. Most writers spend a lot of time thinking before they write andthen work through a series of steps while they are composing. The final product is oftenthe result of several careful revisions. It takes patience as well as skill ro write well. Youshould think of writing as a process involving the following sreps:

Step One: Prewritinggenerating ideas, planning, and organizing your ideas

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Step Two: Writingusing your ideas to write a first draft

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IStep Three: Revising and Editingimproving what you have written

In this and the next two chapters, you will leam more about these three steps andpractice them.

Step One: Prewriting

For many people, the hardest part of writing is gemng stnrted. Whether you enjoy writingor not, you will find it easier to write if you do some prewriting exercises to get started.Prewriting is a way to warm up your brain before you write, just as you warrn up yourcar's engine before you drive.

GENERATING IDEASFollowing are several prewriting techniques that writers use to generate ideas. Some ofthe most popular methods are hairctanning, clustering, freeunitiig, arrd l<e,eping a jownal.BrainstormingBrainstorming is a quick way to generate a lot of ideas on a subject. The purpose is tocome up with a list of a-s n]any ideas as possible without worrying about howyou will usethem- Your list may include words, phrases, sentences, or even questions. To brainstorm,follow these steps:

1. Begin with a broad topic.2. Write down as many associations as you can in ten minutes.3. Add more items to your list by answering the questions what, how, when,

where, why, andwho.4. Group the items on the list that go together.5. Cross out items that do not belone.

GETTING READY TO WRITE A A

Your list may seem very unfocused as you are working on it. But you will later go back

and organize the items on your list and decide which ones you want to include in your

essay and which you want to discard.

The following is an example of brainstorming on the general subject of supersnnons.

TOPIC SUPERJTITIONT

rril.a/tstfi, eatscranbld'Wrforbrukfa,rton dn/

bru.kinz oruirror of a,aa,ua.ottt

@ ot oyt wur pwL n^ec,klarzfor tuett d^on t unlkun/u lal/,us

Loob chuus dn,tt owuatk

dnrt t otuBtt ina"h"oal whmt

sitinwhr of roow tut6 sh^oehnr inhruil slwu

f-sfurt swidhuma,h,to wrist furtt

In this example, after the author made her list, she read it over, and decided to write anessay that focused on her personal superstitions. She grouped together similar ideas andeliminated items that did not fit in. In the end, she grouped her list into threecategories covering superstitions about school, travel, and sports.

ICHOOL: IPORTI:

alnays ouew p.url nerl<l"ap fo r furtr ww h'Lrl<y T-shbtfor qa*ur

sit inunhr of roowforb,rtt uoh,cl,,y shte/aLer infutnir sluu

s winh waAh, to rQ ht wrirt fo r b.rLs ut scran^blti'e4qt fur bret*fa* on,

TKAVEL: d^ay of nqano

nuet statt a, tr t w o w Fr i/^a4

d^on t stay on Btil,flior ina,h^oal

wur qretnootuntfl4

A 2. CHAPTEF 1

Prdcticing Brainstorming

ln the space beloq brainstorm a list of ideas for the general topic of travel.

Now, group similar ideas together and eliminate ones that do not fit in.

ClusteringIf you prefer to work with information visually, clustering might be a good technique foryou. Clustering is a visual yay of generating ideas. It is a technique to show you theconnections among your ideas using circles and lines. To cluster, folow these steps,

1. \ilUrite your topic in the cenrer of a piece of paper and draw a circlearound it.

2. Think about your topic and write any ideas that come to mind in circlesaround the main circle.

3. Connect these ideas to the center circle with a line.4. Think about each of your new ideas, write more related ideas in circles

around them, and connect them to their corresponding ideas with a line.5. Repeat this process until you run out of ideas.

On the ne)ct page is an example of a cluster diagram on the topic of cars. In thisexample, what topic or topics would the author probably choose to write about?why?

GETTING READYTOWRITE A3

PracUcing Glustering

Use the space below to practice clustering for an essay on the topic of music.

A 4. CHAPTER 1

FreewritingIf you have a hard time finding a focus for a broad subject, freewriting might be ahelpful technique for you. Freewriting is writing as much as you can, as fast as you can,without worrying about mistakes. To freewrite, follow these steps:

1. Write your general topic at the top of your page.z. Start writing, and write as much as you can, as fast as you can, for ten

minutes.3. Don't stop for any reason. Don't worry if your mind wanders away from your

original idea. Don't worry about mistakes. Just keep writing. you can goback later and revise. Let your ideas flow.

4. If you can't think of anything, wrire "my mind is blank, my mind is blank,"or something similar, over and over again until a new thought comes intoyour mind.

5. Read your freewriting and see if there are any ideas you can develop into aparagraph.

Read the freewriting sample below on the topic of computers.

Computers

I love computers. They make my life so much easierthan it was when I had to use a typewrirer every time Iwanted to rype somerhing. Back then I had to start allover again whenever I made a mistake. I reallv don'tunderstand computers very well. Whenever I irave aproblem, I have to get someone else to help me. I'mafways afraid ro try ro fix it myself. I guess I'm computer-phobic. My mind just went blank. It went blank. Iiwentblank. Just like my computer screen does when I have aproblem. And I have so many problems with mycomputer. There are always technical problems withcomputers. The whole world worries about technical problems. They are sounpredictable and unreliable. Vhat else can I say aboui computers? I only usethem for word processing and e-mail. I enjoy communicating with my friendsby e-mail. That's all. I know there are lots of other uses but I,ll never gerinvolved in them. I don't understand compurers.

when you freewrite, your mind may jump around as new ideas come into it. youcan see that as this author was writing, new and different ideas came into his mind.In the example above, there are several different ideas that could be developed intoparagraphs. List some of them below.

compare your list with a classmate's. Did you include the same itemsl

GETTING READYTOWRITE A 5

Practicing Freewriting

Write for ten minutes on the subject ol your plans for the future. Your teacher will

tellyou when to begin and when to stop writing'

READYTO WRITE

Did you generate any ideas that you could now write a paragraph about? If so, what are

thev?

Keeping a JournalSome people find that keeping a joumal is helpful. When you are not given a specific

,,rb1eci to write on, you ."t r.f"t to your joumal for possible topics. If you decide to

keep a joumal, staft.by buying a notebook and writing in it for a few minutes every day.

Use thi time to write about anything you want. For example, you could write about the

events of your day, the people you met or talked to, or your reaction to something thatyou heard, read, or saw.

AGD CHAPTERl

Use your joumal as a record of your daily thoughts and activities, as a means ofself-expression, or as a way of understanding yourself better. No matter what youroriginal reason for keeping a joumal, you will find it a valuable source of material inyour future writing and thinking.

Here is an example of a joumal enrry.

Nouan<b* 19

I ittst aot bark All/rcO h^al, an oxtrn tizket at^d, arkd,

mo tf t mnnl, it. fl4t, Borton, Eruinr be* &p st Louis Blac,r s-2. our seafi unto

alntst to tltp roof, bot wo uuld, still, su tnorot*an if aru lul,un frJtl, it o n bJair i^o rt . It's so turch, us ial t0 sp til,s trr{utt

turt u{1tt0 vo t r tnhJt a, onTV. I statul,talkins to t/tpold,u,u.nsitti

wxtto t'upaboot in "t/to 4 ood, o 1/, ilaas." Ho Kre,nt to U,t

intgSg-&z, url.w tLe, Bruins un ru trp Worl/,

llo talkd, o n ail, o n, abo * t/w lu,lur sunintilokh^dt

o&i,tlr, inph,s day. llorenu,ub*s ur/,ratu w*attbut h.e rd/, t'ut trz, pla/ mt lss balk&atl.

Tfisooouentar l4a6

but'a atr/,1 bet ar<^otbra han

Ituns n unaetuaph?*ettto

t*h su.roru. It lookr like&z, gruint bosoooL4ils

List several of the general topics from this journal entry that the author might use todevelop a paragraph.

compare your list with a classmate's. Did you include the same items?

te,

GETNNG BEADYTOWRITE 17

Writing a Journal Entry

Use the journal page below to write your first iournal entry' Write about something

that haPPened to You recentlY.

PLANNINGPart of prewriting is planning and organizing your ideas. Making a simple ourline of theideas you generated from prewriting will help you organize your thoughts as you planyour paragraph. You can use your outline as a guide and refer to it while you arecomposing.

Here is an example of an outline based on the ideas generated from brainstorming onthe topic superstitions. Notice that the three headings in this outline are rhe same threecategories determined in the brainstorming exercise.

he groups of similar ideas you created in thetravel on page 13.

Topic Tiavel

t. Sttpustitiuu aboo* scluol S. tufistitiou about sWrtr

o. a,/*rruts oout pu.rlnu*lare a,. urul lur*y tzshj*tfor aanu:

b. tLseh,L&y sluehrzr i*tanx16

b. sit tn cethr of roow for b,rtr

o. ruti*J,unaj,to rh/* wrbt o. eat suanbld,eqlsfor

forb,rtr brukfart ort,dat of oadhat

b. nzter startatripon Fridau

o. 0e4r qreen/wfimt fu

o. dnn't stay on, tSt*,fl,oor m, a,luh!

GETTING READY TO WRITE A !S)

Prepare an outline based on the topics in your clustering diagram on music on

page 14.

Topic Music

ething.

2. What are the three basic steps in the writing process?

3. What are four common prewriting techniques you learned about in this chapter?

4. What is one way you can organize the ideas you generated from prewriting?

2,(O CHAPTER 1