Five Steps to Successful Writing Sara Yousef CPIT

Comments on the CV Assignment n Experience section… Kerfheimer Corporation, Toronto Senior Financial Analyst,

Comments on Cover Letter Drafts n n Is it letter format? format Opening paragraph:

Comments on Cover Letter Drafts (Cont. ) Body needs to solve the puzzle and

Outline Writing as a process n Qualities of a good document n Five steps

Why Writing Skills are Important n n n Expect at least 20% of your

The Writing Process Writing is a process not a product n The writing process:

Good Quality Documents are: n Based on good research and analysis ¨ Quality of

5 Steps to Successful Writing Preparation: Preparation defining purpose, audience, scope, and medium n

Writing is a Cyclical Process These steps rarely occur as one time, sequential events

Visual view of cyclical process Source: “Technical Communication” by Lilita Rodman

How much time in each stage? n n Depends on the writing task When

Collaborative Writing The writing steps are esp. important in collaborative writing n Occurs often

How to Divide the Work (I) n Designate a coordinator ¨ To coordinate and

How to Divide the Work (II) n In research stage ¨ Do n individual

How to Divide the Work (III) n Reviewing ¨ Do major revisions together ¨

Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, working together is success. Henry

Conclusion: Test your Understanding Writing is not a _______. It’s a ____. n List

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Five Steps to Successful Writing Sara Yousef CPIT 221

Comments on the CV Assignment n Experience section… Kerfheimer Corporation, Toronto Senior Financial Analyst, June 2004 -present Developed $50 -million funding estimates for major Department of Defence. Researched funding options, resulting in savings of $1. 2 million.

Comments on Cover Letter Drafts n n Is it letter format? format Opening paragraph: ¨ How did you hear about the job? ¨ What is the specific job title? ¨ Why are you interested in the job? ¨ What do you know about the company? n Closing paragraph: ¨ Don’t forget your contact info.

Comments on Cover Letter Drafts (Cont. ) Body needs to solve the puzzle and show the best in your CV n Use external resources (Internet, textbook) to help you brainstorm ideas and improve your sentence structure n Wishing you success

Outline Writing as a process n Qualities of a good document n Five steps to successful writing n Collaborative writing n

Why Writing Skills are Important n n n Expect at least 20% of your career time writing Both you and your company will be judged by your writing Examples of writing on the job ¨ Proposal to get money/approval for research, ¨ Article to publish your research ¨ Letter to solve a customer problem ¨ Memo to inform employees of a new regulation ¨…

The Writing Process Writing is a process not a product n The writing process: what takes place between when a writer is given an assignment until it is finished n Think of all the other tasks involved n ¨ Thinking, planning, researching, revising…

Good Quality Documents are: n Based on good research and analysis ¨ Quality of document is irrelevant if information is unreliable n Complete and concise ¨ All, n and only all, the info needed is provided Readable ¨ Organized, headings, graphics, paragraph and sentence structure… n Within standard conventions ¨ Form, grammar, spelling, punctuation…

5 Steps to Successful Writing Preparation: Preparation defining purpose, audience, scope, and medium n Research: gathering info and evidence n Organization: structuring the document n Writing a draft: starting with an initial draft n Revision: improving the draft n

Writing is a Cyclical Process These steps rarely occur as one time, sequential events n Instead, they are interrelated, overlapping, and often retraced n

Visual view of cyclical process Source: “Technical Communication” by Lilita Rodman

How much time in each stage? n n Depends on the writing task When writing a report, which steps take the most effort and devotion from you? Most students make the mistake of concentrating on the draft. Experts suggest spending 10% there Organizing and revising have the greatest impact on the quality of your work!

Collaborative Writing The writing steps are esp. important in collaborative writing n Occurs often in the real world. Why? n ¨ Size of project/time constraint requires group work ¨ Project involves multiple areas of expertise n Best model for working as a group…

How to Divide the Work (I) n Designate a coordinator ¨ To coordinate and ensure coherence and consistency n In preparation stage ¨ Work as a team ¨ Decide on guidelines for communication ¨ Create a schedule with due dates ¨ Decide on standards, version control

How to Divide the Work (II) n In research stage ¨ Do n individual research In organization stage ¨ As a group, combine preliminary research to create a “working outline” n In writing stage ¨ Assign individual writing tasks based on “working outline” ¨ Expand the research, outline ¨ Individually produce a draft using agreed standards

How to Divide the Work (III) n Reviewing ¨ Do major revisions together ¨ Then critically and diplomatically edit each others’ work (track changes) ¨ Individually go back and revise ¨ Have coordinator put final work together

Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, working together is success. Henry Ford

Conclusion: Test your Understanding Writing is not a _______. It’s a ____. n List 3 qualities of a good document n Five steps to successful writing n ¨ Can you list the five steps? ¨ Which steps have the greatest impact on your work?