It can be difficult to help people understand the importance of planning a piece of writing. Those of us who have taught writing will have sometimes felt that our advice has gone unheeded. Planning will definitely improve your writing and, like everything, the more you do it the easier it gets.
Professional writers spend a great deal of time preparing, considering different ideas and organising their thoughts before beginning to write. Even if you are not getting paid for your words, planning should always be your first step and it is one of the main ways to write more effectively.
Some people believe planning is a waste of time, that it is better to just start writing. Unfortunately they have not understood that planning actually saves time and effort later; it helps you organise your ideas and enables you to check you have all the information you need. A plan is like a road map guiding you through step by step. Without it you can get ‘lost’ on the way, wasting time wondering which ‘roads’ to take, perhaps even going round in circles. With a plan you will never have to ask yourself ‘What do I write next?’
You need to consider three things as you begin planning:
1. Purpose
- why are you writing or what is your reason for writing?
2. Reader
- who will read your writing and why will they read it?
3. Content
- what information is relevant to your purpose?
- what information will get your message across effectively to the reader?
Once you have identified these three factors you will have a clearer picture in your mind of what your finished piece of writing will be like. For instance, thinking about who might read your writing can help you decide the language to use: whether to use a formal or informal style, simple vocabulary or terminology only certain readers would understand, and so on.
Plans come in different shapes and sizes, depending on the writer and depending on what is being written. Try a few different ways to discover which are more effective for you. You can write a list of bullet points, draw a flow chart, create a mind map or write ideas on separate pieces of paper which you can move around to organise. If you are struggling for ideas, brainstorm as many possibilities as you can regardless of how relevant you think they are, write all of them down and then select the ones which relate to your intended purpose, reader and content.
Writing without a plan sends a very clear message to the reader: the writer is unsure which direction to go in. Avoid this fundamental error by practising your planning skills and not only will your writing improve, but you will also give readers confidence in your writing ability.
Posted by EditingAngel 