WRITING  SKILLS  --  4

Are You Writing With Clarity?

If readers don’t understand what you write, you might as well have written nothing at all.

Ground-breaking ideas don’t count for much if you can’t express them clearly, and your incisive opinion won’t carry much weight if it can’t be followed.

Worthwhile writing should contain new, interesting and complex ideas. It should challenge the reader and, hopefully, resonate. To be effective, this kind of writing must be crystal clear.

Tell them what you’re going to tell them

A good essay introduction maps out the logic of what follows, and in my experience, this strategy is powerful across all forms of writing.

Telling the reader what to expect will assist them in following your logic and linking together your ideas.

If readers know from the outset what you’re getting at, they’ll be able to look at each sentence you’ve written through the prism of your intended meaning. In doing so, they’ll better be able to see how each point you make relates to the big picture you’re painting.

Look this way

Sub-headings perform a slightly different function when it comes to clarity.

They help break your post down into a distinct and manageable sequence of ideas and concepts.

The newspapers do it

An interesting fact: most hard news stories in the papers follow a strict formula of

one sentence = one paragraph.

This is good for readability, as it gives each sentence space to breathe.

Writing that’s easy to read is always easier to understand.

That’s not the only reason paragraphs are important for clarity, though. They also help prevent distinct ideas from bleeding into each other.

On top of that, paragraph breaks give readers time and space to digest each point you make.

Complex words are lackadaisical lazy

Every complex word can be broken down into simpler ones.

By complex I’m referring to any word which might cause your readers to open a new browser-tab and point it to Dictionary.com. Clear communication should never require effort on the part of the reader. Looking up a word, or puzzling it out, is unnecessary effort.

You might even take this a step further. Could any words you’ve written be replaced by simpler ones, with the same meaning?

Simple, economical words are always easiest to understand, even if they disappoint your inner Pulitzer Prize Winner.

Because academic writing is persuasive in nature, it requires a high degree of clarity to be effective. Clear writing results when what you express is unambiguously what you intend to express. You certainly don’t want to confuse the person reading your paper. Clarity at a deeper level involves clarity of argument. Clarity at a surface level involves clarity of diction and sentence structure.

Clarity of argument

Of the two levels, this one is far more important, since if you're unsure about what you're saying, it's unlikely anyone else will fully grasp it, either. One way to ensure clarity is to check for coherence by asking yourself two questions:

What am I arguing or describing? A clear paper tells readers up front in a thesis statement what it will discuss--they should never have to wonder what you're talking about or where you're going with an argument. Most often a thesis will be clear to you, so problems more commonly occur when considering the second question.

How does each part of my paper advance the argument or description? A point that seems essential while you're writing may be unnecessary or even irrelevant to the finished paper, either because your position changed while you were writing or because other parts of your paper adequately cover the material. If a section doesn't advance the paper, get rid of it or move the most important points to another, closely related section.

If your position changed during writing, however, be sure to change your thesis once you've finished to more accurately reflect what you're saying. For example, suppose your original thesis is:

The federal government should fund after-school programs for inner-city youths because the programs lower crime rates

If another reason becomes more compelling to you as you write, however, by all means discuss it--you want the strongest paper possible. Just remember to change your thesis so you don't confuse your readers; if they expect to learn about how after-school programs lower crime, but find out instead how they will improve community development, they will be confused. In other words, make sure your points aren't supporting a different thesis.

The federal government should fund after-school programs for inner-city youths because such programs reduce crime and enhance community development.

Besides making sure your paper is coherent, you should also check your argument for clarity. Unclear arguments often result when you fail to:

Make sure your assumptions are valid

Suppose a paper has the following thesis:

Since God isn't the source of morals, culture is the sole arbiter of what is acceptable behavior.

If the paper goes on to discuss the second point and not the first, the author has assumed something that not everyone agrees with. To the person who doesn't share the author's assumption, then, the argument is meaningless. Be sure to identify and then deal with any arguable assumptions.

Support your position fully

Readers can disagree with your position--that's all right. When they wonder how you've come to it or what you're talking about, though, there's a problem. Check your organization and logic. If you have a confusing organization or commit logical fallacies while arguing, readers will at best be unimpressed and at worst be lost as to what you're saying.

A way to check for good organization is to outline your paper--if everything fits neatly into an outline, then it's probably organized well. If not, move some of your points to other parts of your paper.

You can check your logic by having other people read your paper and point out to you where they have difficulties following your argument. You can also check for obvious logical fallacies yourself.

The best way to ensure clarity of thought, however, is to plan before you write. Use outlining or some form of prewriting to order your points and to give your paper organization before you start writing.

Clarity of diction and sentence structure

Clear expression is when what you're thinking coincides with what you've written. To check for clarity, read your paper aloud and listen for awkward or unclear sentences--what sounds odd to you will probably sound odd to others, too. After you've gone through and corrected your paper, it would be good to have someone else check it over to see if you've missed anything.

The following are areas to look for as you read your paper aloud:

• Be precise. Is this the word I mean? What connotations does this word have? Is anything vague? What's the least clear part of this paragraph, and how could I improve it?
• Be concise. Am I using unnecessary words? Does everything advance the paper, or is some of it just repetition? If I took out this sentence, how would the paper (or paragraph) suffer?
• Be consistent. Am I using one verb tense? Are my sentences grammatically correct? Does my subject agree with my verb? Have I used parallel construction correctly? Have I used transitions?
• Keep it simple. Is any of my language pretentious? Are my sentences needlessly complex? How could I reword or break up long sentences?
• Use the active voice. Have I avoided the passive voice wherever possible?