To produce good quality content, one needs to have good attention to detail, knowledge of the subject as well as creativity. We live in a day and age where there are so many resources at our disposal that help us create amazing content; however, people, even those that work for academic writing services still make mistakes, and bad habits creep in.
There are so many bad writing habits that one must be aware of if failure to overcome them can not only prevent one from producing good content for their readers but also halt their professional progression. In this article Lauren Bradshaw, a professional essay writer from custom writing service will look at some well-known bad writing habits and how to avoid them
Examples of Bad Writing Habits
Not having an outline
An outline acts as a roadmap, it helps writers glue their ideas together so that their arguments and ideas are well-presented and flow properly. A good outline makes a piece appear focused and choosing not to have it can make ideas look messy.
Long sentences and filler paragraphs are two classic examples of bad writing habits
It is important for any right to write straight to the point and not fill their piece with what many describe as filler content. These are paragraphs that don’t add value to a paper and are added by a writer to meet the word count or make their content appear meaty.
What this does is diminish the quality of the piece and this is why many experts encourage writers to stick to the point and prioritize quality over quantity. Using bullet points, images and short paragraphs is the best approach and a way to prevent long sentences and filler paragraphs.
Bad habits In writing also include not acknowledging the target audience
One of the biggest mistakes anyone can ever make in writing is not knowing who they are writing for. When someone does this, they end up using the wrong words or phrases which makes their content unrelated to the audience they will eventually read their piece. If the target audience is not emotionally invested in a piece they will not read it making it very important for any writer to know who they are writing for before they begin so that they know what words to use.
Flooding their piece with buzzwords
While there is nothing wrong with using a few buzzwords here and there as long as the audience doesn’t mind, however, plenty of new writers make the mistake of overusing them. When a piece is filled with so many buzzwords, it can annoy some readers because the piece can lose its authenticity and have phases that don’t make sense because there are so many buzzwords in it.
Bad writing habits also include not getting rid of distractions
When someone is writing, there are so many things that can take their attention away from their piece like the radio, television, social media, gaming, text messages, colleagues, and more. Distractions are known to disrupt one’s creative process and kill any sort of momentum one might have to complete their work. Distractions can not only destroy your creative mood, but they can also make a piece seem longer than it is.
Having weak sentences
Any writer out there knows that for their content to hold water, it needs to have strong sentences. One has to make sure that they have a rich vocabulary of words they can use to add value to their pieces because when readers see weak sentences, it is a sign to them that the writer lacks the necessary writing skills to make an impression on them or is simply lazy.
Procrastination
This is where a writer will put off any writing activities until the very last moment. This is a very bad habit because when one realizes their deadline is looming, they can become stressed which can affect the quality of their work. If one doesn’t kick this habit out of their system, it can affect them in the future.
How to Avoid Bad Writing Habits
Extra writing lessons
These days, anyone that wants to get rid of a bad writing habit like having weak sentences can simply take extra writing lessons. This is also another good way for one to improve their grammar and vocabulary especially if they are being taught by an expert in the English language. These experts can be found online or even at a university where an academic student is enrolled making them easily accessible.
Patience is needed
Getting rid of a bad habit is never easy with many experts even saying that it can take between 2 and 9 months to kick it out. Anyone that has some of the bad writing habits mentioned needs to know that picking up a new habit does take time and there will be obstacles along the way. Proper planning is the key to success here and avoiding slipping into those bad habits.
Using writing programs or software
With so many writing programs and software to choose from, it can be tricky to find which one is the best. The one that is highly recommended by so many people is Grammarly and there is a free as well as a premium version for it. What Grammarly does is make the content look sharp and correct any mistakes that one has made when they were writing. If sentences are too long, Grammarly will trim them and get rid of any unnecessary word fillers. The good thing about this program is it works well with Google Docs meaning it will highlight mistakes on the fly as one writes.
Plan
When one is well prepared, they will know who their audience is, have an outline for their work, find a place with little to no distractions and stick to a schedule that lets them finish their work on time. This will ultimately help them avoid some of the various bad writing habits mentioned above, especially procrastination.
If one has so many bad writing habits, they shouldn’t lose hope as it is possible to get rid of them one at a time. With each bad writing habit eliminated, one will notice a change in their writing style, and their pieces become better and better. There will always be things that will distract someone because we live in a technological age, finding a nice quiet place to write helps massively. Reaching out to experts and peers is also a lovely way to improve one’s vocabulary because they will be introduced to words that they were not familiar with. Programs like Grammarly are God-sent because they not only highlight mistakes but make suggestions on how to improve a particular piece one is working on.