Writing is an important life skill, but it can also be a daunting challenge, especially for students.

How can you ensure an A on your next school paper? What’s the best way to stand out on a college application? How should you describe yourself when asked to provide a short bio? Why is grammar so important in communication, anyway?

CorrectEnglish is the perfect partner for facing problems like these. Powered by advanced AI, CorrectEnglish compares your writing to over 63,000 grammar rules as you type. It works as a plugin on desktop or a keyboard on mobile, so it helps you learn English grammar online every day. You’ll never miss another misspelled word or sentence fragment again.

Here are 9 fundamental writing skills that every student should master—and how CorrectEnglish can help.

#1: Grammar

Grammar has more than its fair share of confusing rules. “Affect” is a verb, versus “effect” which is a noun. It’s easy to accidentally switch “simile” for “metaphor” without considering the subtle differences.

All you have to do is search “published articles with grammatical errors” to see that even professionals often struggle with proper grammar!

Thanks to its database of over 63,000 grammar rules, CorrectEnglish does the heavy lifting for you. The AI provides acknowledgement of errors as you type, as well as explanations for suggested corrections—so you can learn as you edit!

#2: Punctuation

From comma splices to oddly placed ellipses, punctuation offers plenty of opportunities to make mistakes. Luckily, CorrectEnglish identifies issues like sentence fragments as soon as they hit the page. They won’t sneak into your final drafts anymore.

#3: Spelling

Spelling is the bane of many writers’ careers. Sometimes even a technically small spelling error can have embarrassing consequences.

(One frequently shared meme features a newspaper headline that describes an “ambidextrous” baseball pitcher, meaning “both right- and left-handed,” as “amphibious” instead, like a frog!)

That’s why CorrectEnglish catches and corrects spelling errors the moment they happen.

#4: Vocabulary

Repetitively using the same adjectives, verbs, or otherwise makes your writing feel dull and stilted. On the other hand, using the longest, most overwrought words possible feels more like dropping an anvil on the reader’s head.

CorrectEnglish identifies unclear or weak word choice—and advises alternative words to give your writing an extra punch.

#5: Clarity

“When a sentence lacks obvious structure or intent, this can lead to your reader becoming overwhelmed, disoriented, or profoundly disinterested in the message which you are trying and failing to communicate.”

Did that sentence make you roll your eyes? How about this one: “When a sentence isn’t clear about what it means, you lose your readers’ attention.”

Did you prefer the second sentence? That’s because it exhibits much stronger clarity than the first one. No matter what you’re writing, clarity is critical.

#6: Brevity

Besides clarity, did you notice any other major difference between the previous two sentences? Notably, the second sentence is much shorter than the first one—14 words to the longer sentence’s 31, to be exact.

If you can say something simply, there’s no need to say it at length.

#7: Engagement

Every story needs conflict to drive the plot. “Cinderella” wouldn’t be a classic if she’d still been dancing with the prince, unbothered, at the stroke of midnight; “Star Wars” wouldn’t have staying power if Luke’s reaction to “I am your father” had been an enthusiastic family reunion.

Similarly, every piece of writing—even in academia—needs a driving purpose to keep the reader engaged. Don’t tiptoe around your writing’s main point or draw it out for the sake of word count. Decide what you want to say, and say it!

#8: Proofreading

It’s always helpful to take a break after finishing your writing. Then you can return to it with fresh eyes, noticing weaker sections that you might have skimmed over before.

CorrectEnglish helps the proofreading process by identifying many of those sections for you—and explaining what you can do to improve. The software even includes a plagiarism checker, so if you’ve accidentally echoed an existing piece of writing, you won’t submit an eerily similar work to your teachers.

#9: Revising

Last but not least, once you’ve marked places that require changes, make the changes!

Don’t be afraid to change your rough draft dramatically. Rough drafts are for getting all your ideas on to the page, but revision is for making those ideas shine. Don’t hesitate; start polishing!

Try CorrectEnglish Today

The free version of CorrectEnglish works on up to 250 words of everything you write. Get the best grammar tool for both English language learners and proficient speakers today, at no cost and with no time limits.

It’s time to take your academic writing to the next level—and CorrectEnglish can help. To learn more, visit correctenglish.com.

Additional Source: https://zety.com/blog/writing-skills