How to write slightly better in English

출처 : http://garykychang.wordpress.com/2013/05/20/how-to-write-slightly-better-in-english/

다른 SNS처럼 퍼오기가가능하면 모셔오고 싶은데.. 그게 안되서, 긁어온다.

소장용..

 

Gary Chang's private blog 에서 얌전히 동의 없이 모셔왔으므로.. 훔친거네! 이런~

메시지를 남기고 퍼오기는 하지만, 사실은 사전 동의 떨어지기 전에.. 모셔오는.. 이 불손한..

훔친거야! 시끄럿!!!! (_ _)

모셔오겠다 메세지를 남기며 보니 하지 말라는걸 두번이나 한 것 같다.

좀더 보면 더 나올 수도.. ㅡ.ㅡ^
I'd, can't 축약해서 쓰지 말랬자나!!!

take은 obtain으로..

또 있겠지만.. 흠흠흠..

 

 

 

My friend asked me to help her to write better in English, and thus a few useful tips were gathered from the bottom of my mind. As these tips can also help others, I would like to share them through my blog. These are the tips I have learned from many English composition teachers/professors from university days where I majored in English education, therefore they are quite legit and will be helpful sooner or later.

(As this article was created for rather novice/intermediate level English speakers, please note that I tried to use the easiest words possible. Therefore, please understand that I could not strictly follow some of the tips I wrote below.)

 

1. Try not to use the same word more than twice

It is definitely better not to write the same word twice, especially in the same sentence or paragraph. Using the same vocabulary can make you look like you have not many words to choose from, making the entire writing less professional.

 

2. Try not to use the following words: make, take, get, like, and, can, but, so, very

To look professional, try to avoid using the words such as ‘make, take, get, like, and, can, but’. These words can be replaced with much better looking words. For example, ‘create/produce’ can replace ‘make’, ‘obtain/gain’ for ‘take/get’, ‘such as’ for like, ‘however’ for ‘but’, and finally ‘therefore’ for ‘so’. Just by replacing these words, your writing will look less like it was written by a kindergarten kid.

 

3. Try not to use apostrophes.

Instead of using ‘I’m’, use ‘I am’. Instead of using ‘don’t’, use ‘do not’. You may not feel the difference in the beginning, but these little things will influence the overall atmosphere of your writing. Do not use apostrophes to maintain a relatively serious atmosphere.

 

4. Make sure that there are no spelling/grammatical mistakes

Most word processing programs these days all have their auto spell-check functions. For the incorrect spellings or non-words, they usually give you the red wavy underline. For the grammatically ‘weird’ phrases, they usually give you the green wavy underline. PLEASE USE THESE FEATURES. I have seen many students or employees who actually ignore these signs of errors. Just take a final look to see if there are any red/green wavy lines, and if you see them, DO FIX THEM.

 

5. Make sure that past/present/future tense are correctly used

Please make sure that all the past/present/future tenses are in the right correlation. This happens especially more often with native Mandarin speakers, as you do not have to differentiate the past/present/future tense with the verb. However, you have to do this in English. Make sure to check the sentences again for using the right past/present/future tense.

 

By applying the above tips, you will see that your writing looks quite different. Please remember these tips whenever you are writing anything in English so that you look more professional.