How Good Are Your Writing Skills?

Good writing skills are essential at every stage in your career. From email messages to business reports, your writing makes an impression. In fact, your writing skills can be the difference in getting that new job or promotion at work; they can make or break you. So, how good are your writing skills? Read the fictional paragraph below and see how many errors you can spot.

The person I admire most is my father, bill smith. He is kind loyal and always supports me in everthing I do. My father raises six kids and worked 3 jobs he never complained. We all learned the value hard work and how to care for others. Hes still an inspiration to me. Someday, I hope to b a great father to.

The paragraph above contained 10 writing errors. To help avoid these common mistakes in your writing, review the corrected paragraph below and see the list for an explanation of each error.

The person I admire most is my father, Bill Smith (1). He is kind, (2) loyal and always supports me in everything (3) I do. My father raised (4) six kids and worked three (5) jobs. (6) He never complained. We all learned the value of (7) hard work and how to care for others. He’s or He is (8) still an inspiration to me. Someday, I hope to be (9) a great father too (10).

10 Common Writing Errors

1. Lack of Capitalization - capitalize proper nouns: specific people, places or things
2. Missing Punctuation - use commas to separate words, lists, or phrases
3. Misspellings - always proofread your writing for misspellings — spellcheck may not always catch misspellings or misuses of words
4. Improper verb tenses - check verb tenses and make sure they match in each sentence
5. Use of numbers - write out numbers zero through nine
6. Run-on sentences - use periods to separate different ideas (also make sure each sentence has a subject and a verb)
7. Missing words - reread your writing to check for missing words and to ensure it makes sense (reading out loud is helpful)
8. Missing apostrophes - always use apostrophes in contractions, or if writing an essay or formal report, write out as two words
9. Abbreviations - do not use abbreviations or texting language (keep it professional)
10. Misuse of words - use proper word form (watch out for homonyms, words that sound the same but have different meanings)

Writing is a skill that is learned, practiced, and constantly improved. To further advance your writing, contact your local community college or ask your employer about training opportunities. Other resources include your public library, online articles and grammar apps.