How To Organize Your Thoughts For a Clear and Concise Writing

Imagine a world where nobody chooses to write; there would be a deficiency in the information we can access.

Writing can be so daunting and time-consuming if you do not have a well-thought-out plan. Many of us wish never to be asked to write anything because we dread writing. However, this is impossible because we are in a world where writing is so important if one wishes to communicate with others.

But have you ever asked yourself how you will get all your ideas written down?

Before you can write to communicate your intended message, you need to plan and organize your thoughts carefully. This is why you just do not take a piece of paper and a pen or your laptop to write anything that comes to mind. Writing is a process and each step is important if you really want to communicate with your readers. If you are contemplating, ask any writer you know and he or she will tell you the process one has to undergo before coming out with that article, book, poem, story, or post you enjoy reading.

What do you need to do before you start writing?

First, you need to research your topic. Find important information related to your topic. This is done concurrently with reflection. Reflection is very important when it comes to writing because whatever you write is a result of your thought process. There are so many ideas running through your mind and you need to awaken them before you select that which is relevant to what you want to write about. You can only know how relevant an idea is to your writing if you really understand what you are writing about. This means that you should have a thorough understanding of what is required of you in the writing task, whether it is a self-giving task or someone assigned you the task.?

The next thing to do is to write your ideas down. After you have researched and reflected on your topic, write all your ideas neatly so you do not miss any important information. At this stage, your summary and outline skills are highly needed. When all these pieces of information are before you, you get a direction as to how to put them together easily.

The third step is to bring all the ideas together. This is where you look out for the different relationships that exist among the ideas. Sort these ideas out. Some ideas may fall under the same point but some will be the main points and others could be examples, supporting ideas, or explanations. Some ideas will also bring out cause-and-effect relationships. When these are known, you can make your argument clear in your writing. Bear in mind that at this stage, some of the ideas you listed down from stage two can be left out when they do not make your argument sound. One common problem we face when writing is our inability to identify those ideas that are not needed in our writing even though they are seemingly related to the topic. This is where our critical thinking skills come in so handy.?

After you have written your first draft, make sure you revise it. This is the stage where editing and proofreading become non-negotiable. Most times, it becomes difficult for one to measure how logical and coherent his or her thoughts have been presented so a third eye is critical. This makes it possible for you to receive constructive feedback that will help you structure your work better. After receiving feedback from others and incorporating the relevant suggestions, never forget to proofread your work. Nobody finds joy in reading a document full of mistakes and errors. They dampen readers' enthusiasm and interest in your works. Some will even consider you an unserious writer so you need to take time to proofread your work.

The writing process can be taxing but not impossible. You just need to plan and execute the plan meticulously. The process is not straight forward as we think so I will advise that we start the process early so we can have enough time to receive feedback, edit and proofread our writing samples.?