The document discusses various aspects of the writing process for technical writing. It begins by discussing prewriting steps like choosing a topic, determining the audience and their needs, establishing a purpose, and exploring the topic. It emphasizes planning before writing by organizing thoughts and allowing adequate time. When writing, it recommends using clear, simple language without jargon, defining unfamiliar terms, using an active voice, and brevity. It presents technical writing as an iterative process involving planning, drafting, revising, and editing to improve the work.

2. Let’s say, you are given 1
minute to scribble your
thoughts, whatever it is, how
many different ideas would
that be…it wouldn’t matter.
JUST WRITE (without a
pause)

3. READY
begin

4. Free writing
Start: The best of both worlds is nowhere.
Could you ever imagine something
terrible and best all at the same time.
I’m talking about the guest speaker in
the recent seminar I attended. Was it a
seminar? Hmmmm I mean lecture.
(sigh) Whatevah! Going back... The
thing is, nothing can ever tell me

5. Can the sample written work be changed
into technical writing format?
Answer is?
_______________

6. Yes, we can!
We have to single out terms used in the
paragraph.
• Lecture and seminar
Sample of technical writing:
A lecture is an oral presentation intended to present information
or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a
university or college teacher. On the other hand, a seminar is,
generally, a form of academic instruction, either at a university or
offered by a commercial or professional organization. It has the
function of bringing together small groups for recurring meetings,
focusing each time on some particular subject, in which everyone
present is requested to actively participate.

7. Distinguish technical from creative
writing

9. Creative vs. Technical
Goal
To
communicate
facts, explain
procedures,
critically
evaluate
evidence.
To evoke
images and
emotion

10. Today’s a day for
hearts and cards,
For chocolates,
flowers, too,
But most of all,
today’s a day
To celebrate me and
you.
Don’t get me wrong,
for every day
With you is a
celebration
Of our love, our
hopes and dreams,
Our solid, strong
foundation.
This research may
provide an alternative
solution to the problem
of monotonous and
labor-intensive meter
reading of electric
company personnel;
and tedious payment of
bill, to the part of
consumers. It may also
be recommended to
commercial and leasing
establishments where
tenants are held
accountable for their
own electric bill.

12. Creative vs. Technical
words
Many
descriptive
words used
to create
setting/
image
Conciseness
encouraged
and valued

14. Creative vs. Technical
Emphasis
Character
and
character
development
Facts,
accuracy,
precision

15. Technical vs Creative Writing
TechnicalTechnical CreativeCreative
ContentContent factual, straight-factual, straight-
forwardforward
imaginative, symbolicimaginative, symbolic
AudienceAudience specificspecific generalgeneral
PurposePurpose inform, instructinform, instruct entertain, provoke,entertain, provoke,
inspireinspire
StyleStyle formal, standardformal, standard informal, artisticinformal, artistic
ToneTone objectiveobjective subjectivesubjective
VocabularyVocabulary specializedspecialized general, evocativegeneral, evocative
OrganizationOrganization sequential, systematicsequential, systematic arbitrary, artisticarbitrary, artistic

16. What is technical writing?
 It is a technical communication (in
any field) that primarily aims to
convey a particular piece of
information for a particular purpose
to a particular reader or group of
readers.

17. Define:
Technical writing is the
presentation and communication
of accurate and objective,
scientific and technologic
information, ideas, or procedures.

18. Technical writing…
 is exposition – the act of explaining something;
clear explanation
 is using scientific and technical vocabulary
Accounting terms.ppt
Computer Terms.ppt
Legal terms.ppt
Financial terms.ppt
 is highly specific and detailed
 uses tables, graphs, and figures to clarify and
support textual discussion

19. Cont…
 uses conventional report forms
 can be analyzed logically and
evaluated scientifically
 leaves no room for conflicting
interpretations

21. What is the purpose of technical
writing?
 Give information that
leads to the
accomplishment of
scientific tasks and in
the making of the
needed decisions.

22. (Purpose)
 Analyze events and their implications

23. (Purpose)
 Persuade and influence decisions

24. What about its subject matter?
 Objective information that is
accurately and clearly presented
 Data in business, science,
engineering, industry, and in all formal
aspects of professional areas
 Factual data statistics

25. Examples of Technical Materials
 Various kinds of written reports
 Oral reports
 Business letters
 Articles for technical journals or books
 Abstracts
 Graphic aids
 Handbooks
 Brochures
 Specifications
 Memoranda
 Proposals

26. Week 3

27.  Technical writing is an important part of
everyone's career. Writing well is difficult and
time consuming and writing in a technical way
about technical subjects even makes it more
difficult. People write to propose projects, to
document their own actions, to help other
understand the research, to analyze and solve
problems, to describe procedures and objects.
If done well, technical writing is an exciting,
fulfilling experience but if done poorly, it is
frustrating, even harmful to career
development. Technicality in writing is based
upon the following points

28. Six basic properties of
Technical writing
 1. Clarity
Technical document must convey a single
meaning that the reader can understand.
Unclear Technical writing is expensive.
They’re vital communication link among the
various employees is usually the report, if
this link is weak, the entire project may be
jeopardized. Unclear technical writing can
be dangerous e.g. unclear instruction on
how to operate machinery.

29. Six basic properties of
Technical writing
 2. Accuracy
Unclear writing can cause many problems
and even inaccuracy in the report. If you
mean to write 40,000 don’t write 400,000. If
you mean to refer to fig 3.1 don’t refer to fig
3.2. Slightest error can confuse or even
annoy the reader of the report. If the reader
suspects that you are slanting information
they have the right to doubt the entire
document.

30. Six basic properties of
Technical writing
 3. Comprehensiveness:
When writing technically, all the information
should be provided, its background must be
described and clear description of any
process, or method of carrying out a specific
work, should also be given. It also includes
results, conclusions and recommendations.

31. Six basic properties of
Technical writing
 4. Accessibility:
It means the ease with which the readers
can locate the information they seek.
To increase Accessibility, include headings
and lists in the report. A table of contents,
list of illustrations glossary and index are
preferred.

32. Six basic properties of
Technical writing
 5. Conciseness:
Technical writing is meant to be useful. The longer a
document is, the more difficult it gets to use it. Even
it takes more of the user's time.
Conciseness works against clarity and
comprehensiveness. Solution to this conflict is to
create a balance between the requirements of
clarity, conciseness and comprehensiveness. In
short, in T.W every aspect of the subject is
discussed in optimized detail. Document must be
long enough to be clear. It must give the audience
purpose and object but no extra details. Technical
writing can be shortened 10-20% by eliminating
unnecessary phrases and choosing short words and
sentences.

33. Six basic properties of
Technical writing
 6. Correctness
Qualities of technical report writing also
includes correctness. Good technical report
must also be correct. It. Must be free from
grammatical errors, punctuation mistakes, and
should have appropriate format standard. If a
report contains grammatical errors, the reader
will doubt the accuracy of the information in the
report. Technical writing is meant to convey
information and to persuade the audience. To
accomplish these goals it must be clear
accurate, easy to access and must be
economical and correct.

34. Week 3

35. 1. Addresses a specific
audience, topic and
purpose Audience
Technical writers identify the readers to whom they
are writing evaluate what they require of the
documentation and determine why they will use
documentation. They classify the readers by three
main characteristics:
○ Education
○ Knowledge and experience levels
○ Expectations and needs
 Based on the knowledge level, you can
categorize the audience as novice,
intermediary or experienced user. The content
of the document will vary depending on the
categorization.

36. 1. Addresses a specific
audience, topic and
purpose
 Topic
Topic involves the gist of what technical
writers are planning to write about. For
example, in a document that explains how
the retailer book an order with the
wholesaler, the topic will be “Booking an
Order”.

37. 1. Addresses a specific
audience, topic and
purpose Purpose
 Purpose will reflect the activity the audience wants to be
able to perform after reading the document.
 Your purpose could be:
 To inform – to provide the information without expecting any
action on the part of the reader.
 To instruct – to give information in the form of directions,
instructions, procedures, so that readers will be able to do
something.
 To propose – to respond to a request for proposals (RFP) or to
suggest a plan of action for a specific problem.
 To recommend – to suggest an action or series of actions
based on alternative possibilities that have been evaluated.
 To persuade - to convince readers to take action, to change
their attitudes or behaviors based on valid opinions and
evidence.

38. 2. Has structured
content
The structure of the document is
an important aspect of the
documentation development. It
would depict how one section would
flow into another and the
segregation between chapters and
appendices.

39. 3. Is objective
 Technical writing is rarely about opinion.
Technical writing is grounded in fact.
While writing facts, care is needed to
ensure that any assumption, conjecture,
extrapolation, generalization, opinion or
possibly mentioned early in the
document is not later referred to as if it
were a fact. Technical writers rely on
evidence and not authority.

40. 4. Uses simple and
objective language
 Technical writers keep sentences as
short and simple as is possible and
appropriate for the subject matter and
audience. A long and complex sentence
can be difficult to comprehend.

41. 5. Uses Illustrations
 Technical writers consider tables and
illustrations as part of a document, not
as ornament. They complement the
writing. They do not add them at the end
as if they were an afterthought. Instead
when planning a composition, they
consider how information or ideas can
be best conveyed – to the readers they
have in mind- in words, numbers, tables
or illustrations

42. 6. Is presented
consistently
 Technical writers are consistent in use
of headings, names, terms,
abbreviations and symbols; in spelling
and punctuation

43. Week 3

44. What are the Basic Principles of
Good Technical Writing?
 The writer of a report must have a
specific reader or group of readers in
mind.
 He must decide what the specific
purpose of his report is and make sure
that every part of his report contributes
to that purpose

45. (Basic Principles…)
He must use
specific, single,
concrete words,
and familiar
language that
cannot be
misinterpreted.

46.  The Writer Must check every part of his
report to see whether he has followed
the principles of, first, “telling the reader
what he is going to tell them,” second,
“telling them,” and third, “telling them
what he told them.”
 He mist make his report very
presentable in format. The layout must
conform with the standard forms of
writing.

47. Week 4

48.  Planning
 Clarity
 Brevity
 Simplicity
 Word Choice
 Active Voice
 Committing to
writing as a
process

49. Planning: Before You
Begin
 Identify your audience and their
expectations
 Know your purpose
 Know your material
 Understand the writing task at hand
 Organize your thoughts and materials
 Budget adequate time to write, review,
revise and edit.

50. Clarity: Avoid Jargon
 Jargon: a vocabulary particular to a place of
work (abbreviations, slang)
 Audience familiarity with the topic
determines appropriate use of jargon

51. Clarity: Define the
Unfamiliar
 If you must abbreviate, define the term in its
first occurrence, and put abbreviations in
parentheses.
 Italicize first occurrenceof unfamiliar terms
and define them right away.

52. Brevity: the use of few words to
say something
 Use Words Efficiently.
 Less Is More.
 Most Important First.
 Remove Redundancy.

53. Simplicity: Use Details
Wisely
 Specific details are desirable, but be careful
to balance detail with audience needs for
clarity—significance is more important.
 Many engineers want to provide as much
specific detail as possible, but this can
come at the expense of readers
understanding and their main point.

54. Word Choice:

55. Word Choice:
 Avoid too many “to be” verbs
for example: “is” “was” “were” “has been”
“have been”.
 Avoid excess words, which slow
comprehension of the main point.

56. Active Voice:
-Subject is the Doer of the
Action
 Technical writers want to communicate as
efficiently as possible, and active voice is
more straight forward and is stronger than
passive voice.
 When in doubt, read passages out loud to
determine the natural sound.

58. Definitions
 Active voice: the subject is doing the action
Ex: Freddy is bouncing the ball.
Subject + verb + object
 Passive voice: the subject is receiving the action
Ex: The ball was bounced by Freddy.
Object + verb + subject

59. Writing Is a Process
 Good writing doesn’t
happen overnight; it
requires planning,
drafting, rereading,
revising, and editing.
 Learning and
improvement requires
self-review, peer-
review, subject-matter
expert feedback, and
practice.

60. Week 5 - 6

61. Stages of the Writing Process
 There are several stages to the Writing
Process. Each stage is essential.
Prewriting
Writing (Drafting)
Revising
Editing

62. I. Prewriting
 Choose/narrow your topic
 Determine your
○ Audience
○ Purpose
○ Tone
○ Point-of-view
○ Tense
 Explore your topic
 Make a plan

63. Choose/Narrow Your Topic
 Your topic should pass the 3-question
test:
1. Does it interest me?
2. Do I have something to say about it?
3. Is it specific?

64. Determine Your Audience
 Your Audience is composed of
those who will read your writing.
 Ask yourself:
Who are my readers?
What do my readers know about my
topic?
What do my readers need to know
about my topic?
How do my readers feel about my
topic?

65. Audience continued. . .
What do my readers expect?
○ Standard Written English
○ Correct grammar and spelling
○ Accurate information
○ Logical presentation of ideas
○ Followed directions of the
assignment!!!
What are my length requirements?
What is my time limit?
What does the assignment consist of?
Is research required?
What format should be used?

66. Determine Your Purpose
 Purpose is the reason you are
writing.
 Whenever you write, you always
have a purpose. Most writing fits
into one of 3 categories:
Expressive Writing
Informative Writing
Persuasive Writing
 More than one of these may be
used, but one will be primary.

67. Determine Tone
 Tone is the mood or attitude you adopt
as you write.
Serious or frivolous/humorous?
Intimate or detached?

68. Determine Point-of-View
 Point-of-view is the perspective
from which you write an essay.
 There are 3 points-of-view:
First person—”I, we”
Second person—”you”
Third person—”he, she, they”
 One of the most common errors in
writing occurs when the writer
shifts point-of-view unnecessarily!

69. Determine Tense
 Tense is the voice you use to designate
the time of the action or state of being.
Present tense
Past tense
Future tense

70. Explore Your Topic
 Pre-writing Techniques:
Brainstorming/Listing
Freewriting
Clustering/Mapping
Questioning
Discussing
Outlining

71. Make a Plan
 Before you begin drafting your
essay, you should make a plan (a
roadmap).
Review, evaluate, and organize
ideas written in your pre-writing; then
make a plan for your essay’s
○ Thesis statement
○ Support
○ Order
○ Structure

72. Thesis Statement
 The thesis statement expresses
the MAIN IDEA of your essay, the
central point that your essay
develops/supports.

73. Thesis continued. . .
 Your thesis SHOULD:
Accurately predict your essay’s
direction, emphasis, and scope
Make no promises that the essay will
not fulfill
Be direct and straightforward
NOT be an announcement,
statement of opinion, or statement of
fact.

74. Support
 Be sure to evaluate the
information in your prewriting
carefully in order to choose the
best support for your topic.
Primary Support—major ideas or
examples that back up your main
points
Secondary Support—details which
further explain your primary support

75. Support continued. . .
 Basics of good support
Relates to main point
Considers readers, i.e. provides
enough information
Is detailed and specific

76. Order
 The Order is the sequence in which you
present your ideas.
 There are 3 types of order:
Time (chronological) order
Space order
Emphatic order (order of importance: least-
to-most, most-to-least)

77. Structure/Organization
 Consider how your essay will be
organized; then create an
Outline.
 Sample Outline of standard
5-paragraph essay:
A. Introduction
B. Body Paragraph 1
C. Body Paragraph 2
D. Body Paragraph 3
E. Conclusion

78. II. Writing
 During the Writing Stage, you should
Create your essay’s Title
Compose a draft
○ A Draft is the first whole version of all your
ideas put together; it’s a “dress rehearsal.”
○ You should plan to revise your Draft several
times throughout the writing process.

79. Creating Your Title
 Your essay’s title should:
Be original
Be a reasonable length
Reflect your topic
Be lively and attention-getting
 Your title should NOT:
Be generic/repeat the assignment
Be in ALL CAPS
Be in boldface, “quotation marks,”
underlined, or italicized
Be followed by a period

80. Titles, continued
 Capitalization Rules for Titles:
Always capitalize the first letter of the first
word and the last word.
Capitalize the first letter of each “important”
word in between the first and last words.
○ Do not capitalize articles (a, an, the)
○ Do not capitalize coordinating conjunctions
(and, but, or, etc.)
○ Do not capitalize prepositions (on, at, in, off,
etc.)

81. Effective vs. Ineffective Titles
 Topic: Cheating in College
 Effective Titles:
Cheaters Never Win!
Cheating in Higher Education
Why Do Students Cheat?
 Ineffective Titles:
Don’t Do It!
Cheating
Students Cheat for Many Different Reasons.

82. Writing a Draft
 Basics of a good draft:
Has a fully developed introduction
and conclusion
Has fully developed body
paragraphs, each containing a topic
sentence, at least two examples, and
detailed support
Follows standard structure and uses
complete sentences

83. Write Your Introduction
 Your introductory paragraph
should do the following:
Be a minimum of 4-6 sentences
Tell the audience what to expect from
your discussion (thesis)
Move from general to specific, with
the thesis as the last sentence in the
intro
Get the reader’s attention
Set the tone for the rest of the essay

84. Introduction, continued
 Strategies for developing an Introduction
include
Providing background information
Telling a personal anecdote
Beginning with a quotation
Using an opposite
Asking a question

85. Write Your Body Paragraphs
 Each body paragraph should
develop one of the specific points
mentioned in the thesis.
 Each BP should contain:
Topic Sentence—main idea of BP
Primary Support—examples
Secondary Support—details

86. Body Paragraphs: Topic Sentence
 A Topic Sentence expresses the main
idea of the body paragraph.
 Begin each body paragraph with a Topic
Sentence that
Narrows the focus of the paragraph
Accurately predicts the direction of the
paragraph
Refers back to the Thesis statement

87. Body Paragraphs continued
 Body paragraphs must have
Unity—everything refers back to main point
Support—examples and details
Coherence—all points connect to form a
whole; one point leads to another

88. Body Paragraphs: Unity
 Unity is achieved when everything
refers back to the main point
ALL SENTENCES SHOULD RELATE
BACK TO TOPIC SENTENCE & THESIS.
Do not include any ideas that are irrelevant
or off-topic.

89. Body Paragraphs: Support
 Support is achieved through adequate
examples and details.
 Each body paragraph should include at
least two examples to support the main
idea of the paragraph.
 Each example should include at least one
specific detail that further illustrates the
point.

90. Body Paragraphs: Coherence
 Coherence is achieved when all points
connect to form a whole; one point leads
to another.
 Coherence is mainly achieved through
the use of transitions.
Transitions—words & phrases which
connect your sentences so that your writing
flows smoothly.

91. Write Your Conclusion
 The concluding paragraph should
Contain a minimum of 4 sentences
Refer back to the main point, but not
simply repeat the thesis
Make an observation on what is
written
NOT introduce any new ideas
Create a sense of closure

92. III. Revising
 Revising is finding & correcting
problems with content; changing the
ideas in your writing to make them
clearer, stronger, and more
convincing.
 Revising looks at the “Big Picture”—
the Idea level.

93. Revision Strategies
 Look for
 Unity
○ Does everything refer back to main point?
○ Does each topic sentence refer to the thesis?
○ Does each sentence in each BP refer back to the topic
sentence?
 Detail and support
○ Does each BP contain at least two examples?
○ Is each example followed by at least one supporting detail?
 Coherence
○ Are all points connect to form a whole?
○ Are transitions used to move from one idea to the next?

94. Revision Tips
 Take a break from your draft
before attempting to revise.
 Read your draft out loud and
listen to your words.
 Imagine yourself as your reader.
 Look for consistent problem
areas.
 Get feedback from peers.
 Get help from a tutor!

95. IV. Editing
 Editing is finding and correcting
problems with grammar, style, word
choice & usage, and punctuation.
 Editing focuses on the “Little Picture”—
Word level.

96. Editing Strategies
 Keep an Error Log to help you identify
your problem areas and improve your
writing.
 When editing, review your paper for one
type of error at a time; don’t try to read
through looking for everything at once.

97. Editing Tips
 Work with a clean printed copy,
double-spaced to allow room to
mark corrections.
 Read your essay backwards.
 Be cautious of spell-check and
grammar-check.
 Read your essay out loud.
 Get feedback from peers.
 Work with a tutor!

98. Self-Review
 You should never move to peer
review without first completing a
self-review (revising & editing); you
want your peer to look for mistakes
that you were unable to catch
yourself!
 After you have reviewed your own
work, make the necessary
corrections and print a clean,
revised copy before moving on to
peer review.

99. Peer-Review
 It is important to make the peer review
process useful.
 Basics of useful feedback:
It is given in a positive way
It is specific
It offers suggestions
It is given both verbally and in writing

101. Week 7

102. Expository Techniques in Tech. Writing
 1.. Description
○ External Description
○ Analytical or technical description
○ Evocative Description
2. Process Description
3.. Casual Analysis]
4. Analogy
5. Narration
6. Persuasion
7. Argument
8. Definition
9. Comparison and Contrast
10. Classification

103.  Various methods of development are
used to achieve the aim that you set to
do when you decided to write your
communication.
 Using these; it answer’s the “how”
question.
How do you explain steps in writing?
How do you persuade or patronize your
products?
How do you convince your manager that
your idea is best suited for your company?

104. 1. Using Description
 Using Description is a way of writing
about the way things appear, the way
they are constructed or the way they act.
 A description can be external, analytical,
or technical evocative or impressionistic.
 3 types of Description
External Description
Analytical or Technical Description
Evocative Description

105. a. External Description
 This type of description makes the
reader visualize and recognize the thing
or object being described.
Example:
○ You are explaining computer analysis and
design to your readers so that they will know
how a process or system works
Often external description focuses on the shape
and color of objects or on their arrangement in
space

106. b. Analytical or Technical
Description
An Analytical or Technical Description makes
your reader understand the structure of an
object. The language used is precise,
objective, technical, and analytical.
Serves as argumentative aim.

107. c. Evocative Description
 Evocative Description recreates impression
that a particular person, place or animal has
made on you. It evokes visual effect and the
feeling that an object can stir the reader.
 Evocative Description can appeal to all the
other senses; you may use flashback and
flash-forwards as your strategy to achieve
the kind of appeal you want for your readers.

108. 2. Using Process Description
 When you explain how something works, you
explain the steps in your process.
Paragraphs develop by analyzing a process
are usually organized chronologically or
spatially as steps in process occur.
Types of Process Description
○ Audience and Purpose Process Description
○ Process Description for the Potential Customer
○ Process Description for Peers
○ Graphic Aid in Process Description

109. a. Audiences and Purposes or
Process Description
 Often we present a process description to an
audience after we have subscribed the
device before we give instructions on how to
use it.
 Can also help an audience by a device,
understand a new scientific or technical
theory, choose between alternative actions,
or understand company action and policies.

110. b. Process Description for the
Potential Customer
 Technical manuals, catalogs and
instructions sheets accompany most devices
we use on the job.
 We read this communication before buying
or using the device.
 The audience of the description would have
enough knowledge and authority to buy the
device; however, because the writers
describe actions clearly w/in a time frame,
any audience could understand the basic
process involved.

111. c. Process Description for
Peers
 The writers task is to explain a new type of
operation.
We use process description to support an
argument
 We use process description to help an
audience understand a specific operation,
decide whether to buy or use a device,
speculate about future occurrences, or
evaluate recommendations.

112. d. Graphic aid in Process
Description
 Graphic aid such as flow charts and
diagram support process description.
 In fact, if a process description is simple
and not the main purpose of the
communication, we can indicate action
within the diagram and describe within a
caption.
 Graphic aids support rather than replace a
description

113. 3.Casual Analysis
 This is used to analyze why something
happened, or what is likely to happen to
determine the cause. It is used in writing
about, social, economic or political
events or problems.

114. 4. Analogy
 Help your reader to understand something
abstract, vast, remove or specialized by
comparing it to something compact and
concrete.
 You can also use to explain things in its
proper perspective. You can use analogy
to argue a point.
 Often used to link elements in different
classes with a special kind of comparison
like you explain an unfamiliar things with a
familiar one.

115. 5. Narration
 Tells about a succession of event. The most
common narration follows a chronological order
and serves an explanatory aim.
 You can use the following style in narrating
Moving backward to explain the cause of an event or
jump forward to identify its ultimate effect.
Using questions like:
○ What happened?
○ When did it happen?
○ Or the WH questions

116. 6. Persuasion
 To convince/to influence
 One important task in persuasion is to
refute the other side on the issue.
 Persuasion requires special attention
towards the readers needs.
 Enthymeme – with one conclusion
implied but not directly stated

117. 7. Argument
 A rational means of persuasion.
 Seek to convince, not just to explain and
differ from emotional persuasion because it
only tries to convince by appealing to the
mind.
 In argument, only some statements are
offered as matter of facts, and these are
given to believe claims.
 The argument therefore is the product of an
imaginary conversation between the writer
and the reader.

118. 8. Definition
 Each technology has developed words, which
are unfamiliar to people outside technology.
By using definition, the meaning of a term is
explained in a logical manner.
 Technical reports writer must choose words
carefully and define them because readers
have no time for a long and winding
communication
2 types of Definition
○ Formal
○ Informal

119. a. InFormal Definition
 To define a subject informally, we
convey the meaning quickly and do not
stress the definition.
Ex.
○ Evaporate, to become vapor, to emit vapor, to
convert into vapor
 One Advantage of informal definition is
hat it read as smooth, integral part of the
text.

120. b. Formal Definition
 We place our subject in a class of
subjects the reader will be familiar with
and then tell what makes our subject
different from all the others in that class.
 Ex.
School is an institution for instructions

121. 9. Comparison and Contrast
 A useful technique in writing a proposal or
showing why an invention is an improvement
over tested equipment, apparatus or formula.
 It is also the selling point of a merchandise,
services and a majority of goods.
 It makes the writer identify similar
characteristics of two or more subject that are
regarded as different while contrast identifies
different characteristics of two or more subject
that are regarded and usually thought to be
similar

122. 10. Classification
 Is the arrangement of the objects, people, ideas
with shared characteristics into classes or
groups.
 It is a method used to organize information into
groups and categories
Consistent – it is the same principle used to classify
each category
Complete – see to it that no major categories are
omitted.
Significant – the categories and subcategories are
arranged in an order and demonstrate some
purpose.

123.  An analogy is a type of composition (or,
more commonly, a partof an essay
or speech) in which one idea, process, or
thing is explained by comparing it to
something else.
 Extended analogies are commonly used to
make a complex process or idea easier to
understand. "One good analogy,"
said American attorney Dudley Field
Malone, "is worth three hours' discussion."
Expository Writing
Strategies

124. Week 8

125. Week 7

126. General rules for word choice or Ten Tips
for Technical Writers
1. Break long sentences up into shorter
sentences.
• “A complete pharmacokinetic study
prevented the investigators from missing
any important perturbations, which could
have been due to any of the following: poor
absorption of oral doses or lack of
conversion of prednisone to prednisolone.”

127. “A complete pharmacokinetic study
allowed the investigators to rule out
confounding factors. They tested the
rate and extent of prednisone
absorption. They also examined
prednisone to prednisolone conversion.
Differences in absorption or conversion
could otherwise have accounted for the
differences in clearance between the
groups.”
(shorter sentences)

128. long word shorter word
etiology cause
administer give
comprise are
dosages doses
employ use (verb)
utilize use (verb)
usage use (noun)
efficacious effective
encountered seen
methodology method
pathology disease
virtually almost
2. Use short words instead of long words

129. 3. Avoid colloquialism. Avoid emotion-evoking
word.
Avoid: Instead, use:
“on,” as in “of” or “in,” as in
“study on 100 patients” study of 100 patients
looked at examined
turned to tried
more and more increasingly
levels concentrations
suffer from experience or have
sufferers patients or people or
individuals

130. Colloquial/emotion-evoking
“Even though the authors claim no conflict of
interest, this study seems to be reeking of
manipulated data.”
Professional
“The authors claimed that their prior association
with the manufacturer did not lead to conflict of
interest. Several inconsistencies in data
interpretation challenge this assertion. The first
inconsistency was…”

131. Colloquial/emotion-evoking
“Severe hypoglycemia is scary and leaves the
patient feeling totally wiped out for awhile.”
Professional
“Severe hypoglycemia can be a frightening
experience for patients, and often leaves them
feeling fatigued
afterward.”

132. 4. Avoid metaphors.
Metaphors are names or descriptive
terms applied to an action or
object that is imaginative but not literally
applicable
for example
“the pot filibustered on the stove”

134. (Basic Principles…)
 The writer must check every part of his
report to see whether he has followed
the principles of first, “Telling the reader
what he is going to tell them; second,
telling them; and third, telling them what
he told them.”

135. (Basic Principles…)
 He must make his report very
presentable in format. The layout must
conform with standard forms of writing.

136. Planning Gathering
information
Drafting Revising Editing
Talking to
peers
Searching
the internet
Listing
ideas
Peer
reading and
evaluating
Spell
checking
Talking to
professors
Reading
related
materials
Clustering
related
ideas
Writing
another
draft
Proofreading
Determini
ng the
purpose
Studying
lecture notes
Starting a
rough draft
More peer
evaluating
More
proofreading
Locating
sources
ACTIVITIES IN THE WRITING PROCESS