Introduction
Writing is a skill anyone can master over time. Being a good writer depends on a lot of factors, and one of those factors is the type of writing style the person is planning to pursue. That’s right - there are several types of writing styles that people can pursue, and each person will find one form of writing better or easier than the others.
What is Writing Style?
Writing style can generally be defined as the style that a writer adopts when writing a particular piece. It can be the form in which they structure their content, the kind of figures of speech, the methods they use to create their content, and so on. However, this is not the type of writing style that is being addressed here. The types of writing styles being discussed in this blog are the different types of writing skills that a person would need to acquire to specialize in a particular form of writing. If it is still not clear, the following section will deal with the types of writing styles in detail, which will clear any confusion.
Types of Writing Styles
Given below are 5 of the most prominent types of writing styles commonly used both in print as well as in online media, along with their relevance in today’s context.
Narrative Writing Style
Narrative writing refers to the use of storytelling in the context of writing. This does not necessarily mean that the content being discussed in the bulk of the matter should be a story, let alone fiction. The narrative writing style can be used in the context of fiction or non-fiction, long-form or short-form content, and when the content being discussed spans the course of a day or several years.
Suggested Read - Benefits of the Storytelling Strategy
What It Entails
Essentially, the basic structure of the narrative style is that there is a well-defined sequence of beginning, middle, and end. Again, this is not a
How to Use the Narrative Writing Style
The narrative writing style can, as the name suggests, be used in places where the tone of the text is that of telling a story. This can include long-winded fictional tales spanning several pages, or short powerful anecdotes that may only be a few paragraphs long. However, this writing style is also employed in other forms of writing, the most important of which is speech writing. Making use of the narrative writing style in writing a speech makes sure that the audience will feel engaged throughout its entire duration. One of the ways teachers and professors can make use of this is by using it in their lesson plans to make their classes more engaging for the students. The teacher can use the structure of this writing style to model their classes in the form of a story, and it has been proven time and again that students tend to remember something better when it is relayed to them in a narrative format.
Descriptive Writing
The descriptive writing style refers to the act of writing a piece of work that is content-heavy and highly descriptive in nature. It can be simply explained as trying to paint a picture with words. Descriptive writing, as the name suggests, goes into intricate details about the subject matter being described. The idea behind descriptive writing is to truly immerse The reader in the experience of the subject matter being described, making them feel as if they are experiencing whatever they are reading in detail.
What it Entails
Descriptive writing generally involves envisioning the world that is to be described in utter and complete detail. For example when describing a beach, right can either say that it was a sunny day at the beach or describe to the reader how hot the sand felt, how high the sun was, the people around them, the people who were with the character whose story is being written, texture of the sand what the people were wearing, how crowded the whole place was and so on. Descriptive writing, in a way, can be defined as extending the logical limit of what it means to describe something.
How to Use Descriptive Writing
Descriptive writing can be used in scenarios where the subject being described needs to be explained in intricate detail. One of the most common uses of descriptive writing can be the use of manuals. User manuals or lab manuals are extremely important texts that can help a person use a particular apparatus or set up an experiment respectively. Teachers can undertake descriptive writing exercises to help them get a better understanding of what they're teaching and how they will go about teaching that particular subject. Descriptive writing can also be used in the case of narrative nonfiction or even fiction to help the reader visualize the scene as vividly as possible.
Persuasive Writing
Persuasive writing is one of those writing styles that is very hard to emulate unless the writer is extremely influential with their words. Persuasive writing can hence be defined as writing that is aimed at convincing the reader of accepting the view of the writer.
What it Entails
Since persuasive writing is used specifically to bring someone into the fold of the writer's vision, it cannot be simply an assortment of facts, but backed by narrative undertones that strike a tune with the reader. Another important thing that is used in persuasive writing is evidence, such as:
- Textual evidence, such as references to books or other forms of primary sources
- Anecdotal evidence like interviews or personal experiences
- Statistical evidence such as well research studies or hard facts
- Testimonial evidence like quotes from leading experts
How to Use Persuasive Writing
As mentioned above, persuasive writing is used to influence people, so it can be used by teachers by incorporating the right kind of words into their lesson plan to convince the students of the importance of a particular subject or topic. What is really interesting about persuasive writing is that it is almost always used only in non fiction and almost never in fiction. This is mainly because there is no need to persuade anyone of anything in the fiction genre. Another place that persuasive writing plays an important part is in speech writing.
Expository Writing
Expository writing refers to explaining a subject or informing people about a particular topic area for the supreme court of teaching them. It is aimed at answering any question a reader might have through the act of simply breaking down the concept behind the jargon of the subject into simple digestible parts.
What it Entails
The basic idea behind expository writing is asking the classical questions of who, what, why, when and how. It helps the reader lay out everything clearly in their mind and avoid any technique language that can further confuse the reader. Additionally, keep your opinions and emotions regarding the subject out of the material being written. The agenda behind expository writing is literally just stating the facts.
How to Use Expository Writing
Expository writing becomes valuable when the writing is done for the purpose of teaching a particular subject as specially when it comes to internships or training academy style of writing which means that it is best suited for non fiction. It's also now being seen in the online space in the form of blogs and how-to articles.
Creative Writing
Creative writing is essentially just writing according to what the writer feels like writing. It is not bound by any rules or regulations and hence simply just exists outside the usual paradigm of strict rules.
What it Entails
Since there are no particular rules and regulations that are to be followed when using creative writing as a tool, it is essentially a free-for-all.
How to Use Creative Writing
Creative writing, as the name suggest, is up to the discussion of the writer as to how it is to be used and involt context. There is no particular rule as to how creative writing should be and therefore there is no consensus on what facilities creative writing. It is much like trying to explain modern art - there will always be an explanation that you just did not see.
Conclusion
Therefore it can be said that there are essentially five types of writing styles that a person can use depending on the situation and context in which the material is being written. A person is free to break these rules as writing is a very subjective form of art, and can be manipulated as required and as the situation demands. The writing styles of various individuals vary with their exposure to their surroundings, culture, background in which they grew up, education, and so many other factors. All these factors are responsible for the type of writing style that a person chooses when deciding to write something and it even influences the type of content that they choose to write in the first place. In writing style can be seen as the medium in which a person decides to emulate, and it is this format that gets changed around with the writer.
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