How To Tell If Your Writing's Any Good


The first thing to be aware of when asking yourself this question is, who or what are you writing for? What is your definition of ‘good’?
 
After all, a highbrow article for an international finance market requires a totally different level of ‘good writing’ (in most cases) than a humorous autobiographical anecdote for supermarket magazine. Both are important and both are worth their space, but they are totally different kinds of writing with totally different kinds of readers. So consequently the definition of whether they are good has totally different requirements.


For this reason, I believe that there is a straight forward way to tell if your writing is any good. If it’s clear and enjoyable to your chosen reader, then it is. If it isn’t, then it isn’t. Simple really isn’t it?


However, if you’re after a more informative answer, here are some ways to get genuine feedback and insights on your writing.


Firstly, don’t critique your own work the same day you write it, or at the very least the same hour that you write it. If you don’t allow the time delay, chances you’ll still be on a high from actually putting the words on the page and you’ll find yourself caught up in the emotion of that. By putting your work aside for a few hours, you’ll find detaching yourself from it easier and, therefore, actually read the words on the page as opposed to reading what you thought you wrote. 


TIPS

1

TEXT-TO-SPEECH

Most computers these days come with some form of ‘text to speech’ option.


Using this to read out your work is useful for pointing out overused words, misplaced phrases, unnecessary dialogue, unclear actions and so on.


2

DOES IT SUIT YOUR

TARGET READER?

Check the level of your writing suits your target reader by using the FOG Index calculation on a section of your writing.

There’s an article here going into detail on it, including all the whats, whys and hows.

3

HONEST FEEDBACK

Find yourself an honest friend who fits your target reader’s profile, or join a critiquing group that’s familiar with your target reader.


It’s tempting to ask anybody who fits your target market (or even anyone who’s just willing) to read your work, but since you want genuine feedback it’s important to be selective who you ask for their thoughts, otherwise you might find yourself working on aspects of your writing that aren’t relevant or simply not getting the honesty you require.


4

GET AN ASSESSMENT

Finally, you can ask a quality editor for an assessment of your writing. This will no doubt cost you money, but the feedback in most cases is invaluable.


Again, it’s important to approach somebody who is familiar with your target audience and aware of what you’re hoping to achieve with your writing.






So there you have it, my five tips to finding out if your writing is any good. But most importantly remember, if it’s clear and enjoyable to your chosen reader, then it is. If it isn’t, then it isn’t. 

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