## Learning Resources - Garner's Modern English Usage - The Chicago Manual of Style - Dreyer's English: An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style - Stephen King's On Writing - Revising prose - Style: Towards Clarity and Grace - The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language (CGEL) - Merriam-Webster's Guide to English Usage - [The Craft of Writing Effectively (youtube)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtIzMaLkCaM) ## To improve writing 1. **Read others work.** - Trying to write without reading is like trying to play an instrument without every listening to music. There's plenty of bad writing out there, but reading helps you get a sense for what to include in certain kinds of writing, gives you examples to emulate, and narrows what you like and don't like in writing—among other benefits. 2. **Read your work aloud.** - You won't catch everything, but you will almost definitely see some spots to fix. Reading with your eyes isn't the same as reading with your voice. 3. **Get someone else to read your work.** - Does it make sense to them? What are they confused by? And why? It may make sense to you, but you wrote it; it damn well better make sense to you. The real trick is getting it to make sense to someone else. Get another set of eyes to look it over. 4. **Practice**, somehow. - You can't expect to hit a home run if you only get to the plate once a month (or whatever). I don't think you need to make writing a daily thing. But e-mails, journaling, and the like can really hone your writing skills by simple dint of doing it regularly. Text/correspond with native speakers. 5. **Revise.** - Sometimes writing is or has to be a one-and-done deal. But truthfully, people rarely get down just what they want to say the first time they try. If you read it over aloud and give it to someone else, chances are you'll find stuff to delete, add, rephrase. But that'll make it better than it was. ## To improve speaking - Record and play it back. - Call customer services or sales people and ask quick questions. - Shadowing.