As Jeremy detailed on Monday, many colleges are turning out graduates who, even after four years of higher education, have cognitive skills that are still sorely lacking. Of particular note is a seeming decline in grads’ writing abilities; one-third of students see no improvement in their writing skills from freshman to senior year, and 80% of employers wish colleges would put more emphasis on this area.
Even if you have no plans on becoming a professional writer, being able to write well is one of the most important skills you can have. From typing up memos at a corporation, to penning blog posts that accompany your online store, to writing grant proposals for your non-profit — it is a skill that will truly come in handy no matter what line of work you end up going into.
Beyond just having professional benefits, learning to write better will up your game in your love notes and enhance your correspondence with others – whether through email or handwritten letters. Writing is truly an ability every man should seek to practice and improve throughout his life.
With that in mind, from time to time we’ll be sharing posts on how to sharpen your writing skills. None of us here on AoM consider ourselves master writers, and we’re all constantly trying to improve as well. So think of these posts as tips from fellow travelers.
Today we’re going to explore what we consider the very best way to get started with becoming a better writer: copying the work of others. Copywork, as it’s called, used to be the standard method by which students learned to write, and it is the “secret” to how many of history’s greatest writers mastered the craft. While it may sound unsexy and unoriginal, it really works, and today we’ll show you how to get started.
