Essentials of Writing

Picture of Essentials of Writing
Quick Facts
  • Delivery Method Online
  • Professional Certificate
  • 24hrs Suggested Study Time
  • 3 Months Access
  • Tutor Support
  • Study On Any Device
  • 6768 Students

Master the essentials of writing so you can excel at business communications, express yourself clearly online, and take your creative literary talents to a new level.

Master the essentials of writing, and become the stellar wordsmith you always wanted to be! In this course, you'll develop the skills you need to excel at business communications, express yourself clearly online, and take your creative literary talents to a new level.

Whether you're hoping to get a better job, write for a blog, or publish your short story, this course will give you the writing tools you need for success. It's also a perfect choice for students who speak English as a second language.

You'll gain confidence right away as you practice free writing and discover how to create solid drafts. You'll improve your writing skills by learning to select strong and persuasive words, spell correctly, and choose the right punctuation. Then you'll find out how to put it all together by crafting well-written sentences, building effective paragraphs, and organising your material logically. And finally, you'll explore ways to make the most of e-mails and other forms of electronic communication.

With the knowledge and hands-on practice you gain from this course, you'll be able to express yourself clearly and persuasively in writing—both in your personal life and in the business world.

Courses are delivered to you through expertly executed lessons, online instruction and interaction with like-minded students. Our courses are designed to deliver all of the benefits of studying in a classroom whilst giving you the flexibility to study at a time and place to suit your needs. You can access your classroom 24/7 from any device with an internet connection.

This course has a 3 month duration. You'll complete comprehensive lessons, quizzes and assignments before submitting your final exam at the end of the course to achieve your certificate. Courses must be completed within the 3 month access period.

Welcome to Lesson 1, where you’ll learn important concepts to help you write better today!  You’ll learn a strategy that will free up every bit of your existing writing skills and help you gain confidence when you write. Practice begins now with a new technique that will help you get your thoughts out onto the page so you can work with them.  It’s a great way to start on your goal of becoming a confident, accomplished writer.  Whether you need to write on the job or you’re eager to write for publication, this lesson will help!

Prepare yourself for some major upgrades on your ability to choose effective words!  In this lesson you'll learn to recognize what kinds of word choices work and why.  You’ll come away with an understanding about word choices that cause your readers to feel confused or uninterested.  You'll have the pleasure of discovering how to find the word you want and also how to goof around with words so you enjoy writing more.  Finally, you'll practice, practice, practice.  It’s fun, so feel free to dive in and splash around!

It’s time for spelling practice. Not only will you review problem words, but you’ll get acquainted with 10 helpful rules and five helpful tips to make you a better speller so you can spell better from now on. You’ll identify your own particular spelling demons and learn a strategy to cope with them once and for all.  This lesson is filled with the kinds of resources and spelling practice you’ve been looking for.

Here’s your chance to get acquainted with common word usage difficulties and master them. You’re about to learn to pick the right word at the right time and put it in the right place in your sentence.  You’ll practice choosing between similar sounding words that have different meanings.  You’ll get helpful explanations—at last!—about tricky usages that may trip you up daily.  Feel free to delve into an information-packed lesson that will add to your knowledge of correct word usage.

Your writing ability is building after the first four lessons!  In Lesson 5 you’ll integrate all you’ve learned so far—how how to capture your thoughts, choose effective words, spell correctly, and master word usage—by mastering techniques that will help you write effective sentences.  Here you’ll practice constructing sentences that have energy and precision by learning four simple tips, deciding which words to take out, and communicating your ideas logically.

Whisk through a handy review of the three main punctuation marks used to end sentences: the period, the question mark, and the exclamation point.  But that’s not all.  You’ll benefit from practicing how to identify and fix run-on sentences, sentence fragments, and the overuse of dashes and ellipses.  Round out your exploration with the challenge of combining quotation marks with the ending marks.  You’ll get a fine update on what works and what doesn’t with this first of three full lessons on punctuation.

Commas!  Yes, you can master their use.  Lesson 7 is designed to give you confidence in your comma placement.  You’ll learn how to use commas to create energy and precision in your writing.  Instead of memorizing an intimidating list of rules, you’ll learn by listening, clarifying, and practicing.  You’ll realize that you’re in charge of your commas rather than being a passive victim.  You’ll get answers to all your lingering doubts about using commas here. 

It’s likely been a long time since your school days, and your knowledge of the correct use of all the punctuation marks may be a bit vague now.  Lesson 8 to the rescue!  The emphasis here will be on how to use punctuation marks like semicolons, colons, dashes, parentheses, ellipses, apostrophes, quotation marks, italics, and hyphens.  You’ll acquire a new understanding of the way these marks help you.  You’ll gain this understanding by discovering, through practice, how to punctuate for clarity and how to help your readers hear the way you want your words to sound.

You’re building your knowledge brick by brick, and now it’s time to tackle the most powerful organizing tool of all writing—the paragraph.  Here you’ll find tips on how to organize a paragraph, where to break one paragraph and start another, and how to sequence paragraphs for optimum understanding.  As always, you’ll get to practice these skills as you go, solidifying your knowledge and gaining new confidence.  Dive in!

Now it’s time to find out how to put all your good writing into the right format so you can communicate with power and precision.  Formatting appeals to the eye of your readers and draws them into your content.  It’s a powerful tool and one that involves some creative choices on your part.  Get ready to learn about your choices for overall form, as well as how to use basic and specific formatting tools to make your writing highly readable.

Learn how to write effectively in today’s electronic world. Explore how the techniques of writing various types of electronic media such as e-mail, instant messages, and text messages, for example, differ from the techniques used to prepare messages that will be read on paper. It’s a new world, and new rules are necessary to help you communicate well. This lesson will help you discover what works and what doesn’t in these exciting and evolving media.  You’ll gain a new understanding of how to write powerful e-mail, since it’s the most common of all electronic message systems.

Time to wrap up all you’ve learned!  Lesson 12 will help you practice using your new skills, working from freewriting to a finished document.  You’ll practice how to use both your creative and your critical skills while writing.  You’ll find out what kind of attitude will help you use your new skills and what good habits will help you continue to improve each time you write.  You’ll focus on revision, work with a revision checklist, and review good tips on proofreading.  You’ll put together all you’ve learned so your writing continues to improve from this point forward. 

Ann Linquist

Ann Linquist

Ann Linquist is a popular continuing education tutor, at corporations, and with non-profit organisations. She has helped thousands of adults learn to tackle their writing tasks with enthusiasm. Having written everything from novels to newsletters,... Read more

Read Ann Linquist's Profile

Frequently Asked Questions

Once you've made the payment, we'll send you a confirmation email with a link to start your course. Feel free to get started whenever you're ready!

You'll have 3 months access to your course. In that time you are free to study at your own pace. The course duration is 24 hours.

Online learning is a flexible way to study that fits around your schedule, giving you the freedom to learn at your own pace from anywhere in the world. You'll have 3 months to complete the course and can take the multiple-choice questions and final exam whenever it suits you.

If you need help, you can contact us anytime. You can also join the discussion area where you can interact with other students. The discussion area for each lesson is open for the entire duration of the course.

Of course! We offer a 10-day money back guarantee. As long as you haven't completed the course, you can get a full refund within 10 days of enrolling.

We do not offer extensions or transfers for this self-paced course. However, you will have 3 months to complete the course, and if you need to cancel within the first 10 days of enrolment, we offer a money back guarantee.

The Learning Environment

From the moment that you enrol in the Essentials of Writing you will become an integral part of our learning community. You'll find yourself with the freedom to learn at a speed that suits you, on any device, from anywhere in the world. Achieving your career goals no longer has to mean compromising family and work commitments.

Our Values

Learn At Your Own Pace

We believe in personalised learning. That's why we provide all the tools and support you need to succeed at your own pace. With flexible learning, you'll stay motivated and retain more information. Plus, you can balance your studies with work and family commitments to make your dreams a reality.

We Won't Break The Bank

Education should be accessible to anyone who wants to learn. That's why we offer some of the most competitive prices in the industry with payments plans for just $25 per week. Investing in your future is a smart choice and doesn’t have to break the bank.

Industry-Led Courses

There's no better way to learn than from experts with years of experience in your field. That's why each of our 200+ industry-led courses are designed to give you a real-life perspective on your industry. With our expert mentors, you'll learn from people who have a wealth of knowledge and experience, and who are passionate about sharing it with you.

Get The Personal Support You Deserve

At Vibe Learning, we're real people who are dedicated to providing you with personal support every step of the way. Our industry experts are not only professional and knowledgeable but also incredibly passionate about sharing their expertise with you. With their guidance, you'll gain invaluable insights and practical knowledge to help you succeed.