Writing well is not just about constructing logical sentences. It also involves the correct use of abbreviations, capital letters, and numbers in your business writing. Knowing how to use them consistently is a strong asset to have as part of your communication skills. In this course, you'll learn the basic rules of capital letters, abbreviations, and numbers. You'll learn how to correctly abbreviate titles, names, locations, and countries, as well as how to capitalize direct quotes, titles, names of organizations, and product names, among other elements. In addition, you'll explore other key elements for better writing - the forms and uses of numbers with dates and time, money, fractions, and symbols.

Syntax is the grammatical term for arranging words to create logical phrases, clauses, and sentences. Well-constructed sentences express an idea by using the parts of speech in a logical order, and are essential for effective business writing. A misplaced modifier might get a chuckle out of the reader, but it reflects poorly on your communication skills. In this course, you'll learn some of the fundamentals for better writing - the parts of a sentence, such as the subject and predicate, as well as phrases and clauses. You'll examine subject-verb agreement, as well as agreement between pronouns and their antecedents. You'll also discover some techniques for writing well, such as how to identify and fix common types of sentence errors.

Spelling errors are all too common, and are one of the main culprits behind poor business writing. A wrong letter here, an extra letter there, and your reader may lose confidence in your communication skills and overall competence as a professional. That's why writing well doesn't just mean writing persuasively - it also means knowing the rules, as well as the exceptions, of spelling. In this course, you'll learn how to spell words with prefixes and suffixes, and how to form the plural and possessive forms of words. You'll also learn general rules on how to spell correctly, as well as some handy tips for better writing in general.

The many nuances and conventions in the English language make it diverse and interesting; however, when it comes to writing well, they can also cause some difficulties. For better writing skills, you must familiarize yourself with some of the most common errors of usage. In this course, you'll learn how to use commonly confused words correctly, including word pairs that sound alike and those that have related meanings. You'll explore often misused verbs - for example, affect and effect or apprise and appraise - that can impede professional business writing. You'll also learn some idiomatic combinations of verbs and prepositions that can be confusing and will put your communication skills to the test.

Punctuation is the collection of marks used to separate sentences and their parts. Although appropriate punctuation is an undervalued part of your communication skills, it can make your business writing clear and less likely to be misinterpreted. In this course, you'll learn the standard rules and guidelines for using punctuation marks, including the correct use of periods, question marks, and exclamation points. You'll learn a crucial aspect of better writing that often causes much confusion - how to correctly use commas. The course includes rules for better writing such how to use different connecting and separating marks, like colons, semicolons, dashes, and hyphens. In addition, it shows how to properly use apostrophes, parentheses, brackets, and quotation marks.

Effective business writing is one of the most important communication skills in the workplace today. By writing well, using clear sentences and correct grammar, you can ensure your message is communicated to and understood by your intended audience. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true - poorly structured sentences can not only cause confusion, but may also damage your reputation. In this course, you'll learn about the fundamental elements for better writing - the parts of speech. These are the building blocks of sentences, so learning about them can help you skillfully combine words into meaningful sentences. This course describes the eight parts of speech and shows how to use them effectively and correctly.