The manner in which a writer puts forth a particular thought or idea is a very important aspect of professional writing. You should choose the most effective way to communicate that idea. This can be achieved best by knowing your audience and knowing what style would appeal most to them. Your writing should strike the right chord with your readers.
Having knowledge about your audience helps you to determine the choice of language; whether to use formal, impersonal, positive, writer-focused, reader-focused, conversational, active, or passive language. Your writing style has an impact on the reader’s ability to understand your writing; it does not affect the actual content. When writers write for themselves or some acquaintance, they frequently use the pronouns I and you. This is commonly found in memos, personal letters, diaries, or in stories written by students. The target audiences are they themselves, teachers, friends, and family. Personal writing calls for a language style that expresses emotion, feelings, or opinions. In impersonal writing, the audience is distant and unknown. The writers are not present in the text, nor do they acknowledge the reader. There is no expression of personal feelings, no usage of personal pronouns, and the choice of vocabulary, and the use of passive voice lends a sense of formality to their writing.
Examples:
- You are creating a brochure about your company. You need to create different versions of the same brochure to appeal to different target audiences, such as, shareholders, customers, retailers, employees, or business associates, you can look here to find some ideas.
- You are writing an article or book for school students. It will be inappropriate if you use very high and polished jargon. They will just not understand it.
- You are writing a business letter. You cannot use an informal and conversational tone in it.
You are writing a fiction. The style should be informal and realistic. The reader should be able to identify themselves with the characters and situations.
