Why Writing Is Important To Architects?

Posted by Architecture & Engineering Malaysia on February 8th, 2021

Many architecture students and professionals neglect writing too much, as a discipline, simply because they don't understand the importance of the skill in their field.

That is where they are wrong, though. Writing is an important ability, and it may be an excellent benefit in architecture to ensure that someone has a strong command of language. It can also be another instrument in your arsenal to climb up the field career ladder if appropriately used.

It's how you document your project.

Writing is how an architect truly shares every project's necessary details with his clients and colleagues, leaving aside the models, renders, and graphics.
This may sound like a low claim, but it has a level of validation.
Writing clear and concise documentation makes it easier for clients and superiors to read through it and gives them the impression that you're knowledgeable and thorough with your work.

Materials, design techniques, construction methods, tests to be carried out, and other specifics are all things that can not be displayed or visually represented. Empowering yourself with good writing abilities means that your designs are all the more successful and less likely to come back for doubts or reworking.
Writing isn’t a superficial skill. It can help you make straightforward strides in your career as you move up the ladder.

Your Documentation Aids Your Designs

Although your designs are mostly visual, there is some writing you may have to do to ensure that the other things they need to do are understood by your customers, clients, colleagues, and everyone else looking at the design.

There are details in the design that cannot be represented visually. They require written words to be adequately explained, and that is where your writing skills will shine.

Even the best designs will fall short for customers without the necessary skills to describe them poignantly and concisely. But it becomes much easier for them to understand you and bring your point across when you explain these methods and elements to customers using simple written language.

Your Communication Skill Depends On Your Writing

During a project, the clients, teammates, and supervisors can use emails and texts as a primary form of communication.
While at first, it might seem insignificant, having a proper language command when you send out emails and messages will elevate your position among them.

As a tool to simplify communication, the use of internet slang and shorthand can be clarified. But it does have the unintended side effect of making you look like you've got less language control.

That's why it's important to note, whether you're writing an essay or a text to someone, keeping your writing uniform and grammatically correct.

I wrote about the relevance of communication skills here, but it's not just about paper and emails. You can also teach yourself, by learning good writing, how to speak more eloquently and fluently.

That's a tremendous ability to have in meetings and presentations to convince someone of your claim.

There Is A Written Aspect To Your Course Too

When you apply for an advanced course at a university, you should understand that others require a written examination.

Although these tests may seem simple enough when the examiner scores your paper, write your text, and your writing quality will make a big difference. Start by writing something here or pasting it, and then press the Paraphrase button.

There's no priority for a particular part between the interview, portfolio, and written examination. When it comes to playing a role in the admission process, all of them bear equal weight. So, getting your writing skills in order makes sense. It could help you get into the university of your choice as well.

It Is Also How You Make A Good Design, Better

I think it’s safe to say that no one can make a successful design all alone. It often is a  byproduct of dozens, if not hundreds of hours of collaboration and teamwork.

This is where the process incorporates communication factors. Good writing, thorough documentation, and comprehensive written instructions and guidelines can provide a consistent vision of a project for the entire team that can not be obtained by just talking to each other or showing them a rough draft of a model you have made.

Sometimes, innovative and creative designs, even though the concept came from one of them, were never the result of a single person. Other architects, engineers, and team members may have contributed to these projects visually and structurally.

If your dream is to design a building that will one day be the crown jewel of your portfolio, it makes sense to brush up on your writing skills and keep them top-notch.

But then, one important question arises, how can you do that?

How Do You Improve Your Writing?

It’s easy to tell someone that they need to improve their writing instead of essay writing service help. But that’s about as helpful as throwing a child into a pool and telling them to swim.

There are quite a few steps you will need to take to boost your writing proficiency. This is not only about practice, but learning the nuances and subtleties of the language in which you are supposed to connect.

Read As Much As You Can

This isn’t limited to your textbooks and research papers. There is a whole world of reading material out there, and all of them are valuable resources to learn from.

The reading exercise shows you how other people use language to build and deliver the thoughts in their minds. Through this, you begin to learn how to create proper sentences, how voices can shift, and how to bring an idea to the paper from your head efficiently.

If you’re not much of a reader, then it’s time you brush up on the habit. Find a friend who reads a lot, and ask them for a few suggestions based on what you like.

Once you finish that, try and find similar books and resources to read more.

Ideally, you'd like to turn this into a constant habit. It's not a final aim to learn to enhance your writing. It's an ongoing system that will take time. But the time and effort you put in are worth it.

Set Aside Some Quiet Time For Yourself

Setting some private time aside for you is another thing you should do. A time when you're not at the drafting table when you're not on the phone or watching television. Instead, do something different, like listening and talking to yourself about your thoughts.

See if there are any mistakes you can find in your prose. Write them down, and try to stop those patterns the next time you put the pen on paper (or in the modern case, fingers on the keyboard).

It might seem futile to set aside some time for yourself, but it is far from that. You give your brain some time to think about the ideas you have to compose by doing this, and that gives a better image of what you're going to put on paper eventually.

Dedicate Time For Practice

This is where you’ll be writing. This is where you’ll need to commit and produce something that you can genuinely quantify to yourself.

Starting a blog is one idea for this. And if it doesn't make up for a strong readership, it's all right. Start something that pushes you daily to keep creating material. This gives you the space to practice your talents, too.

If you're writing an architecture blog, you can also gain good readership over time. And to your resume, this could become a valuable addition. You're also explicitly helping your career in this way.

Receive Feedback, And Listen To It

Share your blog with the people you know. Ask them for constructive feedback, and see where you can stand to improve.

For one primary cause, feedback is essential. You ask for multiple viewpoints on your writing. There are still some implicit prejudices that will deter you from seeing some of your flaws, and this helps to approach other individuals to see how they can help you improve.

Keep It Simple

Far too often, people make the mistake of thinking that the ones who use complicated vocabulary and long sentences are great authors. There could be nothing farther from the facts.

It's nice to have an extensive vocabulary, but when the reader does not understand what you are trying to communicate, nothing comes of it.

Also, no one likes reading extremely long sentences where a short one would do just fine.

When you’re writing, keep everything as simple as possible. Your language can still be excellent regardless of whether you’re using complex vocabulary or long sentences.

Conclusion

It's not just a way to make your emails look more professional to concentrate on writing; it's a solid ability that can advance your architecture career more than most people can know. Language management means that you are treated as an expert, not a follower or someone who doesn't know what they're talking about.

So, take the necessary steps to improve your writing, and you’ll find a lot of doors will open for you.