Improve Your Mandarin Writing Skills

Chinese is one of the most popular languages in the world. People love learning it for various reasons – some want to open doors to better opportunities, some learn it in school and some want to learn it for fun. And while no aspect of learning a language is easy, writing in Chinese usually is pretty hard for most people. The reason is that the Chinese language uses hieroglyphics while English, for instance, uses letters. Every stroke means something different and it can get hard to catch up with learning how to write.

Some people remain content with just learning to converse fluently but if you really want to learn a language, you must learn how to write it.

If you are one of those students struggling with writing in Mandarin, here are some of the best tips that will help you improve.

1) Read Chinese regularly

One of the best ways to learn how to write in any language in the world is to read often. This not only gives you a better feel for the language but it also improves your style and sentences. Find articles in Chinese, books in Chinese – sometimes even simple, children’s books will do – newspapers in Chinese and so on. Anything written in Chinese is good. Read often, whenever you can find the time and memorize important details about what you read. Grammar rules and style rules are all easier to earn by reading.

2) Improve your vocabulary

By reading, over time, you improve your vocabulary. However, you can also do this in many other ways. For instance, you could watch Chinese TV shows, news or movies and when you hear or read a new word, write it down and find its meaning as well as how it is supposed to be written, practice a few times or use it in various sentences. This will not only enrich your vocabulary and make you a more fluent speaker, but it will also make the learning how to write process much easier.

3)  Use online tools

Nowadays, with technology advancements that are constant and fast, it’s easy to find helpful tools and guidance online. This can help you improve various aspects of your knowledge of a language. The key is to be consistent with your exercises and keep learning. If you are one of those students who prefer using tech to learn, here are some tools that you would find helpful.

1. Chinese-tools is a website that can offer you a lot of assistance in your learning process with their grammar guides and techniques on learning faster.
2. StateOfWriting and UK writing are grammar checkers that you can use to check your work after you are done writing.
3. Academ Advisor offers Chinese writing guides which can point you in the right direction.
4. EssayRoo and Boom Essays are online editing and proofreading tools that are helpful when you need to check your writing for accuracy and style.
5. Via Writing is a formatting tool that can help you make your text look good and readable
6. Academized and Paper Fellows are online Chinese Writers consulting websites which can connect you with some of the professionals speaking Chinese and help you learn better and check your work.

4) Keep practicing

Learning can be hard, especially if it’s your hobby rather than your only job. This is why so many people give up on learning languages. However, this is wrong You should always keep learning and keep practicing even if at first, things aren’t going so well for you. Find new ways to make your learning process easier and more comprehensible for you. Don’t just give up. Practice makes perfect.

5) Translate articles

Translating articles from your native language to Chinese is another wonderful way to learn. First, read the entire article so you know where it’s going, then find words that you don’t know how to translate and then find their translation. After that, you can begin your translation process.

6) Watch movies with Mandarin subtitles

This is how a lot of people prefer to learn writing. “They combine something that is fun to them and their learning and everything becomes easier. This will also help you memorize some of the key phrases and nuances of style”, – explains Cheryl Hayden, a Language tutor at EliteAssignmentHelp and Study Demic editor.

7) Study the grammar

When it comes to writing, grammar is one of the most important things. Study the grammar and then find a way to incorporate grammar rules into your sentences.

8) Final Thoughts

While all languages are equally demanding if you want to learn how to use them fluently, Chinese is certainly one of the most difficult languages in the world, especially when it comes to writing. However, with the right guidance and support – and these tips – you will learn to write flawlessly in no time. Just keep learning and keep practicing.

All students can practice writing with a live 1-on-1 tutor with TutorMandarin.

Sign up now for a free class!

About the author

Freddie Tubbs is a language researcher and tutor at Big Assignments. He also writes the Australian help blog for international students and works as a paper writer and editor at Oxessays.