Writing is not a simple task. Converting your thought into words that fully communicate the meaning you actually want the reader to understand is absolutely the toughest task. Writing is referred to as an art, an art that needs proficiency and skills. It not only requires creative skills but also analytical and critical thinking skills. Among all types of writing, precis writing is very different and always confused with summaries, paraphrasing, and abstract.
A precis provides the summary of a passage in the smallest possible way and with minimum use of words. A precis is short but it must convey the full meaning and include every one of the significant points in a lot less complex and simpler way. The purpose of writing a precis is to present the reader with a summarized form of the passage. Precis-writing implies a brief and clear assertion of the significant issue of a more drawn-out section. According to experts of PhD dissertation writing services, precis-writing is characterized as a concise proclamation in a summary type of the fundamental thoughts in a more extended article.
Importance of Writing Precis Writing:
In the present era of fast time and technology, no one has the time to read long reports and essays. The ability to convey and present things shortly and concisely is a skill that is demanded everywhere. Precis makes the long paragraphs and essays in short summarized content that is easy to read in less time and contain the main and important points only.
Rules for Precis Writing
Although precis is in the shortest form, it is the most demanding task and depends on the efforts and skills of the writer. Having the strongest comprehension skills is necessary for precis writing. For writing the perfect and professional the following rules must be followed
- For writing the precis it is essential to understand the passage for which you are going to write the precis. It is important to understand what the passage is about and what it is the main theme of the passage and its context. What are the important points in the passage and some keywords?
- Precis does not mean copying words from the original passage. When you copied the words or sentences then it no more remains the precis. You actually have to change the passage in a way that looks different from the original passage but must convey the original meaning. It is rewriting the sentences in a way that makes them look different with the same meaning.
- One basic point that must be kept in mind is that precis writing must be clear. In order to make the length of precis shorter than the original paragraph, you must not exclude any important point. The order of the information and structure should be same as that of the original paragraph. A precis shows the comprehension skills of the writer so there should be the proper use of words, grammar, right spellings, and proper structure.
- Keeping things original is very important. Instead of using the same sentence structure or same words as of original passage, you must use some different styles to write precis. Use indirect speech to write precis. It presents the view from the third person’s perspective. Any statistical data, numbers, or facts use in the original paragraph must be used as it is without any change. Otherwise, your precis will lose credibility. Originality also means that instead of writing from the original writer’s perspective you must write from your perspective.
- The length of the precis should be one-third of the original passage.
- Remember the logical ordering is highly important when it comes to precise writing. The order of the information in precis must be similar to the order of the information in original paragraph.
Format of Precis Writing:
Like the essay, a precis also has a format. It has an introduction, thesis, body paragraphs, and a proper conclusion.
Writing the Precis:
- Carefully read the passage to have a clear understanding.
- Highlight the keywords and important sentences that convey the main theme or central idea of the passage.
- Cross the sentence that you think unnecessary to include in precis.
- Count the words of the passage so that your precis is one-third of the original paragraph.
- First write a draft in your words with all the important points in the same order as the original paragraph.
- Review your draft to check whether it covers all the important points of the paragraph and does not contain any sentence exactly matching with the original paragraph.