Since most people who read your writing will never meet you in person, they will judge you soley on your written work. Sometimes I wonder if bad writers realize how they sound to the recipient. Many people don't know they need to separate their "friend-writing" with professional writing. They add emoticons, abbreviations, run-on sentences and forget punctuation. People take a writer's thoughts seriously if the writing sounds professional. Some things should be absent from professional writing, whether it be on a forum, press release, or email. For example, humor or teasing is something that can be taken differently than intended, and should be left out of all professional writing.

I've recently tried to employ all these criteria in my writing. My career in public relations involves a lot of writing, (press releases, blogging) all of which will be professional. Here are a few things I've learned on professional writing:

Professional writing is concise. It is correct, the facts are checked, and is clear so even the most clueless person knows what you're talking about.

Active voice will make anything have a positive ring. Instead of saying, "it's not sunny ouside," just say "it's overcast."

Proofread your papers. Nobody is a good enough writer to never look over what they wrote at least once. Even if it's just an email to a friend. If you read it over you'll catch questions you didn't answer, grammar mistakes, and missed punctuation. Also, read it aloud to catch awkward sentences and syntax.