How to Put Writing Skills on Resume: A Complete Guide With Examples

Why writing skills are essential on a resume

Accurately describing your writing skills is crucial to a solid job application. These abilities ensure clarity and professionalism for many workers, and for writing-centric jobs like copywriting, they show your ability to connect to an audience.

Hiring managers are always on the lookout for keen writing skills. Many job roles require this competency, including marketing, customer service, and management positions. Writing skills are also common on freelancer resumes for copywriters, content writers, and editors.

These skills allow you to communicate complex ideas in simple ways, tell a convincing story, and maintain comfortable fluency. While everyone can write a simple email, it takes real talent to craft cohesive content.

Writing skills convey excellent communication

While many roles specifically require writing ability, this competency isn’t just for novels, legal briefs, and blog posts. Writing skills imply that a candidate has excellent communication skills, which is relevant to nearly every role.

For example, sales professionals need to carefully write messages to leads and prospects that convey the value of their product, handle possible objections, and encourage action.

Key writing skills to put on resumes

Now, let’s learn how to say you have good writing skills on a resume. It isn’t as straightforward as simply listing “Writing” – it’s crucial to identify your expertise and use the correct terminology.

Here are the most common writing skills to list on resumes:

• Basic writing: These are fundamentals, including grammar, spelling, punctuation, and clarity.
• Editing: This involves checking written content for tone, brand style, and clarity and providing revisions. 
• Proofreading: This skill involves performing a quick but thorough line-by-line check for typos and errors.
• Technical writing: Conveying difficult concepts, including technical guides, legal briefs, and engineering reports.
• Creative writing: The ability to craft stories and novels, build worlds, design characters, and write compelling dialogue.
• Translation writing: This skill involves reading a document in one language and successfully translating its content into another.
• Journalism: This is the ability to research topics, interview related people, and convey real events in a captivating way. 
• Grant writing: This skill involves requesting finances and support from grantmakers, requiring charisma and tact.

Best resume sections for showcasing writing skills

You know how to craft a good sentence and proofread an article, but do you know how to write writing skills on resumes? There are many ways to do it beyond the usual Skills section – but let’s start there.

For the Skills section, use the right term for your particular ability and list it with your other strongest skills. Check the above section to find the right word for your skill, and don’t be afraid to list multiple capabilities – many writers have writing, editing, and proofreading skills.

Be sure to use industry terminology, too. If you’re applying to a content marketing agency, use the term SEO Copywriting instead of simply saying Writing.

Now, get creative and add your skills to other resume sections. Start with your resume summary. Add clever wording and measurable achievements to subtly display your writing skills without outright saying it. Here’s an example for an account manager’s resume:

Weave your writing skills into your Work Experience section next. Describe writing achievements and use measurable metrics in the bullet points underneath each work entry. Detail the impact of your work wherever possible so the hiring manager understands the tangible outcomes. Here’s an example for an editor’s resume:

It’s also a good idea to create a separate Awards section to showcase your certifications and online writing courses. Use a flexible resume template so you can add and remove sections as you please and create the perfect, personalized resume.

Tailoring your writing skills for specific roles

Learning how to say “good writing skills” on resumes varies from position to position. It’s vital to study job descriptions and tailor each resume to the specific open role. 

Pay attention to job titles, skills, qualifications, and responsibilities. Using the right terminology shows the recruiter that your skills are relevant to their position. It’s also a great way to build an ATS resume because these essential keywords tell the applicant tracking system (ATS) that your application is worth pursuing.

For example, a job description for a medical writer might use terms like policy documents, educational material, and drug knowledge. It might also use the job title Technical Medical Writer instead of just Medical Writer. Here’s a great way for a job candidate to use these terms:

This clearly describes your skills and uses vital keywords, but it’s subtle, natural, and doesn’t feel forced.

Enhancing and demonstrating your writing skills: Tips and tricks

To finish up, let’s take a look at some do’s and don’ts for describing your writing skills. These tips and tricks go beyond the basics and help polish your application to an impressive shine.

Here are our top tips:

• Edit and proofread each resume: Error-free resumes are always important, but they’re absolutely essential for writers and editors. Take the time to comb your resume for mistakes and run it through a grammar program. Finally, ask a friend to proofread it and check it for typos and inconsistencies.
• Quantify your achievements: Accomplishments have a greater effect when they contain measurable metrics. Adding numbers gives hiring managers something tangible and concrete so they can really understand your impact on a company.
• Use action verbs: Take advantage of powerful action verbs, placing them at the beginning of each bullet point in your work entries. Strengthen your language and make it easier to read by using words like “Compiled,” “Authored,” and “Produced.”
• Be consistent: Maintain consistent tone, grammar, and formatting for a polished look. Each section should be structured the same way and have the same spacing. It’s also important to use consistent terms – if you use “IT Specialist” once, don’t use “IT Technician” in another section.
• Avoid jargon: Hiring managers aren’t usually experts in your field, so avoid using complex industry jargon in your resume. Use approachable, accessible language that anyone can read and understand. Verify this by asking a friend or acquaintance who isn’t in your field to read your resume.
• Be specific: Avoid vague wording and specify your skills and achievements. Describe certain events and abilities rather than large, general statements.

The best way to build a resume is by reviewing realistic examples. Check out our resume samples for examples of these best practices in action.

“These skills allow you to communicate complex ideas in simple ways, tell a convincing story, and maintain comfortable fluency.”

Highlight your writing skills and stand out from the crowd

Hiring managers are always looking for talented writers – highlight your skills and make their day a little easier. Showcase your writing skills through carefully crafted work achievements, adding measurable metrics and targeted keywords. Don’t forget to add your writing abilities to an eye-catching resume summary that makes the recruiter excited to read the rest of your application.

Build an impressive job application with CVwizard’s resume maker. Customize your resume in any way you need – create new sections, arrange the structure with our drag-and-drop interface, and edit it for each new job opening. You’ll have a professional, attention-grabbing resume in minutes.