Writing in Japanese
What this domain asks of you
You must produce original Japanese texts of roughly 300–400 characters for prescribed text types: メール, 手紙, 日記, ブログ, スピーチ, 作文, 記事, 感想文. Marks reward relevant content, coherent structure, appropriate register and accurate language.
Concepts to master
- Register control: です・ます for emails, letters and speeches; だ・である for reports and articles; plain form for diaries and blogs. Keep it consistent - mixing registers is the most common accuracy error.
- Structure: clear opening, body paragraphs organised by one idea each, and a conclusion stating your view or request. Use connectives (まず, 次に, また, しかし, したがって, 最後に).
- Text-type features: emails need 件名, 宛名, 本文, 結び (e.g. よろしくお願いします); letters need seasonal greeting and 敬具; speeches need an address (みなさん、こんにちは) and a call to action; articles need a headline.
- Accuracy: correct particle use (は/が, に/で, を), verb forms (て形, た形, ない形, potential, passive, causative), and 敬語 where the recipient is senior.
- Vocabulary range: use topic-specific terms from the other domains rather than repeating とても, いい, 思います.
Traps in questions
- Ignoring the prompt's audience and purpose - a letter to a principal cannot be casual.
- Writing far under the length; under-length responses cannot show range.
- Overusing 敬語 incorrectly (二重敬語 such as おっしゃられます).
- Forgetting the required text-type features (subject line, greeting, sign-off).
- Copying phrases from a stimulus passage instead of writing originally.
Worked example
Prompt: write an email to a host family thanking them and explaining a plan. Model skeleton: 件名「お礼とご相談」→ 宛名「田中様」→ 挨拶「お世話になっております。」→ body with 先日は…ありがとうございました。実は、来月…つもりです。もしよろしければ…ていただけませんか。→ close 「お返事をお待ちしております。よろしくお願いいたします。」 Rule of thumb: plan before writing - audience, register, three content points, closing - then check particles and verb endings.