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Adaptive Writing Checklist for Preparatory Work Adaptation: What I must work out first before writing the

adaptation A. GENRE I Must Identify the genres of the source texts (refer to the list of genres on COLAC) Identify the stipulated genre of my adaptation (press release/magazine article/publicity material/promotional material/advertisement/brochure/pamphlet/leaflet/publicity email/blog) (Please note that another genre may be embedded in any one of these genres eg persuasive narrative within a publicity leaflet) Identify the differences and similarities between the genre of my adaptation and the genres of the source texts Identify the characteristic linguistic features of the genre for my adaptation (eg the characteristic features of a press release such as formal language/objective, factual writing) Select the generic features of the source text(s) which I can modify for my adaptation (eg the heading/subheadings/ name of writer for a newspaper/magazine article; the title/the name of the organisation/the date for a press release; modify the informal/chatty style of a business memo to the formal style of a business letter)

B. MY ADAPTATION (Preparatory work) I MUST Identify the purpose of my text Define the audience (be specific with regard to [if relevant]age/social class/ gender/nationality/ethnicity/occupation/social status/educational level/social relationship) Clarify the setting/context/culture Identify the level of formality of the language appropriate to the PACC of the text Identify the degree of solidarity/intimacy/familiarity between writer/reader, speaker/listener Identify the language features specific to the specified genre and mode (spoken, written or multimodal) Include essential material/ideas from the source text/s Modify, add, omit, retain linguistic features from the source texts and justify choices Keep the style consistent Maintain coherence

Linguistic Features which can be used in different ways (and be clear about the purpose/effect) Lexis and semantic field: technicality continuum (technical vs everyday lexis/simple vs difficult/complex lexis); formality/informality continuum(degree of formality as determined by the genre, the mode, the purpose of the writer/the speaker, the degree of familiarity between the reader/writer, speaker/listener); denotative (factual/objective) or connotative(metaphorical/ humorous) use of lexis Semantics: semantic shift, semantic broadening/narrowing, euphemisms, pejoration, amelioration, obsolescence Grammar: pronouns, verbs (modality, processes, transitive/intransitive), nouns (proper vs common, abstract vs concrete), adjectives, adverbials, determiners, conjunctions, articles, prepositions, honorific titles, vocatives, proper names, tense, voice Syntax: sentence types, mood choices, theme choices (marked/unmarked themes), premodification and postmodification in noun phrases (nominalisation), verb phrases, prepositional phrases, adjectival phrases, embedded clauses, cohesive devices Morphology loanwords, compounds, blends, neologisms, acronyms, initialisms, clipping, back formation Cohesive devices lexical repetition, anaphoric and cataphoric references, substitution, ellipsis, collocation Discourse: includes syntax, cohesion and coherence (applies to both written and spoken texts). For spoken texts only: turn-taking, adjacency pairs, topic management, overlaps, transition relevance places, insertion sequences Spoken texts only: non-fluency features (eg fillers, backchanneling, minimal responses, hedging, vague language) and phonology (eg stress, pauses, intonation, vowel length, monophthongs, diphthongs, consonant clusters)

Key Linguistic Features that often need to be modified for my adaptation Formal/informal style (informal style marked by speech-like features, colloquial lexis, slang, contractions, common lexis, simple/compound/minor sentences) Technical to common lexis, complex to simple lexis or vice versa Pronoun use Nominalisation vs verb phrases/verbs; pre-modified and post-modified noun phrases Modal verbs/modal adjuncts (could be nouns, adjectives, adverbs as well) Material/mental/saying/relational verbs Tense: present/past/future/progressive/perfect Adjectives Adverbials Conjunctions: subordinate (eg that, when, because, as a result of), co-ordinate (eg and, but, or, either) Sentence types: simple/compound/complex/complex-compound/minor Mood: imperative/declarative/interrogative/exclamative Theme choice: marked/unmarked 2

Morphology: neologism, blending, clipping, compounding, initialism, acronym, borrowing, prefixes/suffixes Cohesion: anaphora, lexical repetition, lexical chains, collocation (as in idioms eg business as usual and fixed expressions eg at the end of the day), hypernyms, hyponyms, synonyms, antonyms

Layout: Paragraph length: short/long Titles/Headings/subheadings/greeting/farewell/names/addresses/email address/weblinks Bulleted points

NB: All texts should be written in continuous prose except for bulleted points. You are not required to write in columns, mimicking the layout of newspaper/magazine articles.

NB: All written texts that are circulated publicly, especially if they reflect an organisation/company, will be written in formal Standard English. Some writers may use some features of spoken texts or an informal style sparingly. Informal style would be more typical of written texts that express personal opinions, written texts where the writer/the reader are on intimate terms. Features of informal style in written texts: contractions, slang, colloquial language, minor sentences (a sentence without a verb or a subject), ellipsis, vague language, fillers normally found in speech(eg ahem, ah).

Examples of minor sentences: Hello Drink? Your money or your life? So sorry. No news? One onion, chopped No entry Cancel Nice day. Go later Print abort

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