Writer's Purpose

​Author's Purpose

By Janine Betancourt-Martinez

What is an author's purpose?

An author's purpose is the main reason for writing text.

3 Main Types of Purpose

• There are three main types of purpose:

  • Persuade: The writer will attempt to convince the reader.

  • Inform: The writer will state facts and conclusions.

  • Entertain: The writer will engage the readers' interests and emotions.

a

3 Main Types of Purpose

• There are three main types of purpose:

  • Persuade: The reader considers the author's perspective on a specific topic.

  • Inform: The reader receives factual information.

  • Entertain: The reader receives information for enjoyment.

a

Multiple Choice

Three purposes for writing text are -

• entertain, inform and persuade

• entertain, question and analyize

• dispute, encourage and inform

• fact, bias and opinion

Word Cloud

Provide 1 - 2 synonyms for the word persuade:

Word Cloud

Provide 1-2 synonyms for the word inform:

Word Cloud

Provide 1-2 synonyms for the word entertain:

Fill in the Blanks

Read the following scenario and determine if the writing is to persuade, inform, or entertain:

"A young entrepreneur writes ideas and a pitch for the show Shark Tank and hopes the panel will invest in his bow tie business."

Fill in the Blanks

Read the following scenario and determine if the writing is to persuade, inform, or entertain:

"A creative author writes a mystery novel about two sisters who didn't know about each other."

Fill in the Blanks

Read the following scenario and determine if the writing is to persuade, inform, or entertain:

"A gifted chef writes a cook book that contains recipes for making cakes, cookies and other desserts."

Multiple Choice

Read the paragraph from an article about Yellowstone wolves. 

'In 1991, Congress provided funds to the US Fish and Wildlife Service to prepare, in consultation with the National Park Service and the US Forest Service, an environmental impact statement (EIS) on restoration of wolves. In June 1994, after several years and a near-record number of public comments, the Secretary of the Interior signed the Record of Decision for the final EIS for reintroduction of gray wolves to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho' (National Park Service, 'Wolf Restoration Continued,' 2016).

What is the overall purpose of this article?

• to inform the reader about the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone

• to convince the reader reintroducing wolves would be a terrible idea

• to bring awareness to endangered species

• to entertain readers with a reimagined version of Little Red Riding Hood set in Yellowstone