Most writers of fiction do not earn enough money to live from their writing. Do you think the government should give them financial assistance to help encourage good literature? - You should
Sample Response
There are some conditions under which a novelist could reasonably qualify forcould reasonably expect some government supportsuport. In general terms, if the writer has already demonstrated strong writing abilityalready proved that he or she can write well, and if the stories produced are engaging and thought-provokingstimulating and interesting, then I consider that some financial help might be given. WritingLanguage quality is difficult to define, but if the writing shows, for example, good grammar, a wide vocabulary, and elegance and imagination, then I can see a valid reason for assisting an author to work without immediate financial pressurespend some time free from money problems. Such writingSuch a writing needs to be encouraged. Thethe entertainment value of a book would also bewould be also a factor in deciding whether to provide assistance to an author. Further considerationsconsideration would include the social and educational values expressedsocial and educational values expressed in the author's work. However, if the ideas were socially irresponsible, or if the stories containedcontain gratuitousunnecessary violence or pornography for its own sake, then I would not want to see the author to be sponsored to writethe author sponsored to write stories which do not benefit society. Other exceptions are the many writers of good books who do not require financial help. Books which have provedBooks which proved to be extremely popular, such as the Harry Potter stories, clearly need no subsidy at all because the authors have become rich through their writing. Views on what good quality writing means will vary widely, and so if any author is to be given money for writing, then the decision would have to be made by a committee or panel of judgesjudge. An individual opinion would certainly cause disagreement among the reading public.
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response presents a clear, nuanced position and develops sensible criteria for deciding which fiction writers merit support, using relevant exceptions to refine the argument. Its main weakness is the absence of paragraphing, while several awkward expressions and grammatical slips reduce polish. The highest-priority improvement is to organise the conditions, objections, and final recommendation into distinct paragraphs with clearer topic sentences.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
A clear conditional position is sustained and supported with relevant criteria and exceptions.
Strengthen the ending by explicitly restating whether government assistance should be offered and under what central conditions.
Coherence and Cohesion
The argument progresses logically, but presenting the whole response as one paragraph weakens its structural clarity.
Separate the eligibility criteria, objections, and decision-making proposal into focused paragraphs with clear topic sentences.
Lexical Resource
A broad and generally precise vocabulary supports nuanced discussion, despite several awkward collocations and one spelling error.
Use more natural phrasing in expressions such as “such writing” and “a panel of judges,” and proofread spelling carefully.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Varied complex structures convey the argument clearly, although agreement, article, word-form, and sentence-opening errors recur.
Proofread complex sentences for agreement and noun forms, and check capitalization after full stops.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Most writers of fiction do not earn enough money to live from their writing. Do you think the government should give them financial assistance to help encourage good literature? - You should
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.