Writing is a way of communicating a message to a reader for a purpose.
The purpose of writing is to provide information for and persuade a reader. The major focus of informative writing is on the subject being discussed. Informative writing includes reports of observations, ideas, scientific data, facts, and statistics found in textbooks, encyclopedias, technical and business reports, nonfiction books, newspapers, and magazines. The major focus of persuasive writing is the reader whom the writer wants to influence. Persuasive writing seeks to change the reader's mind.