I can't believe I was stuck at a 6.5 for three IELTS attempts! Every time, I thought I was improving, but the score just wouldn’t budge. I was frustrated.
What I realized is that I was focusing too much on using complex vocabulary and grammar. Instead of impressing the examiner, I was making my writing harder to follow. My breakthrough came when I worked on clarity and structure. I started organizing my essays better - one clear idea per paragraph.
I also used a formula: topic sentence first, then support it with an example. This made my points clearer and easier to read. And I cut down on unnecessary complex vocabulary, which actually helped me sound more natural.
Lastly, I stopped introducing new points in my conclusions. It sounds simple, but it seriously made a difference. After these changes, I finally got a 7 in writing, and it felt amazing!