CREATING FLOW
Most people know when a document flows and when it doesn’t, but when it comes to creating flow in their own documents, they’re often at a loss. This quick tip provides some easy to implement tips to help you make your documents flow.
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Solutions to Help You Plan, Write, and Revise Any Document
REDUCING WORDINESS
Wordy documents are the worst! Okay, not the worst, but right up there. The problem with wordiness (a common issue in professional documents) is that too many words obscure the message and can mislead the reader. This quick tip provides some easy to implement tips to help you decrease wordiness.
AVOIDING WORDY PHRASES
Are you guilty of using “in order to” rather than simply “to”? How about “perform an analysis” rather than simply “analyze”? If so, you may be using wordy phrases. The problem with wordy phrases (beside that they’re wordy)? Wordy phrases can be distracting and, let’s face it, aren’t what readers want to read. In this quick tip, you’ll learn ways to recognize and eliminate wordy phrases.
DEVELOPING EDITING AND PROOFREADING STRATEGIES
How much time do you spend editing and proofreading? Do you view them as non-essential and/or the same process? In this quick tip, learn some great strategies to make editing and proofreading work for you.
ANALYZING YOUR READERS
What do you really know about your readers and, perhaps more important, what’s important to know about your readers? Too often, readers don’t take the time to carefully analyze their readers, which is a crucial first step before writing any document. This quick tip provides strategies to help you identify the attributes of your reader that will help you write a targeted document.
USING THE APPROPRIATE ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY
Too often, writers use the same organizational strategy (typically chronological), regardless of document type. The reality is that there are lots of effective organizational strategies that can ensure readers understand the point quickly. In short, the type of organizational strategy a writer uses should depend on the reader, the document type, and the gist of the message. This quick tip talks about various organizational strategies.
DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES
Writing and problem-solving are inextricably linked, which is good news for most professionals! What many professionals don’t understand is how they should use their problem-solving skills to plan, write, and revise more effective documents. This quick tip discusses the role of problem-solving in writing and how you can use this skill to write more effectively.
THE HOW AND WHY OF WRITING AN OUTCOME STATEMENT
All documents must have a purpose but the question is, how long does it take your reader to figure out the purpose? If the answer is, “too long,” then writing an outcome statement can help you help the reader figure out the point much more quickly. In this quick tip, you’ll learn what an outcome statement is, why it’s important, and how to write one.
USING ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE
Active and passive voice can be confusing. What are both? When should I use them? Is active “better” than passive? In this quick tip, all (or many) of your questions about active and passive voice are answered.
USING PERSUASION IN WRITING
Many writers think their writing isn’t persuasive, but the reality is, they’re wrong? Whether you write emails, user manuals, or SOPs, readers are making decisions about you and your company based on the written document. In this quick tip, you’ll learn strategies to ensure you’re persuading your reader correctly.
WHAT DO READERS EXPECT FROM DOCUMENTS
Readers have certain expectations when they read a document. In this quick tip, you’ll learn what readers expect from documents and how to ensure that your documents meet readers’ expectations.
MEETING READER EXPECTATIONS FOR PARAGRAPHS
What should your paragraphs look like? We know that most readers are skimmers and, as such, paragraphs must meet readers’ needs. In this quick tip, learn strategies to write for skimmers and ensure that your paragraphs meet readers’ needs.
MEETING READER EXPECTATIONS FOR SENTENCES
Believe it or not, readers make decisions about the information you provide based on how sentences are constructed. If a sentence isn’t written so that it emphasizes the most important information, readers can come to the incorrect conclusion. This quick tip discusses how to construct sentences that emphasize (and de-emphasize) information to drive readers to the appropriate conclusion.
WHY PREWRITE
Prewriting may seem like an extra step in the writing process, but it can actually save you time. In this quick tip, learn strategies to prewrite and why you should prewrite.