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Language Barriers – Avoiding Jargon
Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008An article that appeared in in Eos, the magazine of the American Geophysical Union, asks the question, “How can climate scientists be more effective at communicating what they know, how they know it, and how they are sure of it?” The author, Susan Joy Hassol, points out that scientists are neither trained nor rewarded [...]
Accentuate the Positive
Sunday, August 31st, 2008There’s nothing like a political campaign to provide vivid examples of what works and doesn’t work in writing. Although some of the best speeches sound casual and conversational, you can bet that someone — whether it’s the candidate, a bevy of speechwriters, or a combination of these — perspired over each and every word [...]
Quotation Mark “Epidemic”
Thursday, August 21st, 2008A good friend of mine who knows what a writing geek I am alerted me to the delightful blogs The “Blog” of “Unnecessary” Quotation Marks and Apostrophe Abuse. With wit and humor, these blogs use photos of signs and printed materials that the bloggers and their readers have encountered in daily life [...]
Are good writers made or born?
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008A common lament I hear when working with people on their writing is “I’m just not a writer,” or “I’ve never been any good at writing.” For some, this belief came from someone telling them that they don’t write well, such as a teacher or a supervisor. Others simply assume they are “bad [...]
Grammar Blooper of the Week: Neither Are
Friday, August 15th, 2008If you have a keen editorial eye, you never have to look far to see bad grammar running wild in the streets. Here at Working Prose, we like to make note of the most instructive or amusing grammar errors we run across and share them with our readers. If you encounter a great [...]
Writing is Writing
Monday, August 11th, 2008Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia proclaimed yesterday “I do not believe that legal writing exists.” A curious statement, considering he was accepting a lifetime achievement award from the American Society of Legal Writers. Perhaps they should change their name. Seriously, though, I couldn’t agree more. Justice Scalia went on to say,
That is [...]
Got Style?
Tuesday, August 5th, 2008When I speak to law firms and businesses about their writing needs, many are surprised when I ask them if they have a style guide. While many people are under the impression that style guides are only for publishers and academics, in truth, anyone whose working life includes writing can benefit from using one. In [...]
Welcome to the Working Prose Blog.
Monday, July 7th, 2008Here at Working Prose, we’re excited to be adding our voice to the Blogosphere, which seems like a great way to share our mission of promoting excellence in professional writing. The purpose of this blog is to share information and tips about writing, promote discussion, and generally serve as a resource and a forum [...]