Writing
Writing to complain effectively
Complaints that work are calm, specific and state exactly what would resolve the matter.
Writing
Clarity, editing, email and writing that gets read.
Writing
Writing that persuades
Argument on the page follows different rules from argument in conversation, and the main one is about what you concede.
Writing
Plain English
The case for plain language is practical rather than aesthetic, and the changes involved are a short list.
Writing
Writing for the ear
Scripts, speeches and audio need different sentences from anything meant to be read, and the differences are specific.
Writing
Editing someone else
Editing another person is a relationship as much as a craft, and most of the damage is done by editors improving prose that was fine.
Writing
Writing under a deadline
The blank page problem is a planning failure rather than a creative one, and it has practical solutions.
Writing
Finding your written voice
Voice is not a decoration applied to writing — it is what remains when the borrowed habits are removed.
Writing
Reports and documents people actually read
Most business documents are written in the order they were researched, which is the wrong order entirely.
Writing
Writing for a general audience
The curse of knowledge makes expert writing incomprehensible, and the cure is specific rather than a matter of trying harder.
Writing
Emails that get answered
Most unanswered emails failed at the subject line or asked for nothing specific.
Writing
Editing your own writing
The problem is that you know what you meant, which makes your own errors invisible.
Writing
Writing that people actually read
Most professional writing is skimmed at best, which changes what good writing means.