A web page devoted to news and views on WordTask training courses and on good writing practices in general. FEEDBACK | PREVIOUS ISSUE | HOME PAGE INDEX OF ARTICLES | LIST OF WEBNOTES ISSUES June 2000 IN THIS ISSUE-- NEWS BRIEF | COURSE NOTES | WORD PLAY | COURSE PROFILES TIPS 'N TECHNIQUES Check out our public sessions! Register now! Seating is limited. NEWS BRIEF Our new course on writing for the web now up and running While it's true that good writing transcends any medium, the growth of the Web has led to many examples of bad writing, poorly applied to this unique and ever-changing medium. WordTask's latest course, Writing Strategies for the Web, provides valuable tips for making your web-based writing coherent, usable, and effective. The newest addition to the WordTask curriculum assists web writers in mastering the unique characteristics of the medium. A web page is a specific kind of document, quite different from a paper page. For one thing, a single web page on a larger site is a curious hybrid--neither entirely autonomous, nor entirely integrated with the other pages of the site. Similarly, navigation of a web site requires specific design principles that accommodate the often non-linear reading patterns of website visitors. A "paper-bound" format simply does not address this reality. In this two-day workshop, participants examine and apply the principles of web-based writing in relation to the design characteristics that define the web. As well, the course provides some specific style guidelines that allow participants to insert effective text in the limited space provided by the "window" of screen display. [Course description] * * * New title for our Effective Writing for Technical Specialists One of our flagship courses has seen a name change. We hope that the new title, Writing Technical Information Effectively, will broaden the appeal of our most popular course to include writers of anything technical. With the growth in the popularity of this course, many customers have asked whether it is suitable for writers such as health professionals and economists--whose subject matter is indeed technical--but who are not "technical" specialists in the sense that engineers and scientists are. The answer is a resounding yes, and we feel the new title speaks to these writers of technical content. The course itself remains the same, subject to the same update track. COURSE NOTES The hidden benefit of our courses: Increased control and confidence For many, writing is tortuous. To some extent, this is learned behavior-- which, luckily, can be unlearned! The feedback from our post-course evaluations confirms that the WordTask writing process achieves more than increased document quality. We hear repeatedly that our course participants write with greater confidence and have more control over their material than they did before taking the course. In part, these improvements are the result of the process we teach in our courses, a systemic approach to writing that is more suitable for the workplace than the more traditional, literary approach most of us were taught in our formative schooling. This preferred method makes writing much more methodical, and less dependent on fleeting moments of inspiration. Another feature of our approach that increases confidence is our focus on standardizing the design of documents to make writing less a matter of subjective taste and more an issue of measurable effectiveness. As with other business processes, workplace writing can and should entail a degree of quality assurance, not merely taste and preference. For more information, refer to our feature article on this topic. WORD PLAY In this installment, number six in our series, we look at shop-worn, tired words and phrases that you would do well to erase from your writing vocabulary. For the other installments, please refer to previous issues of webNOTES. best-case scenario Can be easily replaced by any of the following, more precise adjectives, along with a more specific noun to replace the vague "scenario": desired, best, hoped-for, ideal, or preferred. the bottom line Which of the following might we really mean by this extremely vague cliché: conclusion, the end result, the key point, real issue, or the truth? touch base with Again, very trendy, but none too clear! Could be replaced with these verbs: call, contact, meet with, notify, or email. facilitate This use of this verb may be an outgrowth of the "polysyllabic" school of business writing. But it tends to make a sentence more abstract, not to mention more vague, than it needs to be. Use any of the following verbs instead: teach, instruct, assist, help, motivate, or encourage. With their focus on clear actions, these words are bound to be more precise. COURSE PROFILES THESE ARE ONLY THREE OF OUR MORE THAN 15 WRITING PROGRAMS TO CHOOSE FROM SUMMARIZING SKILLS (2 days) The essentials for condensing detailed source materials into readable prose. EXCELLENCE IN BUSINESS WRITING II (2 days) Specific organizational strategies for the advanced writer, who must persuade or motivate readers. THE WRITING PROCESS FOR SCIENTISTS (2 days) Ideal for scientists and researchers who compile data, observations, or findings in papers for academic publication or internal distribution. TIPS 'N TECHNIQUES A fast brainstorming and organizing method: "Clustering" Getting started on a writing project can sometimes be a challenge in itself. Clustering is a simple activity that you can use to brainstorm ideas and organize them quickly, a means of seeing logical relationships among them. Clustering is an organizing technique that often starts as doodling, but that usually leads to a quick brainstorming of your ideas. You'll be surprised how much control over your thoughts you will gain. Follow these steps: On a blank sheet of paper, brainstorm a list of ideas as quickly as you can, without worrying about their structure or sequence. On a separate sheet, place in a "bubble," like the red oval in the figure above, the key idea of your document--say, "Care and use of your dog!" Under this bubble, enter high-level topics in their own bubbles that help you group your ideas logically: feeding, behavior, and enjoyment. These would be the yellow ovals in the figure. Add individual points (the blue ovals) that branch off of these main ideas. Re-arrange your ideas and topic bubbles as necessary to perfect your instant document structure. Never fear to be understood. FEEDBACK | PREVIOUS ISSUE | TOP OF PAGE | HOME PAGE | INDEX OF ARTICLES | LIST OF WEBNOTES ISSUES © 2000 WordTask Information Strategies