Can Do Writing

A simple, ten-step system for mastering the art of effective, persuasive business or technical writing "e;The Grahams' system is the best way to transform data and ideas into meaningful information necessary to make profitable decisions. Their system works every time."e; Steven Laposa, PhD, MBA, Loveland Commercial Endowed Chair in Real Estate, Colorado State University "e;The Grahams' straightforward program helps my teams create clear and concise reports, letters, and other documents with minimal effort. I want this program to become the standard for my teams."e; Bill Walter, Senior Vice President, Government and Infrastructure Division, KBR "e;The Can Do Writing system made my career! I used it to write a winning business plan and proposal, and now I use it every day for all communications. Can Do Writing provides valuable insights into business and management as well as writing techniques."e; Christian Robey, President, DC Progress You may be an expert at what you do, but if you can't communicate effectively in writing it may not matter. For scientists, businesspeople, and professionals in fields from engineering to public relations, the art of writing well can be a vital key to professional success. Luckily, you don't need an English degree to produce top-class writing. If you're one of the millions of people who have to write clear, persuasive, understandable documents for your job, Can Do Writing is for you. Whether you're writing a business plan, a scientific paper, a press release, or anything else, this simple, straightforward guide will show you how to do it quickly, with style and confidence. You'll learn how to: Understand your audience and subject matter Develop a simple, five-part purpose statement to keep you on track Organize your main points into a coherent, sensible order Edit your work for clarity, coherence, organization, and logic Economize your words to craft a concise, powerful document Make your documents easily readable for any audience

A simple, ten-step system for mastering the art of effectivepersuasive business or technical writing"The Grahams' system is the best way to transform data and ideasinto meaningful information necessary to make profitable decisions.Their system works every time."Steven Laposa, PhD, MBA, Loveland Commercial Endowed Chairin Real Estate, Colorado State University"The Grahams' straightforward program helps my teams createclear and concise reports, letters, and other documents withminimal effort. I want this program to become the standard for myteams."Bill Walter, Senior Vice President, Government andInfrastructure Division, KBR"The Can Do Writing system made my career! I used it towrite a winning business plan and proposal, and now I use it everyday for all communications. Can Do Writing provides valuableinsights into business and management as well as writingtechniques."Christian Robey, President, DC ProgressYou may be an expert at what you do, but if you can'tcommunicate effectively in writing it may not matter. Forscientists, businesspeople, and professionals in fields fromengineering to public relations, the art of writing well can be avital key to professional success.Luckily, you don't need an English degree to produce top-classwriting. If you're one of the millions of people who have to writeclear, persuasive, understandable documents for your job, Can DoWriting is for you. Whether you're writing a business plan, ascientific paper, a press release, or anything else, this simplestraightforward guide will show you how to do it quickly, withstyle and confidence. You'll learn how to:* Understand your audience and subject matter* Develop a simple, five-part purpose statement to keep you ontrack* Organize your main points into a coherent, sensible order* Edit your work for clarity, coherence, organization, andlogic* Economize your words to craft a concise, powerful document* Make your documents easily readable for any audience

Preface xvAbout the Authors xxiIntroduction Can Do Writing 1Skillset: Analysis 9Step 1 Analyze Purpose and Audience 131.1 What Result Do You Want from the Document? 161.2 Who Is the Audience? 171.3 What Does the Audience Do with the Information? 191.4 What Information Does the Audience Need? 201.5 Does the Audience Know Little or Much About the Information? 221.6 Does the Audience Need Proof? 231.7 Plan How to Write to Multiple Audiences 24Step 2 Write Your Document's Five-Part Purpose Statement 272.1 Decide the Type of Document or Oral Communication to Use 302.2 Pick a Verb That Describes What the Document Does 322.3 Assemble the Five Parts into a Purpose Statement 332.4 Use the Purpose Statement to Settle Controversies 36Purpose Statements Make History 37Practice Steps 1 and 2 Using a Case Study 39Step 3 Select Facts 433.1 Use the Purpose Statement As You Select Facts 46Step 4 Organize Your Points in a Sentence Outline 494.1 Write Your Points Using Short Words in Short Sentences 534.2 Evaluate Points to Eliminate Irrelevancies and Redundancies 554.3 Order the Points 56Practice Steps 1 through 4 Using a Case Study 59Skillset: Composing the Draft 67Step 5 Compose the Draft 715.1 Compose the Draft Body 745.2 Compose the Draft Conclusion 755.3 Compose the Draft Introduction 765.4 If Necessary, Compose the Draft Executive Summary 825.5 If Necessary, Compose the Draft Abstract 83Skillset: Editing 85Step 6 Review the Draft for Organization and Logic 896.1 Test Organization by Answering Three Questions 926.2 Use Sentence Outlining Techniques to Improve Organization 936.3 Test Logic by Answering Five Questions 95Step 7 Edit for Coherence 997.1 Repeat Key Words throughout Your Document 1027.2 Ensure That Each Paragraph Begins with a Point 1057.3 Use Transition Words 1067.4 Use Vertical Lists for Series of Like Items 1087.5 Ensure Your Graphics Make a Point 1117.6 Apply Visual Devices 115Step 8 Edit for Clarity 1178.1 Use Concrete and Specific Words 1218.2 Use Active Voice 1238.3 Simplify Tense: Stay in Present Tense When Possible 1278.4 Avoid the Helping Verbs Would, Should, and Could 1328.5 Identify and Replace Ambiguous Pronouns 1338.6 Use Standard English Words 1368.7 Check Sentences for Misplaced or Dangling Modifiers 138Step 9 Edit for Economy 1439.1 Cut Useless Verbs 1479.2 Cut Useless Prepositions 1499.3 Cut Who, Which, and That 1529.4 Cut Useless Repetition 1539.5 Cut Redundancy 1549.6 Cut Useless Comments 1559.7 Cut Useless Modifiers 157Step 10 Edit for Readability 15910.1 Measure Readability Using the Gunning Fog Index 16210.2 Replace Long Words with Short Words 16410.3 Break Long Sentences 165Conclusion Congratulations! 167Index 171