Archive: Effective Writing
Simplify Writing; Overly Complex Words Don’t Impress
In corporate writing, technical writing, or public relations writing, using overly complex words to sound impressive doesn’t work, according to a psychologist who asked readers what they thought. People can strengthen their professional image through their...
Stop Over-Capitalization in Your Writing
Avoid the widespread tendency to capitalize common nouns. Not everything has an official, formal name, but many writers think that if it’s something special, it should be upper case. Writers routinely uppercase names of committees, projects, departments, titles...
“They” as a Singular Pronoun: It’s Here to Stay
Grammar purists bristle when they hear the plural they used to refer to one person, but the usage is likely to stick, because it’s a convenient answer to a vexing writing problem. When you don’t know if someone is male or female, you need to find a...
Think Like a Writer AND an Editor
The writing craft requires that you think like both a writer and an editor because at the end of the drafting process, the two tasks are intertwined. Writing has three phases: drafting, revising, where you make changes and rewrite, and then editing. Many people think...Focusing Your Writing
Whether you are crafting a story, a blog post, or a substantive email, focusing your writing gives you a sense of where you are going. Many messages and articles have you scratching your head as you move into the third paragraph wondering, why is she writing? what is...By Ken O’Quinn
Focus on Them
Perfect Phrases for Business Letters (McGraw-Hill)
TD at Work — Business Writing for Managers
As a contributing author in this book on leadership, Ken offers insights and tips for managing difficult conversations, providing effective feedback, and being authentic. Order here.
Perfect Phrases for Business Letters (McGraw-Hill)
Provides the right words and phrases for any situation - quickly. The book was reprinted in Japanese because of high-volume sales there.
TD at Work — Business Writing for Managers
The Association for Talent Development invited Ken to write this 22-page booklet for the TD at Work series.
Current Blog Post
Persuasion: Make Your Expertise Known
If you are trying to persuade someone on a topic that you are knowledgeable about, convey your expertise up front. …