Archive: Effective Writing
Quotation Marks: for Unfamiliar Terms and for Common Terms in an Unusual Context
People are familiar with using quotation marks around a person’s actual spoken words, but that isn’t the only time we need them. And when people encounter those other situations, they often are uncertain. Here are a few guidelines on when quotation marks...Structure Sentences for Variety and Emphasis
We are familiar with the subject-verb-object sentence structure, but a series of consecutive sentences constructed that way is boring to read. Add a little variety to make the writing more lively and more emphatic. Part of what distinguishes good writing is that...Where Clear Writing Comes From: Words, Sentence Structure, Punctuation
Clarity is always the preeminent concern when writing, and the most important factors that determine a clear sentence are word choice, sentence structure, and punctuation. People often associate clarity with sentence length, but a 55-word sentence can be immediately...Interviewing Skills: a Key to Effective Writing
An essential component behind good writing is the ability to elicit informative answers from people you talk to. In corporate writing, as in journalism, good interviewing skills are critical because they help determine the quality of your content. We are not talking...Good Writing: More Difficult Than We Think, Requires Craftsmanship
People often assume they are at least average writers because, after all, they have been writing since childhood. So if everyone is proficient, why is there so much mediocrity and outright embarrassing writing in the workplace? Because people take it for granted and...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
Use a Dash for Emphasis, a Hyphen for Clarity
People often confuse dashes and hyphens. Dashes are used for three reasons, most commonly to mark off information that you …