Archive: clarity
Dumping Cliches is a Win-Win for You and the Reader
On the TV news, a headline on the screen said, “Job growth grinds to a halt.” Why do so many things end by “grinding to a halt”? Or when they end suddenly, they always come to a “screeching halt.” In their impulse to be colorful, writers often reach for...Know What You Want to Say
A major flaw in writing is that the message is not focused on one idea. A writer has an abundance of information but does not consider what he or she wants to accomplish and does not ask important questions about the audience. High-quality writing takes time. When...Bring Writing Alive by Varying Your Sentences
Jobs sometimes become tedious and boring when every day is the same, and that is also true with reading. When the writing offers no variation in sentence length, the repetition is monotonous. The simplest of sentence structures is tolerable in a children’s story: This...Read Carefully Before Removing “That”
The word “that” is often unnecessary, but not always. Be sure you don’t cause readers to stumble. “Get rid of ‘that’; you don’t need it” is common advice, but as is often true with nuggets of wisdom about writing, it...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
Writing to Persuade: Where You Should Position Your Best Option
Positioning information can be an important factor when you are trying to persuade