The Writing Edge for Business Writers: 10/6/17

Oct 6, 2017 | Better Writing

You’re a businessperson. You may not think of yourself as a writer, but you know that writing well can boost your results and your career. Naturally, you want to do better. Every week I point you to articles and blog posts that I think will teach you something or spark an idea or two. The posts are about the intertwined tasks of reading and writing. Some weeks there are more pointers than others.

This week I’m pointing you to pieces on a sensible reading program, adding emotional punch, and improving readability.

From Shane Parrish: Why You Shouldn’t Slog Through Books

“Our system for reading 25 pages a day has been adopted by many of our readers and members of the learning community to great success. A couple points have been misinterpreted, though, so we want to clear them up.”

From Carmine Gallo: 3 Ways to Give Your Presentation an Emotional Punch, Courtesy of Ken Burns

“If you want to make an impact in your profession and stand out from your competitors, tell more stories–and not just any story, but emotionally engaging ones. If you’re stuck on how to tell stories, look to Ken Burns for tips.”

Thanks to Smartbrief on Leadership for pointing me to this story

From Daphne Gray-Grant: How to improve your readability

“Do you use readability statistics to help improve your writing? If not, learn how to use them as quickly as possible! Here’s the reason why…”

Wally’s Comment: Use readability scores to improve your writing, but don’t stop there.

Sources I Check Regularly

I find the posts and articles that I share with you on The Writing Edge in many places. But there are a few that provide insightful pieces again and again. Here they are.

Alliance of Independent Authors

Frances Caballo

Jane Friedman

jeffbullas.com

Jerry Jenkins

Joel Friedlander

Joanna Penn

Melissa G. Wilson

Men with Pens

Merce Cardus

Problogger

Daphne Gray-Grant

Becky Robinson’s Weaving Influence