Dear Grandma Iris/Uncle Boris
Writing for the general public
Is it news? Give it the sniff test.
What’s happening?
Who cares?
What sells papers?
Stories about things people can relate to in their
own lives.
Stories about things that will change the world
in a very real way.
Stories about things that are just
downright cool.
Cute animals sell papers!
Building a news story,
from the top down
Warning: This is crash course. Hold on tight.
Putting pen to paper
The dirty little secret
about good writing:
It’s just like talking.
“When you
write, leave
out all the
parts readers
skip.”
Elmore Leonard
Never say this…
“To facilitate the navigability
of our website, we have
chosen to use this more
intuitive terminology.”
When you mean this…
“Simple language makes our
website easier to use.”
“Simplicity is the ultimate
sophistication.” Leonardo da Vinci
BUT
simplifying DOES NOT mean
dumbing down
Either/or
approximately
enumerate
methodology
numerous
objective
requirement
sufficient
utilize
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Vary the length of sentences and paragraphs.
Your ‘other’ best friend
“As it enters the ear,
does it come in like
broken glass or does it
come in like honey?”
- Eddie Condon
Wage War!
On OVer CapitaliZation and
on; unnecessary” punctuation...
“Think like a wise man
but communicate in
the language of the
people.”
William Butler Yeats
On, and on, and on …
“Created to foster a broad array of interdisciplinary
research, education and engagement activities aimed
at understanding critical issues of crime and justice,
and examining the criminal justice and Corrections
Systems in Canada and elsewhere in relation to the
offender populations, victims and public they are
intended to serve, the Centre will serve to showcase
existing campus expertise and provide a gateway to
information, knowledge and enquiry across the broad
domains of crime, justice and Corrections.”