What companies get wrong about case studies, white papers, and press releases – plus our top 10 tips to help your organization stand out from the pack The government contracting market is a competitive and dynamic space. Of the many organizations that seek to establish or expand their reach there,…
Want to Be a Better Writer?
Stop Using These Words.
“Familiarity breeds contempt.” ~ Aesop’s Fables Not one of Aesop’s nicer morals, I admit. Nevertheless, if you apply the lesson of “The Fox and the Lion” to overused words and phrases, your writing will be clearer and stronger as a result. I propose that we begin with the plague of…
How to Write Like a Pro: First Drafts
What is the difference between a novice writer and an experienced writer? It’s not the ideas, talent or creativity: an inexperienced writer can have a great idea just as a pro can. Writing is a skill, not an inherent attribute. In many ways, the difference can be boiled down to…
How to Write an Effective Summary
Writing is not one task with a specific, unchanging set of rules. Consequently, it’s often counterproductive to classify writing as “good” or “bad” because doing so necessitates an oversimplified view of what writing is. Instead of aspiring to the title of “Good Writer,” I propose that each of us should…
How to Outline – for people who hate to outline
It’s easy to love the early stages of writing in which you’re generating ideas. The only rule of brainstorming is that all ideas are acceptable: this means that you can feel legitimately productive while cranking out line after line of crackpot schemes and off-the-wall rants. If the “cluster,” “web,” or…
How to Have More Good Ideas
The idea-gathering, or “invention,” stage of the writing process is a magical state, full of imagination and inspiration. I haven’t met a writer yet who doesn’t relish the free-flowing ease that the term “invention stage” connotes. Invention is fun. This attitude may be partly to blame for the planning stage’s…