Workshop Outline

Fundamentals of Business Writing

2 Days – Course No. A-FBW

 

workshop overview

Recognize “good” writing and how it differs from writing that is difficult to understand. Produce reports, letters, memos, e-mail, faxes and short articles that are effective and clearly organized.

 

who should attend?

◦     Managers, supervisors, and administrative officers

◦     Technical personnel, program officers, and information officers

◦     Professionals who are expected to produce clearly written text—including e-mails

◦     Anyone wanting to learn how professional writers approach business writing, or seeking to refresh their writing skills

 

description

The Elements of “good writing”

◦     Four characteristics of “good” business writing

◦     How to analyze your writing samples to see if they meet these characteristics

 

Getting Started

◦     “Quick-fix” techniques to use every day on all your writing

◦     How to break out of writer’s block

◦     Four editing techniques that are easy to learn and will improve anybody’s writing

 

Now the Basics

Two questions that every writer must answer before beginning to write:

◦     What’s my purpose?

◦     Who is the target audience?

 

Mastering the greatest enemy of clear writing: inappropriate use of the passive voice

◦     What is the passive voice and what’s wrong with it?

◦     Why do writers use it so frequently?

◦     Learn to use it appropriately

 

Keeping to the point: harder than you think

◦     Eliminate unnecessary words and phrases

◦     “Gobbledygook and jargon”

◦      Artful punctuation techniques

 

The Final Touches

Learn to use formatting to catch reader interest:

◦     How to use subheads to guide your reader

◦     Using “pull-quotes” to emphasize points

◦     Dealing with background

◦     Developing templates

 

Develop and Apply Checklists

◦     Eliminate embarrassing errors by developing editing checklists that you automatically apply to each piece you send out

 

after the workshop, you will be able to:

◦     Increase your productivity by eliminating “writer's block” and other time-wasting barriers.

◦     Improve readability: in your own writing and other people’s, through editing techniques that most professional writers use

◦     update your grammar, punctuation and usage: many rules have changed, but this workshop will show you what's acceptable now—and why

 

other features

◦     You'll eliminate embarrassing errors by developing editing checklists that you automatically apply to each piece you send out.

◦     You will be exposed to writing examples that demonstrate the points under discussion.

 

◦     Group size is limited to 16

◦     Participants will receive a Nexient Certificate of Completion