Do That After This – Terence Eden’s Blog
Good advice for documentation—always document steps in the order that they’ll be taken. Seems obvious, but it really matters at the sentence level.
John Spencer: “There’s no bullshit like design bullshit” - Design Week
If we use jargon, we reveal our insecurity. If we use pretentious language, we expose our arrogance. But if we use language that anyone can understand, people are much more likely to value what we do.
Related links
An editor’s guide to giving feedback – Start here
I was content-buddying with one of my colleagues yesterday so Bobbie’s experience resonates.
What it’s like working with an editor
This piece by Giles is a spot-on description of what I do in my role as content buddy at Clearleft. Especially this bit:
Your editor will explain why things need changing
As a writer, it’s really helpful to understand the why of each edit. It’s easier to re-write if you know precisely what the problem is. And often, it’s less bruising to the ego. It’s not that you’re a bad writer, but just that one particular thing could be expressed more simply, or more clearly, than your first effort.
Words To Avoid in Educational Writing | CSS-Tricks
This old article from Chris is evergreen. There’s been some recent discussion of calling these words “downplayers”, which I kind of like. Whatever they are, try not to use them in documentation.
Humanizing Your Documentation - Full Talk - Speaker Deck
The slides from Carolyn’s talk at Beyond Tellerrand. The presentation is ostensibly about writing documentation, but I think it’s packed with good advice for writing in general.
Related posts
Principles and the English language
Mashing up George Orwell with axioms of web architecture.
Content buddy
Moving words around.
Letters of exclusion
Use your words.
Words
When I hear the phrase “I reach for my revolver”, I reach for my red pen.