"Styling" your writing

When working with words, it’s easy to get stumped on certain issues of style. I’m not talking about fashion sense but, rather, those fine points regarding spelling, usage, punctuation and other fundamentals that are an essential part of any well-written communication.

For example, how should you write Web site (or is it website)? Do you write out the word “percent” or use the symbol? Does e-mail really take a hyphen? After all, you’ve seen it both ways. There are dozens of such matters that writers routinely encounter. To help you sort them out, you need to consult a style manual.

Two references that are widely used are the AP Stylebook and the Chicago Manual of Style. Both are good and are worth the investment if you do even a moderate amount of writing. Be aware, though, that even the most respected style manuals sometimes differ, and that’s all right. The important thing is that you have some credible authority that you can cite for why you made a particular style decision in what you’ve written. Too many people guess, which can tarnish an otherwise fine piece of writing.

Before you buy a style manual, check around in your organization. It may already have a preferred style manual. You’ll want to be sure you buy that one. If no particular manual is preferred where you work, then buy either of the two listed here and you'll be covered.

Some larger companies and organizations have what’s known as a “house style,” which identifies the words and terms that it routinely uses and specifies how they should be used in their communications. If one of these exists, get a copy and use it in conjunction with your regular style manual.

Occasionally in this blog, I’ll address some of the more troublesome style issues. Let me start now. According to the AP Style manual, here are some pointers:

-- Web site, not website

-- Internet, not internet

-- e-mail, not email

-- Spell out the word “percent.” Don’t use the symbol. Also, if you’re specifying a percentage, use a figure: 3 percent, not three percent

-- Periods and commas always go inside quotations marks: “We’re revising our style manual,” the communications chief said.

How you say it counts

David Reich's outstanding blog "My 2 Cents" recently offered some helpful advice to aspiring business bloggers. I suggest taking a look at what Dave had to say.

The only thing I'd add to David's observations is that as the prospective author of a blog, you should learn how to write. That sounds obvious, but too many blogs fail not because of what the author has to say but how he or she says it.

The appearance and content of a blog are important, of course. But what good is the window dressing if readers can't grasp what the writer's trying to convey.

I'm not suggesting that if you can't write lyrical prose then you shouldn't be blogging. But at a minium, you should be able to string together words in a logical fashion that adheres to the general principles of sound writing.

Wondering what those are? Well, scroll through this blog, which tries to capture what I've learned in nearly 25 years of professional writing. It also includes much of what I try to teach in my university writing course.

If I had to recommend just one book on the craft of writing, it would be Strunk and White's "Elements of Style" (see my suggested reading list to the right). This slim volume speaks volumes about the fundamentals of solid writing. And best of all, you don't have to be a grammar expert to understand it.

As a writer, you are what you read

Many writing tasks, such as authoring e-mails, reports and memos, involve conveying thoughts, requests, instructions and similar information. Completing these assignments is a matter of gathering your material and then relaying it accurately and clearly.

Yet some writing jobs – speeches and newsletter articles, for example – require copy that not only communicates but does so with style, flair and maybe a sprinkling of humor, wit or deep thought tossed in.

But what if you don't consider yourself creative or intellectual? Don't believe it. Most people have a spark of both flickering inside; it's just a matter of stoking it to make it burn more brightly. There are a number of ways that can be accomplished, the first of which is believing you're more creative and capable of deeper thought than you know, and then spending time during the re-writing process to give your copy more punch and depth.

Another method doesn't involve writing, it involves reading. Good readers often make good writers for a number of reasons. Those who read broadly are exposed to a richer range of thought. The diversity of your reading material counts too. By reading others' ideas or opinions, for example, you can see something from a different vantage point. And if you approach reading as a writer – that is, you're searching for insight on how to write more effectively – you'll be exposed to a continuing source of knowledge and information.

There are many more ways in which reading benefits writing, but I think you get the picture. Books, newspapers, magazines, ads, the Sunday funnies. Absorb the written word in all of its forms. What you read doesn't matter as much as the fact that read widely and regularly.