Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Other Facets of Communication

APRIL 12, 2011, SAN ANTONIO, TX--- When writing, just as in life, there are non-verbal cues that render the most brilliant commentary ridiculous.  One example is posting something like: "Yore an igorant ijit" as an insult.  The insult itself is rendered moot by the poor grammar and spelling of the writer.  When writing, make sure that you don't exhibit those same flaws.  

Many people fear grammar.  They appear to be haunted by ghosts of teachers past.  Rather than running from grammar,  embrace it with tools that help to improve yours.  There are some marvelous resources on the web to get started with.  One of the best is the book below.

Common Errors in English Usage: The Book (2nd Edition, November, 2008
This book is the paper version of a remarkable website: wsu.edu/~brians/errors/errors.html
Every possible common error is on this site.

Because much of what we write about these days is accompanied by data, it is important to learn how to organize data.  Don't let your graphs confuse your prose.  The book below is an excellent reference on the use of data in ways that make its import immediately obvious.

The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, 2nd edition by Edward R. Tufte
Data has become a larger part of communication these days. Presenting numbers or other
information in an easy-to-grasp format is a skill that many writers lack.

Keeping Your Tools On Your Belt Isn't Just for Carpenters
In evaluating whether to buy a book or software version of a book, remember that writers may have to leave their cozy offices to get stories written.  Web access is not always a given for writers. If a story has to be covered in Timbuktu, a writer can waste time trying to find a web cafe or just write the story. Since history waits for no one, capturing the events and the reactions is more important than researching on the Internet. The same holds true of tools. If you rely on tools accessed online, they may not be available. If you have to choose, buy the books. Buy the desktop software later.  Then you're ready when the story is.

Creating A Verbal Symphony


MARCH 28, 2011; SAN ANTONIO, TX: Writing in an intriguing way that keeps the reader involved and interested is a skill. Unfortunately, far too many people writing on the web lack this skill. They produce the equivalent of verbal polyester: it is serviceable but not pretty or memorable. This blog is about how to write engaging and informative prose.
One thing that is often forgotten is that writing is about words. The more that you know and use, the better that your writing can be. Variety isn't just the spice of life. Variety is verbal flavoring. Varying word choice keeps readers intrigued. Word choice also adds to the melody of what you write when it is read. Think of words as the notes in a song.. Just as music entertains the ear with its varied notes, melody and repeated phrases, so can the right mixture of words create a feast for the mind and the ears. For those wanting to acquire verbal agility, here are some great tools.

The Visual Thesaurus http://www.visualthesaurus.com/
Not only can you look words up by their meaning, but by their proximity to other words. Even though their definitions can be a shade off, it is a remarkable tool. There are two versions: an online subscription and a desktop variant.

Word Menu  
There are two versions of this tool. One is a book that I like very much and the other is software that I have not used. The software comes from the same author as the book. If it has the same functionality as the book, then it would be very useful. Word Menu, the book,  organizes words by categories like industry.  This permits a user to become familiar with the vocabulary for a particular industry, science, or profession in one sitting. This is a wonderful tool for freelance writers. Not only can one be up to speed rapidly on specialized jargon, but Word Menu but relevant key issues for that industry as well.

Dictionaries
There are many varieties of dictionaries out there. The best way to choose is to find one that has as many words as possible and detailed word origins. Knowing the derivation of a word not only builds a foundation for learning foreign languages, but it helps with being able to infer meanings of unknown words as they arise in research.

Serif Versus Non-serif

APRIL 12, 2011, SAN ANTONIO, TX-- Should taste be the only dictate for font choice?  Are there other considerations in selecting what font to use when creating content on the web?  This is one of the most fundamental topics for a web designer, but the least discussed.  That is unfortunate.

Let's take the case of serif versus non-serif fonts.  Serif fonts are those that feature the little horizontal lines on the top and bottom of fonts.  The typeface that this entry is made in is an example of a serif font.  A non-serif font would be something like this:  this is a non-serif font. 

Many people like the lines of the non-serif fonts.  They believe that it is a more modern look.  The fact is that readability studies by organizations like Poynter (http://www.poynter.org/)  have revealed that most people find serif fonts easier to read.  Those little lines appear to make it easier to distinguish between the 20 some odd letters in our alphabet.  You might think about that when launching your publication.