The Business Writer's Companion

by Brusaw, Charles T.; Alred, Gerald J.; Oliu, Walter E.

• ISBN13: 9780312631321
• ISBN10: 0312631324
• Edition: 6th
• Format: Spiral Bound
• Copyright: 2010-12-22
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's

Summary

The Business Writer's Companionis an easy-access guide to the most common types of business writing and communication by a dedicated author team with decades of combined academic and professional experience. It places writing in a real-world context with hundreds of business writing topics and more than 60 sample documents. Always anticipating the needs of today's business writers, the sixth edition includes updated information on the technologies that are integral to workplace writing and offers tips about professionalism.

Author Biography

GERALD J. ALREDis professor of English at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he teaches courses in professional writing and directs the Graduate Certificate Program in International Technical Communication. He received the 2004 Jay R. Gould Award for Excellence in Teaching Technical Communication from the Society for Technical Communication.

 

CHARLES T. BRUSAW is a business-writing consultant for corporations worldwide. He worked for twenty years as a technical writer for the NCR Corporation and has also worked in advertising, public relations, and curriculum development.

 

WALTER E. OLIU until recently served as Chief of the Publishing Services Branch at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He is a communications consultant in the Washington, D.C. area and has taught at Miami University of Ohio, Slippery Rock State University, and Montgomery College.

 

All three are co-authors of The Business Writer's Handbook, Ninth Edition; the Handbook of Technical Writing, Ninth Edition; and Writing That Works, Tenth Edition.

Table of Contents

Five Steps to Successful Writing

 

Tab 1. The Writing Process

audience
collaborative writing
conclusions
context
defining terms
description
ethics in writing
global communication
introductions
organization
outlining
paragraphs
persuasion
point of view
preparation
process explanation
promotional writing
proofreading
purpose
readers
revision
scope
writing a draft

 

*Tab 2. Workplace Technology

*adapting to new technologies
*blogs/forums
e-mail

*FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
instant messaging
*repurposing
selecting the medium
*text messaging
Web design
writing for the Web

 

Tab 3. Research and Documentation

bibliographies
copyright
documenting sources
interviewing for information
note-taking
paraphrasing
plagiarism
quotations
research

 

Tab 4. Business Writing Documents and Elements

feasibility reports
investigative reports
progress and activity reports
proposals
reports
titles
trip reports
trouble reports

 

Tab 5. Formal Reports

abstracts
appendixes
executive summaries
formal reports
glossaries
tables of contents

Tab 6. Design and Visuals

drawings
flowcharts
global graphics
graphs
headings
layout and design
lists
organizational charts
tables
visuals

 

Tab 7. Correspondence

acknowledgments
adjustments
complaints
correspondence
covers (or transmittals)
inquiries and responses
international correspondence
letters
memos
refusals
sales letters

 

Tab 8. Job Search and Application

acceptance/refusals
application letters
interviewing for a job
job search
résumés

 

Tab 9. Presentations and Meetings

listening
meetings
minutes of meetings
presentations

 

Tab 10. Style and Clarity

abstract / concrete words
affectation
awkwardness
biased language
business writing style
buzzwords
clichés
coherence
compound words
conciseness
connotation / denotation
emphasis
euphemisms
expletives
figures of speech
garbled sentences
idioms
intensifiers
jargon
logic errors
nominalizations
parallel structure
positive writing
repetition
sentence variety
subordination
telegraphic style
tone
transition
unity
vague words
word choice
“you” viewpoint

 

Tab 11. Grammar

 

Tab 12. Punctuation and Mechanics

 

*Appendix: Usage
 
 Proofreaders Marks