Ranly on Writing: Three-Day Program

Day One

  1. Introductions
  2. The qualities of a writer
    1. The quality person
      1. Self-reliance
      2. Integrity
      3. Gumption
    2. The quality writer
      1. Those who care
        1. About people
        2. About their work
        3. About themselves
      2. Those who dare
        1. To be creative
        2. To be unique
        3. To be themselves
  3. Good communication is appropriate
    1. To the subject matter
      1. Know it
      2. Feel it
      3. Express it
    2. To the audience
      1. Who is reading?
        1. Getting attention
        2. Keeping attention – how much time?
        3. Getting action
      2. Who is understanding?
        1. Decline in literacy
        2. Reading level of audience
      3. Who is believing?
        1. Sophisticated
        2. Incredulous
    3. To the medium
      1. Speeches
      2. Radio
      3. Television, film
      4. Print
        1. Newspapers
        2. Magazines
        3. Newsletters
        4. Letters, memos
        5. Proposals
        6. Reports
        7. Annual reports
        8. Pamphlets, brochures
        9. News releases
  4. Aims of the communicator
    1. To get attention
    2. To be understood
    3. To be interesting
    4. To be believed
  5. Achieving credibility – the qualities of good writing
    1. Correct
      1. Facts
      2. Spelling
      3. Grammar
    2. Consistent
      1. Style
      2. Treatment
        1. Titles
        2. Women, men – sexism
      3. Approach
        1. Person
        2. Tense
        3. Voice
      4. Feeling, mode, tone
    3. Clear
      1. Content – focus, angle, purpose, point, peg
      2. Execution
        1. Simple Words
        2. Simple Sentences
        3. Simple Paragraphs
    4. Concise
      1. To be clear
      2. To save the reader time
      3. To save money
    5. Coherent
      1. Utility
      2. Coherence
      3. Emphasis

Day Two: How to be Credible and Creative

  1. Be complete – who, what, when, where, why and so what
    1. The inverted pyramid
      1. The news story
      2. The newsletter story
      3. The memo
      4. The letter
    2. The verted pyramid – the feature
  2. Be creative – concrete
    1. Beginning the story
      1. A person
      2. Settling the scene
      3. Using an anecdote
      4. Using dialogue
      5. Being chronological – narrative
      6. Using first person
    2. In the story itself
      1. Use nouns
      2. Use transitive verbs
      3. Use examples
      4. Make comparisons
      5. Appeal to the senses (SHOW ME!)

Day Three: Gathering and Presenting Information; Selling the Copy; Service Journalism

  1. Interviewing skills
    1. Before the interview
    2. During the interviewing
    3. After the interview
  2. Handling quotations
    1. The need for a policy
    2. The general rules
    3. The general exceptions
    4. With consent of the speaker
  3. Selling the copy: Writing titles, captions, blurbs
    1. Titles
      1. Correct
      2. Clear or concise and cryptic with blurb
      3. Clever
      4. Compatible
    2. Captions
      1. Complement
      2. Connect
    3. Blurbs
      1. Captivate (external)
      2. Coax (internal)
  4. Service Journalism
    1. Definition
      1. Useful – so-what journalism
      2. Usable – refrigerator journalism
      3. Used – action journalism
    2. Working Principles
      1. Save the reader time
      2. Involve the reader
      3. Think usefulness
      4. Think news or new
      5. Think money
    3. Devices and techniques of service journalism
      1. Lists
      2. Subheads
      3. Blurbs
      4. Sidebars and boxes
      5. Quizzes, games
      6. Charts
    4. Graphic journalism
  5. Good writers
    1. Those who care
    2. Those who dare