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Writing For Change

Tcnicas para REDACCIN de TEXTOS
Fuente: [Link]

WRITING FOR CHANGE...................................................................................................................................... 1 TCNICAS PARA REDACCIN DE TEXTOS ......................................................................................................... 1 FUENTE: HTTP://[Link]/WFCENG/[Link] ................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................. 2 PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE WRITING .................................................................................................................. 2 CREATING A MESSAGE ..................................................................................................................................... 3 DEFINING YOUR PURPOSE .................................................................................................................................. 3 ANALYSING YOUR READERSHIP ......................................................................................................................... 7 WRITING A MESSAGE SENTENCE ....................................................................................................................... 9 CHECKING YOUR MESSAGE.............................................................................................................................. 11 ORGANISING YOUR IDEAS .............................................................................................................................. 16 CREATING A STRUCTURE ................................................................................................................................. 16 COLLECTING EVIDENCE .................................................................................................................................... 28 WRITING AN OUTLINE ........................................................................................................................................ 32 WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT ............................................................................................................................. 35 FUNCTIONS OF PROSE ...................................................................................................................................... 37 EXPLANATION TECHNIQUES ............................................................................................................................. 42 SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 48 NAVIGATION AIDS ............................................................................................................................................. 52 RESOURCE MATERIALS .................................................................................................................................... 53 USING GRAPHICS .............................................................................................................................................. 55 ELEMENTS OF LAYOUT...................................................................................................................................... 66 EFFECTIVE EDITING ........................................................................................................................................ 70 GENERAL PRINCIPLES ...................................................................................................................................... 70 CONSTRUCTING EFFECTIVE PARAGRAPHS ..................................................................................................... 70 IMPROVING YOUR SENTENCES ......................................................................................................................... 78 CHOOSING YOUR WORDS ................................................................................................................................. 85

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INTRODUCTION
Effective writing gets results. That's the most important idea in this manual. Many people assume that the main purpose of writing is to convey information. But effective writing does more than that. Behind the 'information' or 'facts', there is always something else that writers are trying to do. They are trying to: influence the way you see the world; get you to believe something is true; get you to do something, to make a decision; or follow a set of procedures.

That 'something else' is what we call an idea or message. The quality of your writing depends on the quality of your ideas. We judge ideas differently from the way we judge facts. We judge facts according to how accurate we find them. We judge ideas according to how meaningful we find them. Persuasion involves presenting an effective argument. It makes sense from the reader's point of view. But a good argument is not enough. It will convince only if supported by evidence - facts.

PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE WRITING

Effective writing is built on the following principles. Your document should have one governing idea. You should address a specific person or group. You should make your point, then support it. Support your governing idea with a limited number of other ideas, ordered logically. Make the document as easy to read as possible.

Effective writing: core skills shows you how it's done. Constructing an effective document is a process in four stages: Creating a message Organising your ideas Writing the first draft Editing for greater clarity

This module takes you through each stage in turn and helps you to produce a document that will get the results you want.

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CREATING A MESSAGE
Your document will be more persuasive if it has one governing idea. Let's call this governing idea the main message. You might give your message another name. You might, for example, call it a thesis, a proposal, a proposition or a summary. We like the word message because the word suggests a specific kind of idea. It's aimed at a specific person or group. It has a practical purpose.

The message is the most important idea in your document. Everything else in the document depends on it. The message dictates: the other ideas in the document; how you organise and express those ideas; the information you use to support them.

Creating a message involves four steps. What are they? Because the message is the most important idea in your work, you need to spend some time working out what it is and checking that it's appropriate: for you, for the reader and for your purpose. Creating your message involves four key steps: 1. Defining your purpose 2. Analysing your readership 3. Writing a message sentence 4. Checking your message Let's look at each step, in turn.

DEFINING YOUR PURPOSE

What do you want your document to do? This is a very different question from asking: What's the document about? At work, we write to get results. This means that thinking about the document's subject is unhelpful. You could, after all, write huge amounts of material about any subject. You can only narrow the options by identifying the document's purpose: what you want it to do. Distinguish carefully between: what you want to achieve; what you want the reader to do;

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what you want the document to do.

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Make your purpose as specific as you can. In this section, we'll look at some useful words to define different kinds of purpose. So defining your purpose is a matter of: identifying the change you want to achieve (your objective); identifying what you want the reader to do; clarifying what you want the document to do.

The end result of this analysis is a function statement. What is your objective? What do you want to achieve? What do you want to happen as a result of your reader reading this document? You probably don't want things to stay as they are. So what change are you looking for? It may help to write down a sentence beginning with the words I want.. or I want ... to happe or I want to achieve.. We've put some possible goals below. Obviously, the list is not complete. Use these ideas to trigger your own thoughts. What change do you want? Here are a few common goals that writers are seeking to achieve when writing a document. Use this list to trigger some ideas of your own.

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What do you want the reader to do? What do you want the reader to do to achieve the change you want?

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An effective document promotes action. It delivers the information readers need to take action. If you can define the action you want the readers to take, you will be better able to provide the ideas and information to help them take it. Remember that you are looking for the action that you want the readers to take - not the action that you are seeking to take. Write down a sentence beginning After reading this document, I want the readers to.. Why not write the sentence in the notebook? We provide some suggestions on the next page. Here's a list of possible actions. See if you can find one that is suitable for your document. Of course, you may be able to find an action statement that fits your needs better. After reading this document, I want the reader to:

What's the document's purpose? You've identified: what you want to achieve; the action you want the reader to take.

Now you can work out what you want the document to do. Be careful now to distinguish between what you have to do to achieve your aim and what you want the document to do. You may have to do a lot of research, thinking or analysing to create the information you need. Your document, though, cannot think. It can only display the shape of the information that results from that process.

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Once again, try writing this purpose down, this time as a sentence beginning: I want this document to .. Written documents can only do certain things. As we've seen already, they can't (for example) think, find out, research, analyse or achieve any organisational objective. Most of the documents we write at work do one of two things. They eitherexplain in some way or they advocate. In this list, we've categorised a number of other purpose verbs under these two broad ideas. This is not a complete list, of course. You may be able to find a verb that works better for your document. I want this document to..

Write a function statement Formalise your document's objective into a function statement. This puts your document's purpose and the reader action into one sentence so that you can make sure they fit together. Function statement I want this document to (purpose sentence) so that (reader action). Many documents fail because they don't do what the writer wants them to do. Writing a function statement will help you clarify your thinking. If you have been asked by someone else to write a document, you may find it helpful to discuss this function statement with them. It will help to make sure you are planning the document that they want and save you wasting your time writing something that they don't want.

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ANALYSING YOUR READERSHIP

At work, many documents circulate to wide audiences. Different readers will have different expectations, priorities and levels of knowledge. Planning the document will be easier if you have some sense of who your readers are and what they expect. In this section we look at the readership in some detail. We'll think about: three types of readers; managing the primary reader's expectations; key persuasive factors that will help to convince the primary reader.

Three types of readers Think about all the people who will or might see this document. Make a list of all the readers you can think of. How many are there? Do you know their names? It might be worth the effort to find out. What are their roles and responsibilities? Which readers will take the action you want to be taken? Your document will probably be wasted if the wrong person reads it. What do they need to know? What do they want to hear? There may be a conflict between the two. What do they already know? How much do they know? How do they best understand information? Age, position in the community, level of education or expertise - all affect the way that readers take in ideas. How well do they know you? Does the situation have a history? How can you influence the situation positively?

Now categorise your readers as primary, secondary and tertiary. Primary readers Your primary reader is the reader who must read the document. They will put it to immediate use. If you have more than one primary reader, they must be bound together by one purpose: the document's purpose. Who is your primary reader? How many primary readers do you have? Why are they all primary? What do you want them to do? What do they need to know in order to do it?

Secondary readers Secondary readers will not use the whole document but may need to use part of it or simply know that you've written it. Secondary readers can include:

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colleagues who may need to pick up the issue when you are absent; your manager, who may need to authorise the document before you send it; senior managers who need to know a summary of your ideas.

Tertiary readers Tertiary readers are readers that you can only guess about. They may be people you will never meet but who may use the document in some unforeseen way - perhaps in the future. Tertiary readers might include: senior managers; colleagues in other departments; the press; readers of an archive; members of the public.

You will need to satisfy all of these audiences. But you must design the document for the primary readership alone. Managing expectations Think about your primary readership and put yourself into their position. Asking some or all of these questions will help you write more directly and persuasively. Type of report: How does the reader like information delivered? Would a presentation be better than a document? Nature of outcome: Will the reader expect to be given a course of action, or options to consider? Subject limits: Overview or one part only? Global practice or internal activities? Departmental or organisation-wide? Level of detail: Summary or intimate detail? The same level of detail throughout? Previous related decisions: What have they done in the past about this or similar issues? What were the results? Key issues: Where do the reader's priorities lie? Politics: Who was responsible for creating what you propose to change? Who are the key decision-makers? Who will be affected by the change? What are the implications of your proposal? Wider strategic objectives: How do your ideas fit with the reader's broad objectives and goals?

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Key persuasive factors

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The key persuasive factors are the most important elements in convincing your reader. They may arise from the reader's: background; strategy, priorities or driving values; place in the organisation; relationship to the social environment.

What persuades you may not be persuasive to the reader. For example, you may consider a community project worth pursuing because you are committed to that community's development. Your reader may never have heard of this community and will judge the project according to other, quite different, criteria. You may need to spend some time researching your reader's current priorities or strategic concerns. The key here is to imagine yourself as the primary reader. Try to find out their current policy, strategy or urgent concerns. How would your idea fit? Here is a list of some common key persuasive factors. Use it to trigger some thoughts of your own: accuracy or weight of evidence; improved quality of service; alignment with organisation's strategy; reduced costs or increased return on investment; compatibility with existing systems or processes; innovation; increased participation of stakeholders; improved efficiency; timeliness; fairness and justice; reproducibility of results; increased user-friendliness.

WRITING A MESSAGE SENTENCE

An effective document delivers a single main message. The message is your document's governing idea. Everything else - the other ideas, the information to support them, how it is all ordered, how you present the material depends on that message. Your message isn't a title or an explanation of what you are doing in the document. It is the single most important point you need to make to express your purpose. In this section we'll look at how to create an effective message. This involves: Constructing the message Checking and improving the message

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Constructing the message

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Remember the function statement that your prepared earlier? Look at on the first part: I want this document to.. Now, think about your primary readership. Who are they? What do they expect? Which key persuasive factors do you think will most strongly influence them? Imagine this situation. You are holding a conversation with the primary readers. It is the start of the conversation and greetings have been exchanged. They have no idea what you are about to talk about. They're waiting for you to say something interesting. What would you say? Write down in a single sentence the most important point you want to make. Now, look at the sentence you have written. Is this what you would say to the primary readers, face-to-face? Would it make sense to them, on its own? Is it appropriate? Would they be interested?

Your message should be the kind of sentence that would grab the readers' attention and force them to keep listening. It should also summarise everything else you want to say. (It's best, therefore, for the message not to be a question, or for it to consist of question and answer.) If you were suddenly forced, at this point in the conversation, to stop talking, your sentence should have said the most important thing you needed to say to your primary readers. This is not as easy as you may think. Don't expect to create the right message immediately. You may need to try a few times before you write a message that is satisfactory. Checking and improving the message Here is a checklist to help you construct an effective message. Remember that a message, by definition, is a piece of information targeted at a specific person or group for a specific reason. An effective message: expresses your purpose; makes a single point; must be a sentence; should contain about 15-20 words; is focussed on action; is interesting to the reader; is written in familiar terms; provides new information; provokes a question in the reader's mind.

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Checking the message: an example

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Suppose you were writing a document for local farmers promoting a new arrangement for transporting their goods to a local trading centre. What message might you construct? Call up the notebook and try it. Then check your answer against those in the table on the next page. Here are some possibilities. Only one works properly.

CHECKING YOUR MESSAGE

Validating (checking) your message helps you to make sure that your message is appropriate: to you, to the reader and to the ideas that you are interested in putting across. You can validate the message by working out a story about how it came into being. This story may also be useful later as the core of an introduction - in a report, for example. The story follows four stages. We can remember this sequence using the acronym SPQR (which you may remember from history lessons as the motto of the Roman Republic...Senatus Populusque Romani - meaning the Senate and People of Rome). Situation Problem Question Response

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We'll look at each of these elements in turn. Situation Once upon a time..

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It's important that the story begins with a statement that the reader already knows. A child will immediately accept as true any statement beginning with the words 'Once upon a time...' Similarly, your reader should be able to read your situation statement and accept it as true. The situation statement should be: self-sufficient - no previous statement is necessary to make its meaning clear; uncontroversial - the reader can understand and agree with it, automatically.

Problem The problem arises within the situation. We can think of problems in two ways. Presented problems happen to the situation and make something go wrong. They are external factors or obstacles that prevent us achieving our objectives. The defining feature of a presented problem is a gap between what is and what should be. Constructed problems, by contrast, are problems we create within the situation. We might call them challenges, wishes, possibilities,opportunities or goals. The defining feature of a constructed problem is a gap between what is and what could be. You and your reader may not agree what the problem is. So it's worth taking a little time to consider just what problem your document is tackling. Presented problem Constructed problem Presented problems "What's gone wrong within the situation?" Perceived gap: what is/what should be? What happened to alter the situation? Perhaps: something has gone wrong; something could go wrong; a discrepancy has arisen between what you expect and what happened; circumstances have changed; you foresee a possible change in the situation.

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Presented problems: examples Machinery is repeatedly breaking down. A new industrial complex is causing pollution. There are delays in a political process. There are changes in funding structures.

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Constructed problems What do I want to achieve within the situation? Perceived gap: What is/what could be? What do you want to do to alter the situation? You can construct a problem most clearly by beginning with the words how to... For example, you might want to know how to: do something better; plan for what might happen; improve a process or system; review the options for action; understand everybody's point of view.

Constructed problems: examples How to: improve the quality of a region's infrastructure; increase access to a vital resource; establish an education service within a community; gain agreement to an equitable trading system for local farmers.

Question The problem triggers a question. That question may be in the reader's mind or in your own mind. The reader may have told you what question they want answered, or they may be asking you to identify what the key issue is that needs to be addressed. There is never a simple, direct connection between problem and question. Most problems provoke a number of possible questions, and you will have to choose which to answer. Look back at your function statement for help. On the next page are some typical questions that might arise from the problems we've mentioned earlier.

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Response The response or answer to the question should be the same as your message. Obviously, you can work out whether the message is appropriate by workingbackwards through the SPQR structure. Look at your message and ask: If this is the answer, what was the question? Now check that this is the question that you have been considering or the question that your reader has asked you to answer. If it's not, your message may be inappropriate.

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Similarly, you can look at the question and ask: What problem led to this question being asked?

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If the question seems to arise from a problem that is different from the problem you have been asked to tackle, something is wrong. Many documents at work fail because they tackle the wrong problem or answer the wrong question, wrong, that is, from the reader's point of view. The best way to validate your message may be to work through SPQR with your reader. SPQR: some examples

Checking your message: summary Working on SPQR is an immensely useful exercise. It can help you to: make sure your message is appropriate; write a useful document instead of a wasted one; construct an introduction or background section; hold a productive conversation with the document's readers to clarify what they want.

This technique is useful when writing reports and essential when working on a proposal. Indeed, the section outlining SPQR may be one of the largest in the proposal; it will certainly be one of the most important. Variants on SPQR Some writers develop the SPQR model using other words. The model is essentially the same. Look at fahamu's manual, Proposals that make a difference, for more information.

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ORGANISING YOUR IDEAS

The natural way we think is by creating structures. In order to understand any one piece of information in more detail, we need to: break it into pieces; see how those pieces fit together.

If you can perform those two operations on your message, you will create a structure that your reader's mind will find most natural to understand. That structure is made up of ideas. Because ideas can only be organised logically - and not in any other way - the structuring principle for your document must be logic of some kind. So your task is to break the message into pieces and present them in a logical sequence. This section takes you through the steps that will allow you to do just that. We can think of organising information as a process in three steps: creating a structure of ideas; collecting the evidence that will support those ideas; writing an outline that will show the key ideas and their relationships.

The beauty of this process is that the structure you create to display your ideas is always the same. And that structure is a pyramid. We'll explain what we mean by a pyramid shortly.

CREATING A STRUCTURE
Creating the structure of your document is done in two stages: First-stage thinking: generating ideas; Second-stage thinking: organising the ideas into a robust structure.

First-stage thinking is sometimes called 'divergent' or 'radiant' thinking. During this stage, we explore and gather anything and everything that we think we might be of interest or use.

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By contrast, second-stage thinking is sometimes called 'convergent' or 'focused' thinking. This organises the material we have collected to support one or another of our ideas. Every bit of evidence that we include must justify its existence; it can only do so in support of an idea.

We tend to be much better at second-stage thinking than at first-stage thinking. So much so that we often fail to see first-stage thinking as thinking at all. But we ignore first-stage thinking at our peril. No amount of excellent second-stage thinking can compensate for poor or inadequate ideas. You must spend time generating ideas before trying to assemble them into a structure. Two techniques can help you. Mindmaps are powerful devices in first-stage thinking to help you gather and initially sort ideas. Grouping and summarising is a second-stage technique that helps you construct the final pyramid of your ideas.

Once you have completed grouping and summarising your ideas, you should organise them logically and in a way that will make the task of writing easier. We will discuss how to manage the details. Mindmapping Mindmapping is a powerful first-stage thinking technique - and one of the few available to help us generate and record ideas. Mindmapping has been around for a long time, but the person who has done most to explain it and make it popular is Tony Buzan. You'll find more about him in the resource centre of this manual. Mindmapping exploits our minds' extraordinary ability to create meaningful connections between ideas. Mindmapping helps us to see - or make - connections in our thinking, increasing our creativity and making thinking more efficient. Creating a mindmap is easier than explaining it. To really grasp how to do it, you should have a piece of paper and a pencil and try it out as we explain.

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How to draw a mindmap

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Let's look at how to draw a mindmap. Although you can do this exercise on your own, it is really powerful when you do it in a group. The purpose is to use your main message to generate responses to the question that is provoked by the message ('why', 'how?', 'which ones?'). Take a large piece of blank paper. The paper should be in landscape format (long side horizontal). Write your main message in a 'balloon' at the centre of the paper.

In the example on the next page, our main message is: farmers can imporve feeding systems using traditional practices. However, to remind us what the main question this message provokes (how?), we have written it in the form of a question: "How ... "

Your task now is to generate answers to that question. Be creative, don't censor your ideas, don't judge them - at least not for the moment. Each time you think of a completely new answer, draw a branch line from the balloon, and write your answer along that line. In our case, the first suggestion made about ways of improving feeding systems was to address 'management practices'. On the next page you will see how we wrote this on our mindmap.

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As each new idea is thought of, we create new branches from the balloon ...

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You will find that some of the answers that you come up with are subsets of one one of the branch lines. In such cases, you draw "twigs" from the appropriate branch lines, labelling each as before.

You continue this process until you have written out all your ideas ...

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Now you have a go. It would be best to use your own example, based on the paper you are planning to write. Otherwise, you can use the following example. In a number of villages, there is a high incidence of fatal poisoning of infants from pesticides stored in the homes. You have decided to develop a campaign to reduce the risk of such incidents. Draw a mindmap to explore how you would tackle this problem. Begin by writing the main message in a circle as shown below. Now follow the steps we described earlier. One of the best ways to do this is in a group - you'll be amazed how this technique helps to generate new ideas.

Grouping the elements. Look at your mindmap. Can you identify the main elements that you created? These are the lines that connect with the circle in the middle. Ideally, you should have no more than six - that is, no more than six main branches coming out of the central circle. List the main elements on a new page. Now place them in some form of rank order and number them (1 to 6 - or however many headings you have) Now, try expressing each, if you can, in the form of actions.

The following worked example may help.

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Deriving headings from the mindmap: worked example

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Look at our mindmap about how to improve feeding systems using traditional practices. You will see five lines coming out of the central circle - they have words written on them in red. These are the five groups of elements on the map (listed in an arbitrary order): Management practices Seed supply Storage systems Propagation patterns Fodder species

Now let's put these in a logical order. You might put four into chronological order and the last as a wider area of concern. At the same time, we will express each one as an action. 1. Managing fodder species 2. Improving seed supply 3. Improving propagation patterns 4. Innovating new methods of storage 5. Developing management practices in the community Now you try it. Do the same thing with your mindmap. Remember, list the main elements in a logical order, and express each as an action. Types of logical order You can order ideas in terms of: rank (size, importance, priority, relevance); process steps; chronology; logical reasoning.

Sometimes the order of ideas is not critical. If you have four reasons for doing something, for example, they may be of equal importance. You could then put them in any order. Usually, though, there is something that governs their order. If you can identify that something, you will be able to justify the order. We will talk more about ordering ideas logically in the section on Writing a first draft, within Functions of prose.

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From headings to key points

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You've used the mindmap to create broad headings around your message. Now you must develop these headings into complete sentences. We'll call these key points. Write a single sentence that summarises each of the headings. This sentence is your first stab at a key point. You should produce only one key point sentence per heading. Write down your message sentence at the top. Now, consider: do all your key point sentences support the message? Are they in a logical order?

Let's do this with our worked example on feeding systems. From headings to key points: worked example We have transformed our numbered headings into key point sentences and inserted the main message at the top. Would you agree that the headings are logically ordered and each key point sentence supports the main message?

When you developed the mindmap, you were being creative and spontaneous. You jotted down ideas as you thought of them. You then pulled out of that material five or six main headings that emerged from the circle in the middle. What about all the other things you wrote down? What about all the branches and subbranches that you included in the mindmap? You should go back to your mindmap now and have a look at them. Because you were being spontaneous, not all the branches and subbranches will be relevant or important. Those that are not main ideas can be deleted. Now compare the mindmap with the key point sentences that you created. Are there any ideas on the mindmap that are not covered by the key point sentences? If there are, do you need to create a new heading and key point? Or can you rephrase your list of key points to embrace the missing elements? Make changes that are necessary now.

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Congratulations - you have completed your mindmap. Didn't hurt, did it?

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We are now going to change gear - away from divergent and into convergent thinking. Grouping and summarising We've used a mindmap to generate our key points. Now we'll assemble them in a different way, more rigorously. We are about to begin the process of convergent or focused secondstage thinking. You will remember that mindmapping is first-stage, divergent and creative thinking. Let's start with the message. We write this in a box at the head of a piece of paper.

Now imagine speaking this message to the reader. What question would it provoke in her/his mind? That's right, the message provokes the question 'How?' Now look at these three messages.

What questions would these two messages provoke from the reader? Message 1 provokes the question 'Why?' Message 2 provokes the question 'Which ones?' Message 3 provokes the question 'How?' A clear message can provoke a number of questions. In our example, the three most important of these are:

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The answers to each of these questions are called key points. You can, and usually do, have more than one answer (key point).

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Our next step is to group and summarise the key points in the form of a pyramid. Let's look at how that is done. Let's use our example again. This time we write the answers as key points, in boxes, below the message sentence.

You can see that this process creates a pyramid. Grouping and summarising creates a pyramid of the ideas. The group of key points is summarised by the message sentence. As you move down a layer, the idea is broken into a cluster of smaller ones, each one providing several answers to the question provoked by the key point above. Each answer itself may generate a further question, each of which will need one or more answers. This is the essence of focused, second stage thinking. The further down the pyramid you go, the more focused you are on detail. Basic rules of grouping and summarising There are three rules for creating key point sentences. 1. You must have at least two answers to the question. This is because you are trying to explain the message by breaking it into smaller ideas. Obviously, you can break one idea only into two or more smaller ones. (Once you have only one, then you have reached the end of the process.)

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2. You should aim to have, if possible, no more than six key points.

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This is because the mind can only hold a small number of ideas at once. That number seems to be no more than six. If you offer too many key points to support your message, the reader is likely to become confused or overwhelmed. 3. Your key points should all be sentences of the same kind. They should all be of the same kind because they are all answers to the single question that your message provokes. Why? - reasons, benefits, causes How? - procedures, process, steps Which ones? - items, categories, factors Grouping and summarising: another example Here is another example of creating a structure of ideas. This time, we'll take the process further, by creating an extra layer of ideas. In this case, we are writing a report justifying relocating the offices of a campaigning organisation to the capital city, Freetown. The message of our report is:

What question will this message provoke in the reader's mind? The message provokes the question 'Why?': Why should we move to Freetown? Because the message of our report provokes the question 'Why?', the key points (the answers) must be reasons, benefits or causes. The report we are writing is a proposal (we know that because the word 'should' is used, rather than 'must'). Therefore 'causes' are not relevant. Instead, we must persuade the reader by explaining the reasons for our choice and the benefits of this particular course of action. (Incidentally, all proposals must, by definition, have messages that provoke the question 'Why?' because all proposals seek to justify a course of action.) Let's look at how we construct a pyramid with a layer of key points. We construct the pyramid with a layer of key points, like this.

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Managing the detail Grouping and summarising lets you manage the detail in your document. You simply create more layers of ideas. For each key point, ask what question it provokes: 'Why?', 'How?' or 'Which ones?' Identify the answers to that question (between two and six), and write these as sub-points. So, in our example about moving to Freetown, we would develop the pyramid as shown in the next diagram.

When to stop? Grouping and summarising can stop at any stage after you have written the layer of key points that emerge from your message. You can stop grouping and summarising if:

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an idea does not provoke a question from the reader; an idea provokes a question that has only one answer.

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You should never have to create a pyramid of more than four levels: message key point sub-point minor point.

The diagram on the previous page is the most complicated pyramid you should ever need to produce.

COLLECTING EVIDENCE
Every lawyer knows that, to persuade effectively, you need sound evidence to support a convincing argument. To quote Rudolph Flesch, a key teacher in effective writing: 'You'll never convince anyone by logic alone.' You've worked out the pyramid of your ideas. Now you need the evidence to support them. Does it seem odd that we should think about collecting evidence afterworking out our ideas? Surely we must look at the evidence before coming to a conclusion. That seems to make sense. But, if you think about it, you cannot look for anyevidence unless you know what it might be evidence for. And the only thing that evidence can support is an idea. Of course, you might be looking at information because you have a hunch or a halfformed idea in your mind - or even out of sheer curiosity. Such intuitive research can be very valuable. Research, like any other types of thinking, can be thought of as having two stages: First-stage thinking: exploration, discovery; Second-stage thinking: collating, sifting, organising to support the idea.

In practice, research has a habit of being iterative. In looking purposefully for evidence, you may find something else that sends you exploring new regions of ideas you may not even have thought of before. They might contain even better evidence to support your ideas. And, of course, you might find evidence that will actually change the shape of your ideas.

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Altering an idea may affect its place in the pyramid or even the structure of the pyramid itself. Be prepared to change the structure of your ideas as you find more evidence. But be prepared also to limit the range of your research to those areas that directly relate to your argument. What evidence do you collect? How much do you need to find? Where do you look? How much should you include? How do you order it and present it? In this section we look at this important research activity. Collecting evidence can be time-consuming and stressful. A very little work can result in a mountain of facts and figures, particularly as information becomes so readily available. In this section, we'll consider: What evidence you need Where to look How to collate it How to organise it

What evidence do you need? Start with your key points. What facts and figures do you need to back them up? Look at it through the eyes of your primary readers. What key persuasive factors would they find most compelling? (For more on key persuasive factors, see Analysing your readership.) People are persuaded by strong, simple pieces of evidence. These may be: concrete examples; numbers; names; clear and convincing comparisons; precise specifications.

But people will also be persuaded by evidence that fits the paradigms that govern their own behaviour. Paradigms (or mindsets) are the deep values by which we live: they are the patterns through which we see reality. Paradigms reveal themselves in the statements we would make if we were asked what we believe or what we hold to be true. On the next page are a few examples of typical paradigms. What kind of evidence would persuade each of these people?

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Consider what your primary readers might say to reveal their own paradigms. Write this down in the notebook along with the type of evidence you think would convince them or which they would expect to see in any document you write. Remember: the information you need may not necessarily be available in reports or other publications. You may be required to do some original research - an experiment, test or survey - yourself in order to obtain that information. Where to look Information can come from a bewilderingly large number of sources. Perhaps the most efficient and effective way to begin is to talk to people. Find the authorities in the field, search out the 'gurus' and the founts of all knowledge. Conversations with them can get you further, faster than almost any other search method. Develop a network of contacts in key positions and cultivate them over time. As well as making personal enquiries, remember that you can find information in: libraries; information centres or offices; archives; websites; policy documents; agency publications.

As you collect information, sort it according to the source from which you obtained it. This simple procedure will help you save time, by going to one place with all the items you want to find.

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Collating evidence

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Mountains of information can grow alarmingly quickly. The most important aspect of collating your evidence is to establish a 'trail' so that you can find it again easily. Nothing is more frustrating than finding a key piece of information and then losing it because you cannot trace it to its source. Note the source of every piece of information you find useful. You might even consider creating a card index, with a card for each source. If you are searching an archive or large library, it helps to keep a record, however informal, of every book or periodical you look at - together with its library location number if necessary. This is helpful when you suddenly realise that something you rejected as irrelevant some days before can actually clinch the argument. Collate the information, perhaps in a loose-leaf ring-binder, in a coherent order. The best way is probably to arrange the material under the sections of your planned structure. Organising the evidence At this stage, your main purpose is to arrange the evidence in a way that will make it easier to refer to when you begin writing the first draft. There is probably nothing more frustrating than not being able to find the facts you are looking for and you know it must be somewhere in that huge pile on your desk. You have already created a strucuture for your ideas - you should have a pyramid that displays the layers of your ideas. You should also have a list of key points, sub points and minor points (see Managing the detail). Write each of these points on cards, one card for each point. Now arrange each of the evidence cards so that they are grouped together with the related key points, sub-points or minor points. Put these groups of card in a ring-folder or card box, with dividers between each of the key points. You should now have all your evidence organised in a way that you can find the relevant information with little effort. Think of ways of presenting the information in as visual a way as possible. In advertising terms, 'the eye buys'. Evoke an image in the reader's mind; bring your idea alive with the evidence. You might do this by using actual pictures, of course: photographs; diagrams; drawings; maps.

But the picture might not be a real one. Stories, examples from experience, quotations even metaphors or symbols in explanations - can provide evidence that will bring your ideas to life. For some readers, of course, numbers are the hardest of evidence. Measurable facts outweigh speculative opinion. If any point you are making requires you to use a word that suggests amount, look for the number that justifies the word.

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For example, you should be able to support any of these words with measurable evidence: several, numerous, extensive, excessively, insufficient, massive, enormous, big, long, small, tiny, undersized, minimal, significant, unacceptable, increase, considerable. The danger is that you may swamp your reader with statistics and measurements and breakdowns and forecasts - and the single decisive number gets lost in the detail. Think about the single measurement that supports your idea. Render large quantities of data into one number. Present that measurement or figure graphically (see Using graphics). Large quantities of detailed evidence are probably best removed from the main body of your document. Use appendices or even - if you must - footnotes.

You must work carefully with the outline structure that you created earlier. The evidence you are collecting is to support the ideas you generated for your outline. As you collect each piece of evidence, you should add notes to your outline so as to build your case.

WRITING AN OUTLINE
Writing an outline is the final stage of planning your report. The outline translates your pyramid structure into a blueprint that you can use to prepare your first draft. Constructing the outline forces you to clarify your thinking. By organising your ideas into a numbered format, you can check that every idea is in the right place and well expressed. The outline isn't a first draft. It won't include all the information or evidence you want to give, but only the principle ideas. It includes only your message, key points, sub-points and minor points. Principles of outlining At the top of a page, write your message sentence, headed Message. Follow this with a headed Introduction: SPQR, briefly stated. Then write each key point sentence, numbered, in order, with each sub-point and minor point numbered beneath each key point. Use a decimal numbering system for maximum clarity: 1. 1.1 1.1.1 and so on. Add a title for the whole outline. At this stage, other headings are unnecessary.

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Writing an outline: examples

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In the section on Creating a structure we took two examples of reports from the early stages of planning to pyramid form. On the next pages we show how those pyramids become outlines. Here is the first pyramid, just to remind you how it looked. We show you how it might be transformed into an outline on the next page.

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And here is the second pyramid that you've seen before. The outline produced from this is shown on the next page.

How to use the outline So what use is an outline? It has three main uses: to check that your plan is coherent; to help you produce your first draft; as 'work in progress' in conversation with your primary reader.

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It shows you clearly - on one page - what points you want to make, and how they fit together. You can use the outline to alter the structure of your ideas, without changing lots of text. You can show the outline to the primary reader as work in progress. This will help you to improve the document before writing the first draft. The outline will make writing your first draft easier. It can help you manage interruptions while writing, and pace yourself towards a deadline. You will be able to use the outline, if necessary, as a summary of the document. You might bind this in with the document itself - for a report, for example, the outline is the Summary - or you might circulate the outline as a separate document to those readers who don't want to see the whole document.

You might even find, sometimes, that your primary reader is satisfied with your outline and needs no further work from you. Increasing numbers of managers and clients ask for 'one side of paper': for these readers, an outline is ideal.
Checking the outline Once you have prepared your outline, you should use the following checklist to improve it as necessary. Is the message still appropriate to the primary reader? Does the message still express your purpose clearly? What question does the message provoke? Why? How? Which ones? Are your key points all answers to that question? What principle governs the order of the key points? ranking order (importance, size, priority), process steps, chronology, logical reasoning Can you justify ordering them in this way? What question does each key point provoke? Are all the subpoints grouped beneath it answers to that question? Can you justify their order?

Repeat these questions for your minor points. Is anything important missing? Is this the document you want to write?

WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT

Writing your first draft should be considerably easier once you have an outline to work from. Creating a first draft means expanding the outline by adding: text; headings; numbering;

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graphics.

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The sentences in the outline should give you a clear idea of what to say in each section. Think of writing the first draft as a separate activity from either planning or editing. Be guided by the following principles. Write quickly. Don't ponder over words. Keep going. Leave gaps if necessary. Aim for a natural flow. Write in your own voice. Expressing yourself in your own way will help you to say what you mean more exactly. If your reader can 'hear' your voice, reading will be easier. Write without interruption. Try to find a time and place where you can think and write without distractions. Write without editing. Don't try to get it right first time. Resist the temptation to edit as you go. You will tend to get stuck and waste time. Keep to the plan of your outline. Use the sentences from your outline to focus what you want to say. If you find yourself wandering from the point, stop and move on to the next sentence in the outline.

Let's look at more detailed aspects of producing your first draft. We suggest that you use these sections as you need to, rather than working through all of them in order.

Functions of prose
Description, explanation, advocacy and narration. Look in this section to explore how to write each type.

Explanation techniques
Writing often involves explanation of one kind or another. We explore six types of explanation and how you can use them.

Summary and introduction

Don't confuse these two important sections of a document.

Navigation aids
Headings, page and section numbering.

Resource materials
References, bibliographies, glossaries, appendices and more.

Using graphics
Bringing your information to life: using bullet points, tables, graphs and more.

Elements of layout
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Find out about choosing typefaces, spacing, highlighting and more.

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FUNCTIONS OF PROSE
Prose is any writing that is not organised into poetic form. This entire manual is about writing prose. Functional prose is prose that has a job to do. Many hundreds of years ago, the Greek philosopher Aristotle categorised the jobs that prose can do under four broad headings. Understanding these functions of prose helps us to write better: if we can identify what kind of writing we're doing at any point, we can do it better. So, what do you think prose can do? Make a list on your notebook of all the things you can think of that writing can do. What do you think prose can do? Here are some of the actions that you might have included in your list.

In fact, prose on its own can only do some of these. What prose cannot do For a start, there are certain things that prose cannot do. For example, prose can't think - you can, but your writing can't. So, in our list, these actions are actually impossible for prose to achieve.

Writing, by itself, cannot achieve any project or organisational objective. This is important: as objectives for you, the writer, these are of course quite legitimate. But don't confuse what you have to do with what you want your writing to do.

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The four functions of prose Prose can have one of four functions: Description Explanation Reasoning Narration

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If we take the list that we generated earlier, we can rearrange all the actions under one of these headings - and put to one side the actions that prose cannot carry out.

Using the four functions of prose What are the differences between these four kinds of writing? In this section, we'll find out. But first, a few important points. Generally, most of what we write is either explaining or reasoning. Try not to use narration too much. Most busy readers don't want stories. You should be able to identify a single overall function for any document. The best documents aim to do only one thing. You can use different functions of prose within the document. There are no real rules about how to do this. For example, you might decide that your report overall is intended to argue a case - to reason. And you might use various kinds of explanation in different sections of the report to support that reasoning. Those explanations might even, at some point, include a description of something.

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Description

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Description offers an account of something at rest: its appearance, natureand attributes. It will typically include dimensions, colour, weight, texture, materials and structure. The nature of any description depends on: the point of view of the reader; how detailed you want your description to be.

Examples Food lofts are made of bamboo or tree leaves. They are typically about five metres high and cylindrical. The storage platform is raised some three metres above the ground on poles constructed from tree branches. The new broad bean variety bears larger pods with a thick cover. There are a large number of pods per plant. Explanation Explanation makes something clear. It tells the reader how something works, how it fits into other parts of reality or what it is like. Explanation includes seven main techniques. Example Analogy Definition Categorisation Comparison Cause and effect Process analysis We look at these in more details under Explanation techniques. Reasoning Reasoning presents a case and seeks to persuade the reader. You will not be able to go far as a professional writer without having to use reasoning. Obviously, to be successful at advocacy or persuasion, you need to be able to reason well. But any scientific paper, too, presents a case; why else would you be writing up your findings? You can reason in two ways.

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Deductive reasoning Inductive reasoning

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Deductive reasoning Deductive reasoning is an argument in which you present two statements and then draw a conclusion from them. To reason deductively, you must do the following. Make a statement. Make a second statement that relates to the first - by commenting on either the subject of the first statement or on what you have said about that subject. State the implication of these two statements being true simultaneously.

When to use deductive reasoning Try to keep the elements of a deductive argument together within one paragraph. The main problem with deductive reasoning is that it can get too strung out if it is not dealt with in one or two paragraphs. If the statements become separated by lots of material, the reader may find it hard to remember the elements of your reasoning. Consequently, they may have difficulties in understanding your conclusion. The reader must always be able to hold a number of statements in their mind at the same time for deductive reasoning to work. Deductive reasoning does not, therefore, work well at the key point level of a document. Inductive reasoning Inductive reasoning brings together a number of things that are similar in some way and then comments on their similarity.

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To check the consistency of your inductive reasoning, ask what question the summarising statement provokes. It should be one of three. Why? How? Which ones? Inductive reasoning always creates a pyramid structure. It is therefore the kind of reasoning you use when constructing an outline. You can, of course, use it anywhere in your document.

Narration Narration tells a story. It may give an account of events in chronological order; but, of course, you could put the events of a story into any order - so that the story becomes more interesting or exciting. Many stories make their effect by disrupting chronological order: think of crime stories and mysteries. In general, narration is of limited use in reports and other professional documents. This is for two main reasons.

Stories are usually written for effect: to keep us in suspense, waiting to know what happened next. Most readers of professional writing don't want to be kept in suspense. They want to know what you have to say. They may then want to know what evidence you have for saying it. Telling stories usually offends the most important rule of professional writing: give the reader your message first. You should use story-telling only if it is your intent to create effect: be careful - this is great when it is done well, but can be risky otherwise.

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Narration and explanation Writers often confuse telling a story with two kinds of explanation: cause and effect; process analysis (or recipes).

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Obviously, both of these kinds of writing are very useful. But neither is narration. In both cases, the events in the writing must be in a certain order. Cause must precede effect, for example, and the events in a process must occur in a certain order if the process is to work. Imagine trying to install the software before switching the computer on or pumping water into an irrigation channel before opening a sluice gate. In a story, the writer orders events for effect: to entertain the reader, to keep us ignorant or in suspense, to surprise or shock. This is quite different from these two kinds of explanation. When to use narration On the whole, then, narration is of limited use - unless you want to write a best-selling novel. One section of a report or paper, however, usually does contain narration: the Introduction. This section tells the story of how the paper came to be written. (In contrast, the Methods and materials section of a scientific paper is strictly an explanation of the order in which something is carried out - process analysis.) SPQR is a narrative structure. Look back at the section Checking your message for more details. There may be a few other instances when you tell a story: a report of an incident that you don't understand, for example. By telling the story of what happened as you experienced it, you are doing the best you can to help an expert put the pieces together to create a credible explanation.

EXPLANATION TECHNIQUES
Page for page, you probably write more explanation than any other kind of writing. Instructions, examples, comparisons, accounts of how something caused something else - all are explanation. Even proposals will use explanation to support their advocacy at one point or another. Specifically, we can identify seven types of explanation. Example Analogy Definition Categorisation Comparison and contrast Cause and effect Process analysis

Let's look at each type.

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Example

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An example makes a general idea concrete by giving one or more specific instances. Foodstuffs include crop residue, cultivated fodder and natural fodder. One of the best known examples of methyl mercury poisoning was discovered in 1956 in communities near Minamata Bay, Japan. The Amazonian ecosystem is very complex. The foodchain, for example, is longer and more detailed than any found in more northerly river basins. Analogy An analogy is a specific kind of example: it explains something by comparing it to something else. You must be confident that the analogy will hold: that the parallel you are drawing is accurate. Consider: A computer without a floppy disk is like a car without an engine. This analogy fails because a floppy disk does not drive the computer. Can you find a better analogy here? Often, writers use analogy in a more compressed form: metaphor. An analogy (or simile) states that one thing is like another; a metaphor says that it is the other. Metaphor is one of the most powerful explanation techniques. By using an image from a different part of experience to explain an idea, a writer can bring the idea itself alive in the reader's mind. We use metaphors all the time; indeed, they are embedded in the very language we speak (embeddedis a metaphor). Often, writers use analogy in a more compressed form: metaphor. An analogy (or simile) states that one thing is like another; a metaphor says that it is the other. Metaphor is one of the most powerful explanation techniques. By using an image from a different part of experience to explain an idea, a writer can bring the idea itself alive in the reader's mind. We use metaphors all the time; indeed, they are embedded in the very language we speak (embeddedis a metaphor). Examples Here is an example of a successful analogy. Developing local awareness of dietary health issues is like setting out on a long journey. You need to start by taking a few simple steps. We can easily turn this into a metaphor. The long journey of making local people aware of dietary health issues starts with a few simple steps.

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We use metaphor so often that we may not even notice. In these examples, we've emphasized the metaphors. The database forms the foundation for future research in this area. Most institutions are suspended along various stages of the innovation curve. In developing resource centres, it is extremely important to understand where services fit on the value chain of information. Definition A definition identifies something uniquely: an object, a procedure, a term or a concept. There are three types of definition. A short definition explains by means of a synonymous word or phase, often in brackets or between commas. A sentence definition is made up of two sections: the class to which the object belongs; and the features which distinguish it from all other items in the class. A glossary is made up of sentence definitions. An extended definition can be as short as a paragraph or as long as a chapter. It may include a brief history of the term (the language it came from, its current use, how the use has changed). An extended definition should also include the object's function. Examples Olive dregs are the waste by-products of some 16,000 Moroccan 'maasra', which are small, traditional olive oil extraction mills. [Short definition] A telecentre is a community information service that includes telecommunications, multimedia computing functions, books and periodicals.[Sentence definition] 'Multipurpose' means that the premises, people and technology of a telecentre can and will be used for many functions. In metropolitan areas certain activities normally occur in separate institutions - for example, education in schools or universities, healthcare in hospitals, investments in financial institutions. 'Multipurpose' in the context of integrated rural development implies that all such activities take place under one roof. [Extended definition] Categorisation The human mind seems to have a natural talent for sorting information into categories. Categories are created by dividing information into parts. Every item under consideration should fit into one of your categories. If you have odd items left over, add other categories or rework your existing categories. Categories should not overlap. Items should fit into only one category. If you cannot decide where to put something, ask yourself if it can be eliminated as irrelevant, or whether it needs a category to itself.

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Give each category a clear name. Sub-categories will come under larger categories with more general names. Example Any piece of writing that breaks its materials into sections is using categorisation. An outline is a classic example. Here is a summary of another piece of work that uses categorising to structure the material. Rural education centres are typically developed in three phases. Phase one: Project scoping. The research team will usually use informal NGO networks to gather project ideas. Members of the team identify and interview local 'ideas champions'. They will also usually identify preferred project locations and undertake extensive fieldwork in these areas. A sub-group of the team will explore the whole grantfunding community for possible partners and contributors. Phase two: The proposal. The team draws up a draft proposal with national and local components. Local people begin to become aware of the potential of an education centre in their area as advocacy information circulates within the community. Phase three: Detailed planning phase. The grant-funding bodies that have showed an interest in the project make their initial commitment. Detailed technical, operational, service and evaluation plans are drawn up and a budget developed. Comparison and contrast Comparisons display the similarities between things; contrasts show the differences. You can use them separately, or together: comparison before contrast. Establish the criteria by which you are comparing and contrasting. Have as many as possible: cost, convenience, prestige, size, security, safety and so on. Rank the criteria in priority order. This might be a controversial exercise, but unless the criteria are weighted you will not be able to contrast them effectively. Examples Nutritional measurements showed that the fermented olive dregs contained more protein than the original product. There was essentially no difference in mercury exposure levels between villagers living 100km downstream of the gold-mining area and those residing 300km upstream. Some e-businesses are more suited to East Africa than others. Catalogue shopping, for example, might be impractical because of the costs involved in shipping goods from abroad. Electronic products such as newspapers, on the other hand, could easily reach the large market of East Africans living abroad. Cause and effect Cause and effect explains why something happened. The difficulty, of course, is in deciding which is cause and which is effect!

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A cause is so often the effect of another cause, which may be harder to determine or control. Look for the immediate cause; the underlying cause; and the ultimate cause. Cause and effect is a technique fraught with danger. Determine which type of cause you are searching for: immediate, underlying or ultimate. What is your purpose in identifying these causes? Be open-minded. Try not to rush to conclusions or to allocate blame 'politically'. Be as logical as you can. Eliminate coincidence. Take all factors into account. Is there more than one cause? Are there other effects that you have not considered? Trace all the links. Go as far back as necessary (or as is expedient) to the ultimate cause. One of the greatest problems of assessing cause and effect arises in scientific studies. There are many statistical tools used to explain the extent to which variations of one factor (a 'dependent variable') can be accounted for by variations in one or more other factors ('independent variables'). All that these statistical tools can do is give a measure of the degree ofassociation. For example, they may show that the rate of growth of a seedling is positively associated with the presence of particular minerals in the soil. While association may be demonstrated, this is not the same as cause and effect.

Consider whether a factor is sufficient to result in the effect, or whether it isonly necessary, but not sufficient. Certain minerals in the soil may be necessary to promote plant growth. But they may not be sufficient on their own to do so.
Examples Land deforestation causes rain to wash topsoil from the tops of the banks into the river. Does deforestation cause the topsoil to wash away, or onlyallow it to do so? Indigenous peoples are becoming increasingly aware of the legal instruments that affect their use and control of natural resources. As a result, they are making great efforts to participate in the development of these instruments. Powdered groundnut cake is an effective way to destroy leafhoppers and locusts. Farmers spread the cake on the field and the insects consume it. This makes the insects feel so thirsty that they drink huge amounts from the ponds nearby. The next morning the farmers see large numbers of insects on the ground that have drunk themselves to death. Process analysis A process analysis lists all the steps necessary to carry out an [Link] may take the form of a set of instructions (like a recipe), a quality procedure or a technical specification report. It proceeds step by step. The steps must occur in a particular order: if the order is wrong, the operation will fail. Process analysis usually tells the reader about a process or how to do it. Instructions tend to be far more detailed explanations. A formal process analysis should include four sections.

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1. Introduction 2. List of steps 3. Explanation of each step 4. Conclusion

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Because so many writers are now producing procedures, instructions and manuals, we'll examine this last explanation technique in some detail. Introduction Explain why the process analysis is being given. Include any definitions of terms that will be useful. Include a description of the equipment used. List of steps Provide a numbered list, running vertically down the page. The items in the list must be in correct order and include every step. Write the list in simple sentences: do not go into detail. Explanation of each step Explain in paragraphs how each step works and how you get from one to the next. You should have as many paragraphs as steps, with the transition from one paragraph to the next mirroring the transition from one procedural step to the next. Conclusion Show how this process relates to its context: to other procedures, to the overall strategy or scheme.

If you are explaining more than about ten steps, group the steps into a smaller number of larger steps. Aim for a maximum of six or seven steps. Consider whether you are explaining more than one process.
Examples Any recipe is an example of process order. A set of technical instructions is a more detailed example of the same thing.

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Here is a simpler, more discursive example. The Health Hub's webpage includes a facility for online consultations. Users can click on an icon asking for a consultation and are presented with a form designed to extract all the information necessary for a simple diagnosis. The user fills in the form and e-mails it to a doctor who then diagnoses the patient's likely condition and suggests a course of remedial action.

SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION

Many writers confuse these two parts of a document. In this section, we clarify the difference between them and help you to write each well. Put simply, we can distinguish the summary and the introduction like this. The summary of a document is a version of the whole document in miniature. An introduction is a part of the document that tells the story of how it came to be written. It may also include other elements.

Summary The summary is your document in miniature. It should be no longer than about 400 words maximum. It says everything that you want to say in the document, without including any detail. Obviously, your summary should contain only ideas that are also in the document. Any idea in the summary must also be in the document itself. The summary comes at the very start of a document. The usual page order is: Title page Summary Contents list Introduction

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Who reads the summary You usually produce a summary for readers who:

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don't want to read the whole paper; or want to decide whether to read more; or want to work out where to find some part of the paper that interests them.

A well produced summary is like a map or plan of the paper. The reader will use it to help them find their way round the document. The summary should be structured exactly as the paper itself is structured, and that structure should be easy to see. How to produce a summary Aim always to fit your summary onto one page. Highlight your message and key points. The reader must be able to see these sentences easily. Place the message at the top of the summary, as a one-sentence paragraph. You could make your key points clear by displaying them as bullet points or by placing each at the start of a short paragraph. Add a section on background. What does the reader need to know to understand how the document came to be written? Keep this section short. Concentrate on the SPQR story. Expand the key points into short paragraphs. You could use the subpoints and minor points from your outline to help you. What to exclude from your summary Your summary should not include any material beyond your message and your most important ideas. Remove: repetitions; lists; detailed evidence or statistical information; examples; graphics or pictures.

Cut down your language to the bare minimum: hunt out long-winded expressions, unnecessary words and convoluted sentences. Be aware, as you do this, that you may be creating a summary that fails to make sense by itself. Two shortcuts to summaries The outline that you wrote at the end of the planning process is a ready-made summary. You could simply insert your outline at the start of the document and rename it 'Summary'. The advantage of doing this is that you don't have to write a separate summary: you've already done the job. The outline also includes the section numbering of the document and these numbers are extremely useful in helping your readers to find their way easily about the document. If you want a less technical, or more discursive, summary, remove all the numbers from your outline and combine the key points into short paragraphs. You could even add a few extra sentences to make the summary flow a little better.

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Examples

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On the next couple of pages are examples of summaries written by shortcut. The first is a reminder of an outline that we worked on in the section called 'Writing an outline'. If you have produced an outline like this, and if your paper or report follows the structure of the outline exactly, you can simply insert this outline into the document as a summary. Place it immediately after the title page. Rename it 'Summary'. The second is a condensed version of the outline, written in paragraphs. You might consider this a more suitable format, particularly for a paper that is not very technical.

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Introduction An introduction explains everything that the reader needs to know to put the document into context. At its heart is SPQR: the story of how the document came into being. The introduction will emphasise: the problem that you are addressing; the question or questions that you are seeking to answer.

Because the 'response' element of SPQR is the same as your message, you restate your message at the end of this story. You might express it in slightly different terms from those you used in your summary. For more on SPQR, look again at the section headed Checking the message. What to include in the introduction Any introduction will tell the story of how the paper came to be written. Some introductions include more. Particularly for more technical or scientific papers, an introduction may include: objectives of the project or experiment; scope of the research (how far, how long, how deep has your study gone?); methodology; glossary of terms; key definitions; acknowledgements; short guide to the paper, section by section.

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Beware:

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If you are preparing a manuscript for publication in a scientific journal, there are slightly different rules about what you should include in the Introduction. We discuss this in more detail in the section on Writing for science. Should you put your main conclusions in the Introduction? Opinion is divided. Some recommend that the Introduction should include your principal conclusions (on the grounds that you shouldn't hold your reader in suspense). Others believe that only the Summary, and not the Introduction, should include conclusions. We discuss this in more detail in the Writing for Sciencesection.

NAVIGATION AIDS
Professional documents should contain navigation aids to help the reader find their way around. The most important of these are the Summary and Introduction. Others include: headings; titles; numbering systems.

The paper you are writing may not include all of these. Larger reports will certainly contain many of them. Headings Headings are prominent navigation aids and you should use them carefully. Individually, they can give the reader an immediate indication of what they will see in each section; together, they are a set of signposts that show what the whole document covers. Perhaps the most important rule in using headings is: don't overdo it. Use headings only if they will clarify your meaning, and the structure of your ideas. Too many headings may make reading difficult. A good heading has high scanning value. It conveys a lot in a very few words: vital when the reader is scanning the document at speed. A heading should be accurate, specific, attention-grabbing and concise. How to use headings well Your headings should reflect the structure of the ideas in your document. Don't put in headings simply to make a page look better. The key guidelines to effective headings are to: use a consistent hierarchy of headings; make a heading express the essence of a section's key idea; separate headings from the text they head; introduce sub-headings with the main idea that summarises them.

These are quite complicated ideas, so on the next few pages we'll explain them and give some examples.

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Consistent hierarchy of headings

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All headings at the same level should look the same. Most wordprocessing software now has a facility to help you use headings consistently. A set of headings, arranged by level, might look like this. MAIN HEADING 1. MAIN HEADING Sub-heading - or - 1.1 Sub-heading Minor heading 1.1.1 Minor heading Don't take your headings or numbering any further than this level of detail. Some documents do include section [Link] and may even include a very minor heading; government reports are particularly prone to doing so. The result, on the reader's part, is likely to be a nervous breakdown.

RESOURCE MATERIALS
Papers for academic or professional publication may include resource materials. This indicates the resources you have used in your own research. Your reader will want to see where your information comes from, whose work you've referred to, who has helped you and what you mean by special terms or abbreviations. The main elements of resource materials are: References Bibliography Glossary Acknowledgements Appendices

Each has its own conventions. References References are the source materials that you have referred to or quoted in your paper. Sources for this material might include: books; periodicals; published reports; in-house reports; websites; minutes of meetings; proceedings of conferences; theses, dissertations or other academic papers; personal communications.

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References: key principles

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Writing references is a tedious, time-consuming activity. The editor, publisher or examiner of your paper may have views on the construction of references that are fixed to the point of being rigid. Disregarding them may damage your health. References must be full enough for a reader to be able to locate the reference from the information you give. This means including: title - of an article, journal, or book; author name; publisher; date of publication - perhaps with a month as well as a year; page reference(s).

You should list the references either in the order in which you referred to them in the text - in which case you should number each reference consecutively - or list them alphabetically by author's surname. There are several different systems for citing references which are discussed in more detail in the Writing for science section.
Bibliography By common convention, a bibliography usually follows a list of references. A bibliography lists material that you have used but not referred to directly in your paper. You might also include material that you think your reader may find useful or interesting. You should separate these two categories into two lists. Sources for your bibliography will be similar to those for references. The main difference in laying out your bibliography is that you will arrange it alphabetically - and not, of course, numerically. Each item in the bibliography should be full enough to allow the reader to find it. The structure of the item will be exactly the same as for a reference without the number. Glossary A glossary is a list of explanations of words. Arrange it alphabetically by word explained. A glossary is a vital navigation aid to help readers understand your ideas more quickly, particularly if they lack your specialist knowledge or don't work in your organisation. Of course, a glossary is also useful for those readers who refuse to read the paper from the beginning. A glossary can appear at the end of the paper as an appendix, or - perhaps preferably in or near your introduction. You should also list acronyms and abbreviations in the same way as a glossary - and for the same reasons.

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Acknowledgements

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The acknowledgements section is where you thank those people or institutions who may have contributed to your work. This is not just politeness: it is important to declare your interests and the interest of those who have supported the work. If there are relatively few people whose help you want to acknowledge, you should list these in the order of importance, indicating briefly how each has helped. If you have a long list, then consider ordering them alphabetically, or group them by the type of assistance each has provided. Appendices Appendices are useful for including material that does not directly support the main ideas in your document. They are particularly valuable when your paper is aimed at a diverse audience. Some readers will want to see detailed facts and figures; others will not. Data that specialists or future decision-makers may want to use will probably find their way into appendices. How to use appendices well Use appendices for: detailed statistics; complex diagrams; charts and other graphic information; computer print-outs; extracts from magazines, newspapers or journals; glossaries and lists of acronyms or abbreviations (these might also appear in an introduction, before the main body of the document).

Appendices are usually given letters rather than numbers, to indicate that they are not a part of the main document. Appendix A; Appendix B .. You might even print them on differently coloured paper for easy reference. Remember to include any appendices in your contents list.

USING GRAPHICS
Graphics (often called 'figures' in reports) make technical information clearer by presenting it visually. Some simple guidelines will help you to make the most of the power to create graphics which computers now give to writers. Keep your graphics simple. They should illustrate only one idea - and the reader should be able to understand that idea immediately. Use very few words in graphics: title, labels, scales, numbers and essential information. Don't be tempted to add arrows or comments within the graphic.

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Place a graphic on the page where you refer to it. Make the point that you want the picture to illustrate; present the picture; add any discussion as appropriate. The most common graphics are: Bullet points Tables Graphs Pie charts Bar charts Flow charts

In this section, we'll look at how these powerful graphic devices can help you to explain complex information and support your key ideas. Bullet points Bullet points are fast becoming the most commonly used graphic in professional writing. In fact, writers now use them so much that they hardly think of them as graphic devices at all. But a bullet point list is a powerful visual device for presenting a list of elements. We should use them, therefore, with some care. Here are two general guidelines for effective bullet points. Use bullet points sparingly. The list may be one of the first things the reader looks at on a page. The list should therefore be of elements that you think are worth their attention. Too many lists on one page will destroy their effectiveness: the page merely looks like ink has been sprayed all over it. Keep the list short. Try not to include more than seven or eight items in any list.

Using bullet points well Here are some more detailed ideas for making your bullet point lists work well. All items in the list should be grammatically of the same kind. Make the points consistent with the 'platform': the text that introduces the list. Improve the 'platform' so that repeated elements in the list need be expressed only once.

On the next few pages we give some examples of these ideas. All items grammatically of the same kind The technical phrase for this is 'constructed in parallel'. The shape of each item in the list should be the same: a noun, a noun phrase, a clause, a sentence, or whatever works best for you. Here is an example where the items are not in parallel. Can you put it right? Briefly assess project management with reference to:

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Administration by the research team; Does the scientific management of a high quality? Well supported by the organisation.

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You could choose a number of ways to do this. We've decided on a set of noun phrases. Briefly assess project management with reference to: administration by the research team; quality of scientific management; technical support by the organisation.

Take a look at this list and try to reconstruct it so that all the items are constructed in the same way. The project addressed three key issues. Define the problem as perceived by local villagers. Documentation of traditional practices. We found it necessary to explore possible solutions to current problems.

Our solution in this case uses verb phrases. The project addressed three key issues: define the problem as perceived by local villagers; document traditional practices; explore possible solutions to current problems.

Points consistent with the platform The platform is the text that introduces the list. All the items in the list should be able to fit logically onto the end of the platform. In this example, some of the items do not logically flow on from the platform. To restrict your sugar intake, you should: Restrict the use of sugar in cooking; Don't add sugar at the table; No sugary foods to be bought

Can you reword the items in the list so that they could all fit onto the end of this platform? Once again, there is more than one way of skinning this particular cat. Here's our solution. To restrict your sugar intake, you should: limit the use of sugar in cooking; refrain from adding sugar at the table;

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avoid buying sugary foods.

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Every item is now a verb phrase. Improve the platform You can often simplify a list by placing repeated elements in the platform itself. The listed items are then easier to read. Look at this example. Follow this procedure for every patient who registers for an appointment. Check that the details on the medical certificate match those of the person's identity papers. Take care to see that the medical certificate has been completed correctly. Finally, ensure that the certificate is valid for the current time period.

Can you simplify this list by improving the platform? Again, you could solve this problem in a number of ways. The best solution is the one that puts most material into the platform, so that as little as possible needs be repeated. Here's our suggestion. When a patient registers for an appointment, you should check that: the details on the medical certificate match those of the person's identity papers; the medical certificate has been completed correctly; the certificate is valid for the current time period.

Tables Here are some basic rules about tables. Use tables to compare and categorise large amounts of information. Do not construct a table unless repetitive data must be presented. If you only need to present a few items of data, consider explaining them in the text rather than in a table. Limit the range of values shown in the table. If the values of variables do not change much, consider grouping the data into ranges. Tables have both left and right (horizontal) dimensions and upand- down (vertical) dimensions. Ideally, tables should read down a column, not across rows. However, much will depend on the purpose of the table. Words in a column should be lined up to the left (left justified). Numbers in a column should be right justified, or lined up along the decimal point. Break vertical lists by a line space every few lines. Use vertical space, rather than solid lines, to divide columns. Give each column a clear, crisp heading. These should be understandable without reference to the text or any footnotes to the table. Separate column headings, or totals, from the rest of the table using a thin horizontal line. Make your numbers compact by limiting the number of places after the decimal point to no more than two unless absolutely necessary. Ensure that the numbers

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given do not imply a greater degree of accuracy than can be justified by the units of measurement or context. Use a sans serif font - it makes the contents easier to read. Place the word Table followed by the number (e.g. Table 6) on the left above the table; below that provide the title of the table. Always place a horizontal line at the bottom of the table. If uncommon abbreviations are used in the table or headings, explain these below the line at the bottom of the table as a footnote. But use footnotes sparingly. If you include a table in your report, make sure your have referred to it in the narrative (text) of your report.

Comments on Table 5a Note how: Data for each region can be scanned by moving the eye down each column. Comparisons between regions have to be made by moving the eye horizontally across the row. Column headings are separated from data by a horizontal line. Grouped data separated by horizontal lines (spacing could have been used as an alternative). Columns are separated by a space rather than by vertical lines. Footnotes have been kept to a minimum. Unfortunately, the table presents mixed data types in each column. The result is that numbers are not aligned along the decimal point.

Here is the same data as in Table 5a, but presented differently.

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Comments on Table 5b Note how: comparisons between regions can be made for each variable by reading down the columns, although the table is less compact now; each column contains data that are of a similar kind, enabling alignment along the decimal point; use of vertical and horizontal lines makes the table appear crowded. variables of a similar nature are not grouped together as in the first example, making this table more difficult to interpret; footnotes are excessive: the full reference for the source belongs in the references not with the table; units of measurement should be included, if possible, with the column headings.

Graphs Use a graph to show how variables relate to each other. Here are some basic rules for preparing graphs. Avoid using graphs if the data you are presenting are sparse or monotonously repetitive. If there is only one line or curve, consider whether it would be better to describe it in words rather than as a graph. If the precise values are important, then use a table instead of a graph. Use graphs that illustrate your message in an interesting way. If it doesn't look interesting, don't use a graph. If there is more than one line on a graph, choose colours or marks on the lines that are easy to distinguish from each other. Make connecting lines clear and easy to distinguish from other lines on the graph. Legends that explain what each of the lines represent should be set well away from the data lines.

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Use a sans serif font for all text to make it easy to read. Don't extend the horizontal (x) or vertical (y) axes beyond what is necessary to include your data. If your data range in value from 0 to 46, consider having the axis between 0 and 50, but not more than that. Label both the x and y axes clearly and indicate the units. Mark the values of the axes clearly and choose appropriate intervals to help the reader interpret the data. Make sure you have labelled the graph (e.g. Figure 3). Provide a title for the graph. It's usually better to place it below the graph so that the text is distinct from the graph. Provide any explanatory notes below the graph - but keep these to a minimum. If you include a graph in your report, make sure your have referred to it in the narrative (text) of your report.

Example of graph Although a large amount of data is presented in this graph, the reader can quickly interpret the data. Imagine how difficult it would have been to draw the same conclusions if the information had been presented in a table.

Pie charts Use pie charts to show proportions. Avoid using pie charts unless it would be more tedious to describe the results in words. Limit the number of slices shown in the pie chart. Ideally, your chart should show no more than five slices.

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Ensure that the colour or pattern used for each slice is distinct from all other slices. Make sure each is clearly labelled. The difference in size between slices must be obvious. Seven degrees of arc or less will not be noticed. If the precise values are important, then use a table instead. Try starting the arrangement of slices at 'twelve o'clock' on the chart and arrange slices clockwise in descending order of size. Provide a legend for the pie chart so that the reader can easily grasp what each portion represents. Legends that explain what each of the slices are should be set well away from the chart. Use a sans serif font for all text to make it easy to read. Make sure you have labelled the chart (e.g. Figure 3). Provide a title for the chart. It's usually better to place it below the chart so that the text is distinct from it. Provide any explanatory notes below the chart - but keep these to a minimum.

Examples of pie charts This pie chart has so little information that in a written report it might have been better to have described the data in words instead

This pie chart has far too much information - note how some data is given an arc of less than seven degrees. The pie chart could have been improved by grouping some of the data to produce a smaller number of slices.

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Bar charts Use bar charts to show trends and variations. Histograms are a specialised form of bar chart. They are used to show frequency distributions of data. Try to limit the number of items you are comparing -- be gentle with your reader. Keep the scales consistent. Draw as accurately to scale as possible. Place the bars adjoining for continuous trends and apart for discontinuous ones. Consider whether the bars look better vertical or horizontal. A chart which is wider than it is tall probably gives the best overall effect. Avoid using bar charts if the data you are presenting are sparse or monotonously repetitive. If there is only one set of data, consider whether it would be better to describe it in words. If the precise values are important, then use a table instead. Use charts that illustrate your message in an interesting way. If it doesn't look interesting, don't use a chart. If there is more than one data set, choose colours or markings that are easy to distinguish from each other. Legends that explain what each of the lines are should be set well away from the data. Use a sans serif font for all text to make it easier to read. Don't extend the horizontal (x) or vertical (y) axes beyond what is necessary to include your data. If your data ranges in value from 0 to 46, consider having the axis between 0 and 50, but not more than that. Label both the x and y axes clearly and indicate the units. Mark the values of the axes clearly and choose appropriate intervals to help the reader interpret the data. Make sure you have labelled the chart (e.g. Figure 3). Provide a title for the chart. It's usually better to place it below the chart so that the text is distinct from it. Provide any explanatory notes below the chart - but keep these to a minimum.

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Avoid using three-dimensional graphs. They look pretty, but important information can get lost as in this example.

Flow charts Use flow charts to display processes or steps. The golden rule is: keep it simple. Give each box a clear simple heading. Make sure that it is legible (12pt or larger). Indicate flow with simple arrows and include any loops.

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Avoid providing too much detail. If there is a large amount of information, consider breaking up the flow chart into more than one chart - perhaps providing a simple overview chart to help guide the reader. For technical flow charts there are conventions about the shape and style of each box. Ovals are used to show inputs (materials, information, actions) to start the process. Ovals are also used to show the results at the end of a process (outputs). Boxes or rectangles are generally used to show action or task performed in the process. Adiamond shaped box is used to show where in the process a decision is required (e.g. yes or no).

Flow charts can be useful for illustrating concepts as well as procedures. This is an excellent example of the use of a flow chart for outlining a conceptual framework for analysis.

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ELEMENTS OF LAYOUT
Good writing needs good layout. Until recently, writers could do little to control the way their writing looked on the page. Now computers offer us a bewildering array of layout techniques. Used sparingly, they can add to the impact and quality of your document. Of course, your circumstances may limit your options in this area. Where you can choose, this section will help you. Good layout makes your writing easier to read and more inviting to the eye. The three key elements of good layout are: the font and the point size; space on the page; highlighting.

We'll look at all three here. Font and point size Your choice of typeface includes two main elements: design of font; point size.

These two variables work together. You should choose a typeface primarily for ease of reading.

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Design of font

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Fonts are broadly characterised as serif and sans serif. Serifs - the tiny strokes on the ends of the typed letters - make serif fonts generally more readable. Both styles of font can be italicised.

A serif font is probably best for printed text. The typeface gives more irregular patterns of light and dark on the page, making it easier on the eye. For larger text - especially headings - a sans serif font can work well. On a computer screen, a sans serif font is easier to read. We use it in this manual. Sans serif fonts generally look modern, cosmopolitan and user-friendly. You might consider mixing the two types of font: sans serif for headings, and serif for text. It is also better to use sans serif fonts in diagrams (e.g. bar charts, pie charts). Point size The size of the letters on the page is as important as their style. Letters are given a point size and, on most word-processing software, you can vary this size from about 8pt (extremely small) to 72pt (for notices or very prominent titles). As a general rule, a point size between 10 and 14 works well. Different fonts will vary in readability, even at the same point size, so your choice of point size will vary a little according to which font you choose. For general printed text, the modern convention is that 10 point is too small, 11 about optimum, and 12 point tending to be too large. Point sizes 13 and 14 are considered too large for printed body text. Much will depend on the font used. Times Roman is unpopular with readers, but curiously popular with writers! Space on the page Don't cram too much text onto the page. Nothing is more off-putting to read than a page covered in words. Space invites the reader to find their way around the page and helps to display the shape of your thinking. You can improve the way you use page space by considering how you use: Margins Justification (the way the edge of the text appears) Space within the text

Margins Be generous with your margins. Narrow margins suggest that you are more interested in saving paper than in making reading easier. If you are in any doubt, make your margins wider.

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On a standard A4 page, a line of about 60 characters - or roughly 12 words - is about right. Obviously, the size of your margin will also be affected by the font and point size that you choose. Remember that your document may be bound in a way that demands a wide left margin. If your reader is likely to make notes on what you've written, you could consider a scholar's margin. This is a very wide left margin, taking up about a third of the width of the page: perfect for adding comments or highlighting important ideas. Justification Justification means the way that the vertical edges of the text are designed. Generally, these edges can be either straight or ragged. The left-hand edge of text is almost always ranged left ('left-justified'). The right-hand edge can be justified or ragged. A justified edge uses space more economically and looks more 'official'. An non-justified right-hand edge makes reading easier, especially if the column of text is narrow. In the CDROM version of this manual we purposely used a justified right margin as a design feature that provides a consistent shape to the pages, and helps to make the page look tidy. If this had been a printed document, we would have used left-justification only (and used a serif font) to make it easier to read.

Space within the text Creating space within the text is as important as putting space around it. Put extra horizontal space between paragraphs. Try not to carry the last line of a paragraph over a page, so that the new page starts with an isolated line of text.

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Remember also that a paragraph break which occurs exactly on a page turn may not register with the reader. Make sure that your headings have more space above them than below them. You might even look at how much space you place between lines of text, and how far apart you place the individual letters of words. The golden rule is to make the text sit comfortably on the page: it should be neither too widely spaced nor too cramped. Highlighting Highlighting emphasises ideas so that they stand out. Highlight sparingly. If you emphasise too much, nothing will stand out at all. There are four main ways to emphasise text. Bold letters Italics Underlining CAPITALS

Bold text and italics Use bold text to emphasise definitions of words. Bold text works well for: headings; specialised terms; important details.

Use bold text for only a very few words at a time. You can also use bold text for emphasising definitions of words. Italics can be useful for distinguishing tone. They help you to vary the 'tone of voice' in your writing. Italics are also used for species names. If an italics font is not available, you can use underlining instead. Underlining Underlining is probably best avoided. Underlining looks increasingly old-fashioned as a means of emphasising text and can also make the words difficult to read - particularly those that use vertical strokes that sit below the line. Underlining is frequently used on screen to indicate a link. So if you underline for emphasis, you might confuse the reader. Using capital letters Capital letters simply look aggressive. They also make the text less easy to read. Capital letters within text frequently gives the reader the impression that YOU ARE SHOUTING at them. Capital letters can be used with effect in titles. But avoid using capitals within text.

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EFFECTIVE EDITING
The aim of editing is to make your first draft easier to read. The words on the page should never get in the way of your meaning. The reader should never have to stop at any point and wonder what you are saying. Language is like a window through which your reader can see what you mean. Editing is like polishing the window. It usually means taking away the words that you don't need. You should be aiming to make your language transparently clear.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES
Good editing means making wise choices. What words should you use? What order do you put them in? There is never a single correct answer. Before we look at editing in detail, here are some general principles. Take a break before you start editing. Set your first draft aside and do something else before editing it. This will allow you to look at what you've written more objectively - as if you hadn't written it. Ask for a second opinion. Give your work to a colleague or friend whose opinion you respect. It's important that you retain the final editing choice. Edit on paper, not on screen. You can look at text on paper more objectively. Edit for clarity. That means using plain English. Edit systematically. The most efficient approach is to edit the text on three levels: paragraphs, sentences and words Trying to improve your work word by word is time-consuming and tedious.

Editing systematically The approach to editing that we propose here is systematic. Edit on three levels. Construct effective paragraphs. Improve long and complicated sentences. Choose words carefully.

In this way, you edit the largest units of meaning in your text first. Problems at the sentence and word level will tend to disappear as you edit paragraphs; other problems at the word level will fall away as you edit sentences. Editing systematically means that you get maximum benefit for minimum effort.

CONSTRUCTING EFFECTIVE PARAGRAPHS

Paragraphs display the shape of your thinking. A paragraph highlights a key idea that you want to convey and groups sentences together to support it. Use a new paragraph for each new idea. Every time you take a step, say something new or change direction, you should start a new paragraph. You can edit paragraphs in a number of ways.

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Using topic sentences Managing paragraph length Linking paragraphs together Using key words Laying out the paragraph Using bullet point lists

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Using topic sentences A topic sentence summarises a paragraph. It expresses the paragraph's governing idea. It should: be the first sentence in the paragraph; make a single point; contain no more than about 15 words; say something new; connect logically to the topic sentences before and after it.

Using a topic sentence helps you to decide what material to put in the paragraph. Only ideas that support the topic sentence have a place there. Your outline - if you've written one - is a ready source of topic sentences. Work hard at this technique. Nothing will do more to improve the quality of your writing. Examples The paragraph below is in urgent need of a topic sentence. Its first sentence attempts to express the paragraph's main idea, but the writer has tried to say everything in one sentence, rather than summarise the material into a concise idea. Some innovative initiatives have emerged in the health sector in African countries over the last five years that attempt to overcome the problems associated with the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and to develop projects that will use ICTs in a way that would allow them to more effectively deliver health care on the continent. Some of these initiatives are partnered with organisations outside the continent while others are based, controlled, and driven from within. (Most are funded by foreign foundations and aid agencies, however.) Read this paragraph and construct a topic sentence that summarises it. Place the sentence at the start of the paragraph and reconstruct the rest of the paragraph. There is no single correct answer. We suggest a solution on the next page. Here is our attempt at a topic sentence for this paragraph. Initiatives in Africa have sought to develop information and communication technologies in health care. Now we can rewrite the rest of the paragraph. Note how, on the next page, we have used longer sentences within the paragraph to expand on the single point expressed in the topic sentence. We have tidied up the language at the end of the paragraph and removed unnecessary brackets. Here's the original paragraph and the revised version below:

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Managing paragraph length Working on topic sentences should bring your paragraphs under control very quickly. But there is no iron rule about how long any paragraph should be. Shorter paragraphs are generally easier to understand than longer ones; a sequence of very short paragraphs, however, can make your ideas look messy and incoherent. Here are some more general guidelines about paragraph length. Have at least three paragraphs on any one page. Vary the length of paragraphs on each page as much as you can. Aim to include between three and six sentences in most paragraphs. Use a short paragraph to open and summarise a section. For maximum impact, you can use a paragraph that contains only one sentence. Don't overuse this technique. Using lots of such paragraphs can look messy.

Linking paragraphs together Your paragraphs should make sense in order. There are two ways to ensure that they do. Read the topic sentences of paragraphs in order. They should follow one another logically. Use link words or phrases to show the connections between paragraphs. These transitions, as they are often called, may be single words, phrases or even the whole topic sentence. Make the links between your paragraphs explicit. If you don't spell out how one idea relates to another, your reader may misunderstand you.

A list of common link words and phrases are shown on the next page.

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Link words and phrases: examples

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Use words and phrases like these in your topic sentences to show how one paragraph relates to another.

Using key words Key words are words that bind a paragraph together and help the reader to connect one paragraph to the next. Some words will be at the heart of what you want to say; don't be afraid to repeat them. Beware of using different words to express the same thing. Your reader may not understand what you are doing and think that you are talking about different ideas. Distinguish between key words and other, less important words. Repeat key words to reinforce the point you are making; find alternatives to unimportant words that may become annoying if overused. In this passage, the writer has cleverly used a small number of key words to bind the ideas together across paragraphs. Can you guess what the key words are?

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The key words, of course, are: indigenous; traditional; technology; knowledge; suud and Tonnibong.

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Click on the back button to verify this for yourself. Paragraph layout Paragraphs in modern documents are usually 'blocked': the first line is not indented. (We don't indent our paragraphs in this manual, for example.) You can, of course, indent sub-paragraphs to show the structure of your ideas. You might consider numbering sub-paragraphs. Example Look at this paragraph and see how you might use sub-paragraphs to make its meaning clearer. It would benefit from a topic sentence, too. For almost all the seeds, adequate sun-drying precedes storage. This destroys any eggs laid on the seed by pests. Pulses like greengram and blackgram are stored in airtight baskets made of palm. Sorghum is stored, along with layers of neem leaves and ash, in baskets. The top is covered with cowdung and mud. Varieties with a hard seed cover foxtail millet, for example - are left unsealed, in the open, with no specific treatment. The outer cover is impenetrable for pests. Varieties like niger and safflower are also left without air-tight sealing, in earthen pots. Here is our solution. Note the new topic sentence and the use of indenting to make the sub-paragraphs clearer and easier to understand. Numbering makes reading even simpler. Farmers store seeds in a variety of ways. For almost all the seeds, adequate sun-drying precedes storage. This destroys any eggs laid on the seed by pests. 1. Pulses like greengram and blackgram are stored in airtight baskets made of palm. 2. Sorghum is stored, along with layers of neem leaves and ash, in baskets. The top is covered with cowdung and mud. 3. Varieties with a hard seed cover - foxtail millet, for example - are left unsealed, in the open, with no specific treatment. The outer cover is impenetrable for pests. Varieties like niger and safflower are also left without air-tight sealing, in earthen pots. Using bullet point lists Bullet point lists can lighten a paragraph by presenting detailed information vertically. This puts space into the paragraph and makes the detail easier to digest.

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Use bullet points sparingly. They are very strong visual devices. You may destroy the effect if you: use too many lists on one page; make them too long; use them for unimportant details.

More and more writers use bullet points, but few use them well. So let's see how to do the job properly. Making bullet points work well Bullet points are a graphic device. They display information visually. They should, therefore, follow a few simple design conventions. Don't make the list too long. About six items is probably about right. Use parallel construction. Write every item in the list to the same pattern. This might be a single word, a phrase or clause, a sentence, or even a short paragraph (like this). The items in the list should all have the same grammatical construction. They might, for example, begin with infinitives, active or passive verbs, or participles. Make full use of the 'platform'. The platform is the line of text that introduces the list. It may be a complete sentence or only part of a sentence. If you find that you are repeating elements in each item of the list, put the repeated element into the platform instead. Make the platform and the list work together consistently. If the platform is an incomplete sentence, each item of the list should be able to fit on the end and make sense. Consider using numbers. Numbering is useful is you want to suggest that the points must follow in a certain order. Numbers do create a 'busier' visual effect: the list can become more cluttered. Arabic numbers are probably the least intrusive (1, 2, 3, ...). You can also consider different designs of bullet point, including icons and 'dingbats'. These may make the list look more fun but less serious. Punctuate the list coherently. You can punctuate a bullet point list in two ways. If the platform is an incomplete sentence, follow it with a colon (:). Each listed item begins with a lower-case letter and may end with a semi-colon (;). The last item takes a full stop (.). If the platform is a complete sentence, finish with a full stop. If the listed items are complete sentences, punctuate them as such. If any item in the list consists of more than one sentence, you must punctuate as sentences throughout - and ensure that the platform is a complete sentence as well. If the listed items are not sentences, use upper case at the start of each and no punctuation at the end.

Examples This example includes a platform that is an incomplete sentence. The bullet points themselves don't all logically complete the platform. Can you make it work properly?

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Proposals will be selected on the basis that the project:

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Addresses a priority area Research activities that contribute to fund strategies The project must include development activities that provide community benefits beyond the scope of the project Has feasible objectives given time and budget constraints

Once you have tried your solution, look at ours on the next page. Here is our solution. How did you do? Note that each bullet point must logically be able to complete the platform.

Now, let's do it again by making the platform a complete sentence. Proposals will be selected on the basis that the project satisfies four criteria. If the platform is a complete sentence, the bullet points can be in any form that makes sense. The bullet points should all be constructed in parallel: in other words, each is constructed in the same way. One possible solution is shown on the next page.

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And here is another, in which each bullet point is a complete sentence.

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IMPROVING YOUR SENTENCES

Sentences exist to express ideas. The best sentences are sturdy and straightforward. The reader can understand them easily, without having to reread them. Sentences become difficult to read for two main reasons. The sentence is too long. If you use too many words to express an idea, the reader will get lost. Aim for an average sentence length of 15-20 words. The sentence is poorly constructed. Sentences are built up out ofphrases: groups of words that express a single element of meaning. If the reader has to hold too many phrases in their mind at once, they will struggle. If phrases become knotted or over-complicated, reading will become more difficult.

As a general guideline, aim to express one idea per sentence. If you must put two or more ideas into a sentence, think carefully about how you do it.
Three kinds of sentence You can construct sentences in only three ways. Simple sentence Compound sentence Complex sentence

Understanding these methods of sentence construction will help you take command of your sentences. Simple sentences A simple sentence expresses just one idea. For example: Medicinal plants are not included in the survey. Note that a simple sentence can be too long, even though it only expresses one idea. For example: The Indigenous Keepers' Centre will help to develop a traditional science database of the threatened traditional species in this semidesert ecosystem on the borders of Canada and the United States. Compound sentences A compound sentence joins two simple sentences together with aconjunction. For example: Indigenous scientists have similar concerns to western scientists but they differ in their approach.

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Conjunctions Conjunctions join words, ideas or sentences. These are the most common: and, or, but, neither, before, after, until, when although, as, since, so, so that, because than, that, though, till, if, in order to, unless nor, whereas, while, whilst, provided that, yet Complex sentences

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In a complex sentence, the main idea of the sentence is joined by other,subordinate ideas. These cannot survive as sentences on their own. Subordinate ideas are separated from the main sentence by commas. For example: When the project began, the team's main focus was to find the source of pollution in the river basin. These international agencies are also new to this area of research, although they have a long tradition of service. In developing the proposal, we met with several private sector organisations, each of whom expressed interest in sponsoring our work.

A useful guideline is to restrict complex sentences to a maximum of threeideas: one main idea, and two subordinate ideas (as in the last example).
Four ways to strengthen weak sentences You can strengthen weak sentences in four main ways. Breaking up long sentences Separating 'multiple' sentences Reducing the length of sentences Using strong subjects and verbs

Aim first to improve only those sentences that are too long or complicated. Breaking up long sentences The quickest and simplest way to improve a long sentence is to break it into pieces. A simple sentence contains only one idea. Two simple sentences joined with a conjunction become a compound sentence. If the sentence is too long, look for the conjunction. Cut the sentence up into two sentences by removing the conjunction. Conjunctions join words, ideas or sentences. These are the most common:

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and, or, but, neither, before, after, until, when although, as, since, so, so that, because than, that, though, till, if, in order to, unless nor, whereas, while, whilst, provided that, yet Examples

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Here are some long sentences that you can make shorter by breaking at conjunctions. 1. Governments should combat the illegal export of banned and hazardous chemicals, including agro-chemicals, and should support the negotiation of a legally binding international instrument to apply procedures for hazardous chemicals and pesticides to international trade. 2. Various members showed interest in undertaking workshops but it was stressed that members or the institutions in which they work should not apply for workshop awards. 3. Plant diversity on the terrace risers in the higher and midelevations decreases with an increase in the elevation although at the lower altitudes the diversity was lower in the mid-elevation than in the two other elevations. Remember that there is never one correct solution. The aim in these cases, though, is to concentrate on the conjunctions. These are: 1. and 2. but 3. although Here are our suggested solutions.

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Separating 'multiple' sentences 'Multiple' sentences are sentences joined together without a conjunction. You could, of course, add a conjunction. Otherwise, separate them with a full stop to keep the sentences short. Try to rewrite these passages to create grammatically sound sentences.

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1. Not all e-businesses are equally suited to East Africa, for example, catalogue shopping might be impractical because of the cost of shipping goods overseas. 2. The various responses were evaluated and two projects chosen as case studies, one of these is a national organisation and the other a regional organisation serving Francophone countries only. 3. Innovators will spot trends quickly, however, the majority of the population tends to wait for mass acceptance of a product or service before adopting it. In each case, we have created new sentences. The new full stops are at: 1. for example 2. [the comma] 3. however Our solutions are shown on the next page.

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Reducing the length of sentences Any sentence that runs over about 25 words is probably too long. A sentence that is too long usually contains not only too many words, but also too many ideas. Some sentences (usually called complex sentences) consist of a main idea and extra elements that, themselves, could not survive as sentences. Grammatically, these extra elements are usually subordinate clauses. These are defined as clauses (containing a finite verb) that could not themselves stand as sentences. You can usually cut down such complex sentences by cutting out one or more subordinate clauses and placing them somewhere else. Let's work through some examples of sentences with subordinate clauses. Examples In these examples, we have marked the subordinate clauses. Note that they cannot stand alone as sentences: this is why they are classed as subordinate. 1. If telecentres are to succeed in rural areas, they must respond to the different ways in which local people develop new skills and apply them practically. 2. Given that transnational companies engage in bioprospecting in these areas , the project is also expected to play a role in restoring indigenous control over collective resources. 3. Mercury in its organic form - methyl mercury - can be absorbed by aquatic fauna, increasing in concentration as it moves up the food chain to fish and finally to humans. See if you can reconstruct these into more readable sentences. There is no single correct answer. Try to make sure that no one sentence exceeds 25 words. In the solutions we provide, we have separated the subordinate clauses into separate sentences. You probably did something similar. Note how you need to show the

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connection of one new sentence to the next. We have done this by using these words or phrases. 1. to do so 2. therefore 3. It

Using strong subjects and verbs At the heart of every sentence is a relationship between a subject and averb.

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The subject is the thing or person that the sentence is about. The verb expresses what the subject is doing or being. In the clearest sentences, the subject and verb are specific and placed at the beginning. In poor sentences, they tend to be general or meaningless and placed in the middle or the end of the sentence. This technique involves identifying the subject and main verb of the sentence and either replacing them or moving them. Examples In these sentences, the subject and verb (which we've marked) are not strong. Can you rewrite the sentences to include stronger subjects and verbs? 1. We [subject] will undertake [verb] a study of shifting cultivation patterns. 2. It [subject] is considered [verb] likely that this technology will be available within two years. 3. To maintain a productive and sustainable environment, conservation of biodiversity of plant and animal species by local farmers [subject] is [verb]essential. In these sentences, we've replaced the weak subjects and verbs with stronger ones. We've also (in no.3) moved the main idea to the start of the sentence.

CHOOSING YOUR WORDS

English gives you a far greater choice of words than many other languages. The main reason for this huge choice is that English is, and always has been, a hybrid language. It emerged as a mixture of three languages - Anglo-Saxon, French and Latin - and it has continued to absorb words from other languages ever since: from Arabic, Greek, Turkish, Hindi, Chinese and Persian, to name only a few. So choosing the best word is an important part of writing well in English. Five techniques will help you to make wise choices:

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Using plain English Activating passive verbs Using strong, clear, specific words Removing unnecessary words Using short words

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Using plain English Plain English helps any reader to understand information at first reading. The word 'plain' suggests clarity, simplicity and honesty. Plain English seeks to remove complicated language, jargon or highflown nonsense: what is sometimes called 'gobbledegook'. Plain English is a set of guidelines, not rules. After all, we all use language in different ways. What is plain to a farmer may not be plain to a professor of biology. People use language differently in different places: what is clear in Delhi may be ambiguous in Ottawa. And words change their meaning over time. Plain English: essential guidelines Most promoters of plain English offer these core guidelines. Remember that they are not rules. They will help you to choose the right word, but they cannot tell you which word to use. The final choice is always yours. Make your average sentence length 15-20 words. Use only the words that your reader is most likely to understand. Prefer active verbs to passive verbs. Use the strongest, clearest and most specific verbs that you can. Use only as many words as you need. Say what you mean. Be positive and avoid standard expressions and tired formulas. Punctuate accurately and simply.

For more on plain English, see The Plain English Guide by Martin Cutts, published by Oxford University Press, 1995. Activating passive verbs Verbs can be either active or passive. An active verb expresses what its subject does (or is). A passive verb expresses what its subject suffers, or has done to it. This sentence is active because it includes an active verb. Farmers grow traditional species on marginal land. And this is a passive sentence because it includes a passive verb. Traditional species are grown by farmers on marginal land. Active sentences are usually stronger, shorter, more dynamic and easier to read than passive ones.

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A verb is active when its subject performs the action. We will publish a catalogue illustrating various land races. A verb is passive when its subject suffers the action. A catalogue illustrating various land races will be published.

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Passive verbs are always constructed from a finite part of the verb to be and a past participle (ending in -ed, -en, -t or irregularly). They are extremely common. Here are just a few.

Passive verbs are not wrong! Passive verbs can provide a more objective or diplomatic tone in your writing. You may wish to use them if: you don't want to 'appear' personally in your document; you don't know who or what did something; you would rather not admit who was responsible for an action.

Don't feel that you must be rigidly consistent in your use of passive or active verbs. There is nothing wrong with using both. Be guided by what you want to say. Use the verb that expresses your meaning most clearly. Be aware that too many passive verbs will tend to make your writing dull and lifeless. As a general guideline, use fewer passive verbs and more active ones. Passive verbs in scientific writing There has been a tradition of using passive verbs in scientific writing and in academic writing. They are said to provide objectivity. For example, many scientists would feel uncomfortable writing: We undertook a research programme in the area. We documented local species and prepared a detailed database.

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They would rather say:

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A research programme was undertaken. Information about local species was documented and a detailed database was prepared. This example shows one very good reason for using passives: they stop the tedious repetition of 'we' or 'I'. However, many editors of scientific journals now prefer scientists to take ownership of (and responsibility for) their work, and therefore insist that 'We' or 'I' is used. Whatever the case, don't apply this convention too rigidly. Using passive verbs throughout a document can create a stifling and almost unreadable style. You can use both passives and actives in the same text. The team undertook a programme of research in the area. Data about local species were documented and assembled into a database. Examples To activate a passive verb, ask: Who is doing the action? Put the 'operator' at the beginning of the sentence, as the subject. Now ask: What is the 'operator' doing? Put the verb directly after the subject and construct the rest of the sentence. For example: All applications are reviewed by the Selection Committee. Who is doing the action? The Selection Committee. What is the 'operator' doing? The Selection Committee reviews all applications. Look at the following and consider the changes you might make to the sentences. 1. The findings should be disseminated by global funding bodies. 2. Cultivation methods are improved by the use of the new tool. 3. Proposals should be submitted to the Secretariat. 4. Weeding is traditionally done by women. Here are our answers to these examples. We've included the original sentences and marked the passive verbs. 1. The findings should be disseminated by global funding bodies. Global funding bodies should disseminate the findings.

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2. Cultivation methods are improved by the use of the new tool. Using the new tool improves cultivation methods. 3. Proposals should be submitted to the Secretariat. Submit proposals to the Secretariat. 4. Weeding is traditionally done by women. Women traditionally do the weeding. Using strong, clear, specific verbs

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Verbs are the most important words we use. A verb is at the heart of every sentence. Indeed, sentences can't exist without verbs. Strong, clear, specific verbs bring your writing alive, because verbs express what happens. All too often, the action in sentences is expressed not by a verb but by a noun. This smothers the energy of your ideas and makes your writing dull and lifeless. The technical term for this is nominalisation - itself an example of just the kind of deadly noun we're talking about. Here are some examples of nominalisation. The noun is in bold. The committee will give the application urgent consideration. Farmers carry out seasonal soil renewal. The team has performed an evaluation of the project's success. Scientists will conduct an analysis of the samples.

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Here are those examples again. Note how, in each case, the key action in the sentence is expressed by a noun (in bold). Because the sentence needs a verb, the writer drags in a weak verb that adds little meaning. We need to transform the noun into a verb. The sentence will then have a strong, clear and specific verb at its heart - and it will come alive. The committee will give the application urgent consideration.

The committee will consider the application urgently. Farmers carry out seasonal soil renewal.

Farmers renew the soil seasonally. The team has performed an evaluation of the project's success.

The team has evaluated the project's success. Scientists will conduct an analysis of the samples.

Scientists will analyse the samples. Here are some more sentences where the key action is expressed as an abstract noun (in bold). It drags into the sentence a weak verb that has little meaning (in italics). Can you rewrite the sentences, turning the abstract noun into a verb? 1. The team performed measurements on the levels of mercury in river fish. 2. A continual assessment of the project's development is necessary. 3. The distinction between cultivated and wild foods is not always clear. 4. Documentation of folk knowledge will be achieved within six months. 5. A discussion is urgently required on the issues to be addressed. Solutions Here are our thoughts. 1. The team performed measurements on the levels of mercury in river fish. The team measured the levels of mercury in river fish. 2. A continual assessment of the project's development is necessary. You must continually assess how the project develops. 3. The distinction between cultivated and wild foods is not always clear.

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We cannot always distinguish clearly between cultivated and wild foods. 4. Documentation of folk knowledge will be achieved within six months. The team will document folk knowledge within six months. 5. A discussion is urgently required on the issues to be addressed. We must discuss urgently what issues to address. Removing unnecessary words Most of us use more words than we need. Sometimes, writers use unnecessary words because: or out of habit. they sound good; they haven't thought through exactly what they do want to say;

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Your first draft probably includes some unnecessary words and phrases. Remove them at the editing stage. Leave only those words that you need.

Is this word necessary? How do you tell if a word is necessary? Simple: remove it. Now, do you need a group of words to say the same thing? If so, the word is probably necessary. If not, find a shorter, simpler word to say the same thing.

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Removing unnecessary words: simple techniques Imagine speaking what you've written. How does it sound? How might it sound to the reader? How could you say it more simply? Write what you say. (Before long, you may find that you have voiceactivated software on your computer that allows you to do this.) Be sincere. Don't try too hard to be polite. A little good manners goes a long way in writing. Too much politeness easily sounds insincere. In particular, don't wrap up unpleasant news in pleasant language. Don't use 'scaffolding'. Avoid referring to the fact that you are writing:I am writing to ..., So far we have examined ..., At this point we turn to ... Avoid value-loaded words. If you must use words like these, use numbers to show what you mean. Better to make your point more clearly than to use: several, numerous, extensive, excessively, insufficient, massive, enormous, big, tiny, undersized, minimal, a significant increase (except when used in a strict statistical sense), to a considerable extent... Avoid clichs. Look at the next page to see what we mean.

Clichs A clich was originally a block of type containing the whole of a common phrase; printers used them to save time when setting up a page of print. The word now means any phrase that blocks the flow of the language around it.

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Here are some sentences that use more words than necessary. Can you cut them back so that you are only using as many words as you need? 1. The time constraint did not allow as detailed interviews as we would have liked to have done with regard to certain projects that seemed particularly innovative. 2. It should be appreciated that there is almost always an element of underestimating of numbers of people affected by industrial accidents, particularly in those occurrences when individuals do not suffer immediate or visible injury. 3. At a time when we are developing community guidelines for the development of telecentre projects, it is a useful time to provide some indication of what we mean by the words we are using. Here are our solutions. Be aware that there is no single, correct answer here. 1. The time constraint did not allow as detailed interviews as we would have liked to have done with regard to certain projects that seemed particularly innovative. Time stopped us from interviewing teams from some projects that we thought particularly innovative. 2. It should be appreciated that there is almost always an element of underestimating of numbers of people affected by industrial accidents, particularly in those occurrences when individuals do not suffer immediate or visible injury. The recorded number of people affected by industrial accidents is almost always an underestimate, particularly when people are not immediately or obviously injured. 3. At a time when we are developing community guidelines for the development of telecentre projects, it is a useful time to provide some indication of what we mean by the words we are using. As we are developing community guidelines for developing telecentre projects, we should provide some key definitions. Using short words Your reader is more likely to understand short words than long ones. English is full of pairs - and often triplets - of words meaning roughly the same thing. At its core, English is made up of three strands: Anglo- Saxon (a language now dead but related to modern German), French and Latin. In many cases, each language has contributed (or given!) a word of a similar meaning. For example, you could try (AngloSaxon), attempt or endeavour(both from French); you might initiate (Latin), commence (French) or begin(Anglo-Saxon); and you could help (Anglo-Saxon), assist, aid (both French),facilitate (Latin through French) or even (if you were a rather old-fashioned poet) succour (French). One of these words will usually be shorter than the others - and it will usually be the Anglo-Saxon word. Plain English suggests that, on the whole, the shorter word is plainest and clearest.

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Don't ignore long words!

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Of course, long words have their place. A word with a precise technical meaning, for example, may express exactly what you want to say. Technical words are plain to technical specialists. Your choice of word will depend on more than its length. You will need to think about: whether you or the reader know the words; the associations that you or your reader might bring to the word; whether the word has a specialised meaning in the context in which you're writing.

Many long words, though, are not specialist or technical; a shorter alternative will usually work just as well - if not better.

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